John’s Sandwich Shop

Love this place. The staff is really friendly and welcoming. The hire local high school and college kids which you have to love. Great food, lots of healthy options if you want, but awesome burgers and shakes, burritos, wraps and salads.

Thought about one star. $ 10 for a French dip sandwich that was very tiny and had almost no meat on it, and the meat that was there was dry and flavorless (old?). Fine for this neighborhood to have a higher price — but the food better measure up. This did not.
Broccoli slaw was good.
I told waitress about the sandwich and she was apologetic but did not discount the check. THEN she told me they did not take credit or debit cards. I had to walk over to the nearby gas station $ 2.25 charge to use ATM. Waitress was nice and apologetic and said this happens all the time. So why wasn’t I warned first? No signs either to this effect.
I have only rarely seen a restaurant that did not accept plastic, and that was in a bad neighborhood. So… their prices reflect a trendy neighborhood, but the food is bad, and they don’t want to pay the fee to let us use our plastic. Nice.
I won’t be back.

other then the cash only, this is a great place to stop for breakfast or lunch. Fresh yummy food and a great staff

Just had lunch there. The food, staff, ambiance, everything was great. My wife eyes lit up when she tasted the homemade cola and exclaimed «this would perfect with Captain Morgan!» Too funny.
I work nearby and now might have a new go to place for breakfast!

The food was absolutely scrumptious. The only thing that I have to say is that my beverage tasted a bit watered down, and I even got a replacement, and it still tasted watered down… otherwise this place is fantastic! A little on the noisy side, but great service. c:

Great place with lots of choices for vegetarians. Killer hot chocolate.

I’m not overly impressed with this local shop. There’s nothing special about the food and it was lacking flavor. I had the steak sandwich and it was very tough. Also — pricier than I’d expect to pay for a sandwich. Oh and SURPRISE they do not take credit cards. I understand the nostalgia and costs associated with credit card fees, but come on its 2016…

I’ve been here a couple times. The last time there quite a strong sewage smell. I’m sure that was out of their hands and taken care of subsequently. In previous visits that was not noticeable.
The food is done well. Smallish portions, though and quite pricey for the amount. We’re not paying for the atmosphere or view here… Don’t get me wrong — I like the atmosphere — kind of like a small town diner — but the price does not reflect what you would pay at a small town diner. This is probably owing to the location.
I tried to use plastic but was informed that it was cash only upon attempting to pay. It would have been nice to know that beforehand.

Cash or check only!
Weekend brunch: Lots of egg dishes, a quaint diner, usually pretty quick seating. Overall good food with quality ingredients.
I really wish they would offer more cheese on their egg dishes, it’s either a light grating of Parmesan or just Monterey Jack for the make your own scrambler option. I would like to see provolone and cheddar available. My final criticism is that their American fries desperately need to be salted during the cooking process. I guess this is good for those with high blood pressure, though.

My reporter and I were looking for a quick bite to eat and kind of just stumbled upon this. What an egg-​celent find! I had Egg Salad on toast with a broccoli slaw. The toast was a great touch and the egg salad was great!!! I was skeptical of the broccoli slaw but it was perfect. I wish I could take a full bucket home with me! Our bill together was 24 and I’m full! Well worth the money!

Great place tucked away in West ‘Tosa just across from Ray’s Wine and Spirits. I wish I hadn’t bypassed John’s for so long, because this was a stellar meal which guaranteed my return in the near future. It’s small and the inside is a bit crowded, but snag a spot on the patio outside and enjoy your meal — just don’t expect to be able to hear your conversation what with the traffic on North Ave providing background noise. Ah well, the food, great staff and service all make up for that.
My brother destroyed their Smash Burger (4 stars) and raved about the flavor and fried egg topping (call your cardiologist, brother). I opted for a Spinach Pesto scrambler (4 stars) which ended up being larger than I bargained for — but an incredibly flavorful and power-​packed brunch. The highlight appeared to be my dad’s 89^th Street Club (4.5 stars) — packed with turkey & bacon, topped with a cranberry salsa. The garlic fries were lip-​smacking good, as were the «plain» American fries.
I’d recommend biking in as parking can be at a premium in this area — unless you’re willing to park on a side street and walk it in from several blocks. Bring cash as they don’t accept credit card or bartering.
Solid all-​around; I need to make this one of my regular stops in ‘Tosa!

We did the work lunch thing here because it’s been a while and I forgot it’s cash or check.
This place is supposed to have been turning out burgers since 1963 so today it will be a burger, see my picture. The smash burger looked pretty interesting and that would be my choice.
The burger looked and smelled amazing. My burger came with broccoli slaw and a pickle. My first bite was amazingly good with a deep/​rich char grill flavor in the beef patty. The smash burger is a med fried egg, cheddar cheese, raw red onion at my request and bacon. The bun was soft and fresh even though it looks like a dense one. The beef was juicy and not cooked to death as per my request. The whole burger worked very well and in glad I had the smash burger.
This is a perfect example of what a great real burger is and why I don’t care much for any of the fast food burger chains.
The slaw was on the sweet side and was very different because it was broccoli slaw but it was good.
As far as char grill burgers go this is one of the best I have had in a long time. This is a dam good burger place. I would definitely come back for a burger.

I have never had a dining experience go so poorly that I would join Unilocal.But here I am.
First of all they are cash only. This is not a street vendor in a third world country this is a well established sandwich shop in the middle of a city. They also didn’t tell us until the end of our meal. I only had my credit card on me so I had to drive all the way home, get my debit card, drive to an ATM and get cash and then go back to John’s.
Second of all I asked to substitute one of my sides with sweet potato fries. I figured it would cost extra but the waitress just said sure so I assumed it would come with my meal. When I got the bill I got charged full price for both items. Such bad customer service. If you are changing the bill you need to give the customer a warning.
I would understand all of this if it were a busy day and they were running around but no. We were the only ones there and there were four workers standing around.
Food was average. Will not return.

I feel like a jerk leaving a bad review for John’s Sandwich Shop as it seems pretty popular, but it’s a do not pass go, do not collect $ 200 place for me (i.e., never going back). First, John’s looks ok from the outside: private parking lot, nice patio on North Ave. But a) I nearly did a face plant walking in the west side (off parking lot) door and b) the musty/​dirty smell accosted me the moment I walked in the door. I should have known better than to order, but I did. The inside is divey, to say the least. If you’re going to eat there, I recommend take out or heading straight for the patio.
Second, friendly waitresses so that’s a plus. One of the waitresses offered me a table and a glass of ice water while I waited, which was nice. But the cook glared at me. What did I do wrong?! Anyway, thankfully I checked out some Unilocal reviews while I waited and saw it was cash/​check only or I would have been screwed because none of the restaurant employees said anything and there aren’t any signs posted.
I had a bacon avocado turkey wrap with a side of garlic fries, which was $ 14! Yikes! Plus when I opened the to go container, I found about 5 fries total. I should mention this was a separate order of fries and did not come with the sandwich. The food was decent but nothing that particularly stood out. I think something on the wrap wasn’t fresh (mayo perhaps?) because I was sick for most of the afternoon after my lunch. Dear John, It was nice knowing you…

Awesomely yummy! Fresh looking menu. My food was great. Why only a 2 star review? It wasn’t till I went to pay that they told me they’re cash or check only. I looked around, couldn’t find a sign stating that. Not stated on their menu either. We’re a plastic world, I never carry cash with me, lots of people dont. That’s one of those things that should be made clear when you walk in. I just so happened to have my check book with me, otherwise I have no idea how I would have paid.

A tiny little place that has, according to the menu, been around for years and years. Given that, I was surprised by how healthy most of the options seemed. My turkey bacon wrap was filling without oozing mayo all over the place. I would definitely be there for all my sandwiches if I lived in Milwaukee!
The thing that knocked one star off this review is the fact that this place is cash only, but there’s no sign on the door and they don’t bother to let you know until they’re handing you the check. Gee, thanks.

I am on day 14 of my first Whole 30, and the hardest part by far is eating out (or not). I’m often alone for dinner since my husband tends to work evenings, and my tiny kitchen is no fun for cooking.
This wasn’t my first visit to John’s Sandwich Shop, so I knew I’d be able to find something to eat. They have a great menu for anyone looking to eat healthier and more local. The menu features fun facts about ingredients like quinoa and spinach. The sugar bowls offer stevia. Clearly the owner is up on food trends.
Today, I ordered an avocado shrimp salad. It comes with a citrus vinegrette which I subbed out for olive oil and balsamic. The server was able to tell me what type of oil the shrimp is cooked in – coconut!
The salad arrived nicely plated with fresh spring greens. I might have liked larger shrimp, but for the price, I was satisfied.
I also took home a burger on a bed of spinach. Can’t wait to dive into that!
If you’re looking for a nice neighborhood café that is able to accommodate unique dietary requests, I definintely recommend John’s!
#paleo #whole30 #realfood

By far one of the best burgers I have had in the (414).
Came here on a date and a recommendation. and blindly ordered the Smash Burger. A perfectly grilled beef patty with caramelized diced onions and cheddar topped with an egg over easy. From bun to bun my mouth was watering. So happy this happened to me.
In the world of tosa the restaurants are spread out and vary every other block. it was nice to find a place I will soon become a regular.
Thank you staff and crew. You made this date very smooth.

Okay… this place is the reason you are on Unilocal.You are looking for that diamond in the rough. That non chain restaurant that serve delicious food. This is that place.
First off, this place is not gonna win a beauty pageant. This has the ambience of a restaurant that has between here for a while. Yes, the bathroom is in the basement and the stairs are a little scary. So what! This beats a clean Mickey D any day.
So we went on a Saturday night and place is pretty much empty… which is a shame. We sat right by the grill which was great. You can see them cook the food right there. I got the bacon spinach egg scrambler. Delicious! It was cooked over American fries. basically grilled potatoes. Wife get French toast and she said it was the best she ever had. My daughter loved the bacon, devoted the eggs and enjoyed her pancakes. My son didn’t care for the batter of his waffles. The staff noticed and brought him out a replacement pancake. That pancake lasted only for 5 minutes as my son wolfed it down.
We will be back!
Friendly staff. Fresh food. Cash only.fyi.

It’s like they’re deep frying durian fruit stuffed carp topped with limburger cheese.
The past few times I’ve picked up carry-​out orders the restaurant smells of pungent fish fry. It hits you when you walk in the door. Last night my wife had John’s chicken pesto quesadilla and was «below the waist sick» early this morning. I’m done with John’s Sandwich Shop for a while.