W.G. Grinders

Based on my copious experience watching the Food Network, I believe that a grinder is a sub is a hoagie is a sandwich. AKA meat between two slices of bread. Yeah, I know. A little anticlimactic, isn’t it? What does W.G. stand for anyway?
I had a simple ham and cheese sandwich. And a lot of water. A LOT. Because my sandwich was so salty. Which, to be fair, is probably not W.G.‘s fault, because ham tends to be very salty generally, so okay, let’s say that that was my own stupidity for not remembering that I always find ham and cheese too salty. Aside from my otherwise basic and boring sandwich (hey maybe you could use cheese that’s a little more exciting than provolone to spice things up… or something, anything, really), nothing about the place was otherwise redeeming. Yawn.
There’s outdoor seating and a reasonably broad selection of sandwiches and wraps (and pasta, too, I think). (Darn it, why did I get a ham and cheese? WHY?)

A good enough place if you are just after food but it suffers in the eating experience department. Definitely not a date location, the interior is dark and there were zero other customers (ambiance – ) during the time I was there (7:30ish on a weekday).
Food was about average, with extra points for quantity (the regular size was more than enough for a meat-​loving man). I can only assume that a Grinder is an open-​face sandwich; unfortunately this is not immediately clear when ordering (beware if you are as ignorant as I!). What makes my ignorance truly unfortunate is that the sandwich is too thick to fold and eat in the conventional manner.
While they provided a plastic fork, it was immediately obvious that a knife would be needed (which I had to get myself). The plastic utensils were barely sufficient to assist in eating — WG really needs to invest in some real silverware. For the heavy cutting involved, they should also serve their sandwiches on plates instead of in cheap plastic baskets.

Good food and great service. I had the buffalo chicken salad and Cal had the veggie grinder. It was a bit of a wait, but it was worth it. At first, I thought the salad was on the smallish side, but it was the perfect amount of food. I had the ranch dressing on the side, and didn’t really have any because the salad was good without it. Cal’s sandwich was really good and not as salty as I expected it would be. The bathroom is clean. I guess I didn’t have high expectations and this place exceeded it by a lot.

Driving into work, I noticed W. G Grinders. Wasn’t sure what a grinder was, but the word «sandwich» caught my attention. Around 2pm or so, I decided food would be good before I faint. So… I decide to walk down to W.G. Grinders.
I caught the staff on their break eating, but I was still greeted. I was overwhelmed by the menu, but the pastrami grinder caught my attention. I tried to order, but the guy behind the counter said they had ran out of pastrami. Is it THAT good? I had to settle for an Italian Sausage grinder.
My grinder had sliced mild Italian sausage, green bell peppers, onion and cheese all toasted over bread.
This particular grinder was a breath threat. Tons on onions. After a few bites, I was realizing what I was eating and had to unload the onions from my grinder so I would be able to keep my welcome at work.
Overall, it was pretty good. The place is clean, has a nice feel to it, and the best part is that it is very fairly priced. I was at $ 6.50 for a 6 inch grinder and soda. That is just amazing for lunch on Castro!
I’m defiantly coming back to try the pastrami grinder out.

Looking for something different while walking down Castro Street in Mountain View. It’s 3pm and it’s that nether time between lunch and dinner, so many places are closed.
I’m getting hungrier and hungrier — then I spot W.G. Grinders.
What the hell is a grinder?
We stop to look at the menu that is posted in the window. The prices look reasonable — I’m game to give it a try.
It appears that a grinder is a toasted sandwich (much like Quizno’s). I guess this terminology is used in the northern part of the mid-​west — as was explained to me by a friend who is more worldly than I.
I ordered a turkey reuben and S. ordered an angus beef sandwich. The sandwiches were delivered to us open faced and piping hot. The melted cheese oozing over the meat and bread. I had a side of coleslaw that had way too much mayonnaise — but it was ok considering how hungry I was.
As I took my first bite — it was good, but I felt my arteries start to harden. People back East really eat stuff like this all the time?
I hope that they have a defibrillator somewhere in the back.

So I’m on day 3 of my new job, and I’m trying out a WHOLE bunch of places on Castro to get aquainted with my new food supply chain. My colleague took me to W.G. Grinders. Not sure what a grinder was (I’m a foreigner, okay? And I’m not familiar with East Coast lingo), I decided to go for the plunge. My colleagues ordered fast so I had to be quick. Having an understanding that this place served subs, I quickly asked if they had a turkey and avocado sandwich because that was on the top of my head, and my favorite sandwich combo.
They didn’t.
They offered me a turkey and ham.
I thought, okay, so I ordered.
It turned out to be a hot sub, so I was very happy because it was one of those gloomy, cloudy days where hot foods comforted you to the inner level. And it was gooooood. The bread had a crunch, and then you reached fluffiness. It was nice and toasty inside, but the lettuce and tomato were still cold, indicating its freshness. The cheese was melty and married the ingredients of the sandwich nicely. I was very happy. I’ll be sure to go back and go for a more sophisticated «grinder» or a soup, especially if this chilly weather holds up.
And it helps when you walk in the door and see the « Unilocal loves us» decal.

This is a convenient place to walk to from my work to have lunch. I was a bit confused about what a grinder was. I was very inept at understanding the menu but the girl behind the cashier was very nice and helpful. I ordered the combo meal with a pizza on a french roll, salad, and a drink. It came to $ 7.25 which was similar to what I’d probably spend at Quiznos or at Subway. The pizza comes with just cheese and pepperoni. I actually opted for no pepperoni but asked for jalapenos on it. That was delicious. The food came out promptly which I was surprised b/​c my co-​workers had said that their service was slow. I came here at 12:30 on a Thursday and there was no crowd which was a plus so if you’re pressed for time, this is a good place to hit.

Toasted subs yes sounds good to me but seriously it’s not that here at WG grinders. I’m not use to such small portions. I mean. for about 8 bucks I could get a sub elsewhere.
Good notes about this place is that it’s service is great. I’d give it only 2 stars cuz portion size/​price

Dare I say it? A toasted sub place that gives Quizno’s a run for its money — and even beats Quizno’s’ BLT? (Someone who’s read Eats, Shoots, and Leaves, please fix that…) OK I’m saying it. We came here and got that BLT and some chicken I think cordon bleu. The call these toasted sandwiches «grinders» for some reason. Grinders??? I barely even know her’s. Anyway, the chicken featured a great sauce, and the BLT featured actual sandwich bacon as opposed to the «toppings style» bacon that Quizno’s uses.
Now here’s the kicker: they actually have nutrition info online:
BEST X AARON’S EVER HAD WINNER: BLT

Wow, I’m glad my friend and I decided on this place during our lunch hour. The food is similar to Quiznos, in that their sandwiches are toasted, but I think the quality is much better.
For my first time I decided to go simple and order their baked chicken grinder… diced chicken with lettuce, tomoates, provolone cheese on white bread. It definitely hit the spot. The 6-​inch sub was just enough to curb my appetite and it wasn’t too greasy at all. With my regular-​sized soda it came to less than $ 7. It’s a little more expensive than Quiznos but you pay for it in the quality. Plus, they personally give you your sandwich, so there’s a plus.
Great place to go for sandwiches in downtown Mountain View… and I’m glad there are more choices now than the Subway that we usually go to down the street.

W.G. Grinders is a bit pricier than Subway or Quiznos and the wait can be a pain for lunch during the work week, but man do they serve up some hot and tasty sandwiches!
The menu is extensive and even includes some great salads, pizzas, baked desserts and ice cream.
The staff I’ve encountered here have always been really friendly and accommodating, which is more than I can say for the workers at some of those other sub chains.

A reasonably good toasted sub (er, grinder) place. This franchise is definitely from east of the Mississippi. I’ve only been there once, so far. But, the bread and sandwich were tasty. They also serve beer on tap. I commented to my lunch companion that it had a slight feel of a sports bar. They also have pizza and baked pasta.
You order your food at the counter. They bring it out to you when it’s ready.
This place will be added to my list of lunch sandwich places in Mountain View along with Dittmer’s, Quiznos, Regal Bagel, Erik’s Deli, Posh Bagel, and sometimes Tony & Alba’s. I still miss good northeast sub shops.

I’ve eaten here three times in the past week. I like it that much. Think of it as Quizno’s with less attitude and more chance of being good for you. (Nutrition info, from Quiznos? Mooooo.) And they have pizzas and some other stuff – I go in for the sandwiches so that’s what I pay attention to.
A ten inch sandwich served open, with a side deli salad and a soda for under $ 10 is reasonable. Get a combo card and your 9^th combo is a free 6″ combo.
Some menu thoughts: The greek salad is a favorite; macaroni salad (tried once) tasted freezerburned; cole slaw was very potent and yummy. The iced tea dispenser has worked about half of the times I’ve been in. The cookies and salads are in a display case with cute signs… look for the macadamia nut cookies for a special treat.
I’ve had turkey and ham, chicken cordon bleu, and chicken parmesan sandwiches, each in 10″ with everything as served. My girlfriend had a turkey reuben but scraped off the coleslaw. She was happy with the reuben, and I definitely like the chicken cordon bleu. Chicken parmesan was okay, and the turkey and ham was a bit plain for my tastes (maybe I should have swiped her coleslaw for it).
It’s a good, fresh, easy to get to restaurant within walking distance of my office. And if I go to lunch with different coworkers every day, I can probably go 3 – 4 times a week. It’s no Schlotzky’s, but it kicks Subway’s (or Quizno’s) butt all over the place.
Oh yeah. The staff does push the combos a bit, and I usually have to specify greeK salad (not greeN salad) two or three times, as well as specifying «for here» twice. They’re new, but at least they’re friendly. And they don’t claim to be «sandwich artists» while counting olive slices.
And a note on the «additional tips» … they don’t have waiter service, although they bring your food to you. You order at the counter as with almost any sandwich shop. They cater (I learned about them when my company brought them in for lunch one day), dunno if they actually do individual delivery. And the catering is hit or miss, definitely not as good as fresh and in person. But that’s true for most places, even Clarke’s.

Yeah… wasn’t that thrilled about this place. For about $ 6 or so, you get about 6″ of sandwhich… that’s it… no chips. no drink. … not even generous on the toppings.
We went for a try… and just wasn’t that impressed.

pre tango night we stopped here.
It was like a glorified Quiznos. They prep the sandwich then warm it. They offer combos, with chips, with side salads, with ice cream and a few others. The price was right, and it was quick. I had the Classic Italian. It was tasty, but a bit greasy.
Negative point for the annoying server, who kept pushing the combos even though we’d already said we were fine with the things we ordered. another negative point because they had sanitized the iced tea container that day, and didn’t let the sanitizer run out before we got our iced tea, and they told us to dirnk it.

Seemed like an effort to build a chain along lines of the neighborhood «grinder» or sub shops that are an institution in parts of eastern US. Folks working there said the chain is based in Ohio and when I asked what is different from Quizno’s or Subway, they said theirs «bakes» the hot sandwiches and pastas.
Sandwiches come by length: 6, 10, or 20 inches, and for a couple dollars more a «combo» adds large fountain drink and substantial salad or other side (it was a good deal). 10-​inch meatball sandwich came on open sourdough baguette, cut into two (fairly big) half sandwiches, one would serve an average appetite. Seemed to be ordinary commercial meatballs (a pity because interesting meatballs aren’t hard to make — Tommy’s Joynt on Van Ness in SF long had a meatball sandwich worth a detour for).
Downtown MV has a dense diverse restaurant scene. There’s an index of all of them including coffee and tea houses — 91 places, currently — just a list, no comments or recommendations. This index has appeared in local media, it’s maintained by a local family that evidently likes to eat out:

It’s a college dorm cafeteria. Flash backs of swiping my meal card came to me while I was waiting in line to order. You order at the counter and then someone brings your food to you, but it’s not a comfortable place. The restaurant is overly air-​conditioned and the décor is cold and austere.
The menu is full of sandwiches, salads, pastas etc. Which is a great change of pace from the other food fare you find on Castro street, but I just didn’t like it. The sandwiches are unremarkable, but they’re still better than, say Subway. Maybe their other stuff is better? Either way, I’m not willing to try and find out.

Why is it good?
Freshness: I had Spicy Chicken grinder. The Sourdough Baguette smelt/​tasted like they came right out of the oven. Lettuce and slices of tomato are quite fresh, combined with chicken… yummy
Reasonable price: 6 inch for $ 5.40, can’t beat that!
Besides soup, salad, and sandwiches, they also have deserts (cookies and cakes – major brownie point). Btw, they also provide nutrition info for most of the items on the website.
Compared to Subway and Quizno, it takes a bit longer to get the food ready. But the sandwich is worth the wait.

We came here right before they closed and since they just opened yesterday we got really good service. We got some free samples of pasta salad, cheddar and mac salad and a coffee thermos thingie and some italian wedding soup to take home. I had a double chocolate caramel cookie and it was really good! My bf had a veggie grinder (east coast term for sandwiches) and he thought it was pretty tasty.
I guess this is a chain thats really popular in ohio and this is the first californian location. The owner was really nice to us and wanted us to tell everyone how great the place is and how it’s better than subway. It looked better than subway, the sandwiches are grilled like quiznos so that’s pretty cool bc it makes em taste better in my opinion.
I don’t know what it’d be like to come here during a lunch rush. They didnt make the sandwich very fast, so it might be a longer wait while they get the hang of it, but all the employees seemed to enjoy themselves so the service will probably be good for awhile.

The problem with the South Bay is there’s just not very many good sandwich places. Sure there’s the Quizno’s and Subway’s for that price range but they are only ok. After getting off work a bit later than usual, I walked down Castro street to find WG Grinders, a midwest sandwich chain. Craving Italian deli meats I decided to drop in.
They have slightly better ambiance than Quizno’s or Subway but the selection is much much greater. Tons of sanwiches, soup, salads, and pizza are on the menu. I tried not to stare too long and decided to focus on what I was craving. So I got a 6″ (there’s a 10″ and another industrial size) Italian Original which has pepperoni, salami, hame, capicolla, provolone cheese, banana peppers, bell peppers, and onions. For under $ 5 this was a decent sized sandwich and it’s baked which provided some extra goodness. Pretty tasty for a chain I guess and I wouldn’t hesitate going back.
After a number of semi lukewarm effort sub sandwiches recently, this is one of the first places to hit the spot. This isn’t NYC deli action by any means but for the speed, price, and quality, it’s definitely good for a quick meal.