Potbelly Sandwich Works

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Potbelly Sandwich Works
Type
Founded	1977
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois
Industry	Fast food
Products	Sandwiches, Salads, Soups, Ice Cream
Website	www.potbelly.com

A location in Eden Prairie, MN

Potbelly Sandwich Works is a chain of fast food restaurants that sells submarine sandwiches in the USA. Its name is derived from potbelly stoves common in the late 19th century. The company is headquartered in the tower of Chicago's Merchandise Mart.

[edit] History

Potbelly Sandwich Works began in a Chicago antique store in 1977 by Peter and Laura Hastings and has been offering hot sandwiches longer than competitors such as Subway, Quiznos Sub, and Blimpie. All locations share an antique store theme. In 1998, the chain expanded to locations outside of the Chicago area, after being purchased by Bryant L. Keil. [1] There are now over 200 Potbelly locations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., and Wisconsin.

Potbelly's menu features a variety of sandwiches that are all served hot on regular or wheat bread. All sandwiches can be ordered "skinny" style in which one third of the bread is cut out. The chain began offering salads in February 2007. The menu also includes soup, shakes, malts, and cookies. Most restaurants feature live music from local musicians during their lunch hours.

The name of the store derives from Peter Hastings' hobby of restoring old potbelly stoves.

The original Potbelly musician is Mick Scott, who still plays at the Lincoln Avenue location. Scott is the brother of the late Bobby Scarpelli, the well-known Chicago club doorman.

At some urban locations, employees deliver orders via bicycle.

Rooted in the environmentalism and localism of 1970s Lincoln Park, the original Potbelly store cut its rolls from full loaves of freshly baked Gonnella bread delivered every morning in a single large paper bag. The store also did early recycling of cans and other materials. In the original store, there still is a downspout for this purpose leading to the basement, but it is not operational. The famous trash area also had two holes, one labeled for cans and bottles and one for regular garbage.

On November 5, 2007, a new Potbelly store in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, became the first to feature a drive-through.