Port of Subs

Seattle has many delicious eateries, but unfortunately, Port of Subs is not one of them. Oh sure, you could saddle up the ponies and make the trek to Tulalip or Mountlake Terrace or something, but it’s not exactly a quick lunch stop. And as all Nevadans know, Port of Subs is THE accept-​no-​substitutes sandwich place. So when I am in places that do have a Port of Subs, I make it a point to stop there, even if it’s somewhere I would never normally deign to spend time in. Like, say, Bellingham.
My traveling companion (also a Nevadan, also faithful to PoS) and I were actually headed way up to the border, but plotted our route so that we could stop and get our fix. True devotees don’t even need to look at the menu board or watch their sandwich being made — they know what they want before they ever step inside. «Number 8, on wheat, all the regulars, light on the oil,» mused my traveling companion dreamily. «Number 15, on white, pickles no olives, all the regulars,» I sighed, gazing out the window.
The Bellingham location isn’t that convenient from the freeway — our Mapquest directions got us there, but there was a lot of twisting and turning on weird side streets to find it. The building itself is odd too — it looks like a repurposed bank or something, triangular and made of brick, with lots of old-​fashioned honey pine wood fixtures inside. The gleaming metal sandwich counter and franchising signage looks kind of strange inside this funky old building, as does the independent coffee/​pastry bar located in the dining area, but that gives it a certain oddball charm you don’t see in the built-​to-​suit strip-​mall locations.
At around 5:00 pm on a Friday afternoon, the place was deserted, and they made our sandwiches quickly and correctly, with no skimping on the ingredients. While we were waiting to get our frequent-​diner cards stamped, a regular came in, and they started making his sandwich and put his favorite cookie on the counter before he even asked. You see why we love Port of Subs? We were the only dine-​in customers, and the atmosphere was pleasant, clean, and quiet. If you’re ever in Bellingham — though I can’t imagine why you would be — cruise on over to Port of Subs and see what a REAL sub sandwich is like!