Popular Toronto sandwich shop gets permanent home in very unexpected place

A popular Toronto sandwich shop has officially landed a permanent new pad on the site of a now-shuttered Subway location.

Talk about an upgrade! Listen, we've got nothing against Subway. In fact, we're fans of their work when the occasion calls for it, but on a measure of girth alone, local sandwich venture Slammie Sammies has them beat.

The sandwich shop's name might meet the ear with a whisper of familiarity, a phantom memory, and there's a good reason for that.

A joint venture from Pedro Dos Santos and Marilyn Simms of Vert Casse-Croûte Catering fame, the sandwich shop was born as a pop-up at much-loved Dundas West pub, Opera Bob's, in the spring of 2024 to near-instant fanfare from the sandwich-obsessed city.

Slammie served up utterly enormous sandwiches on homemade buns, with a menu that reflected Toronto's diverse neighbourhoods and cultures.

Grilled chicken tzatziki, Vietnamese sweet beef, and shrimp po boy were just a few of the sammies that Toronto was slamming back during the shop's short and sweet stint on Dundas.

Despite a strong showing during Slammie Sammies' first two seasons in business, Opera Bob's closed down in December of 2024 after 16 years in business. Without a home base, Slammie was forced to operate on a catering and event-only basis while Dos Santos and Simms plotted their next move.

Now, the next chapter of Slammie Sammies is on the horizon, but it's landing on virtually the opposite side of the city from where it was established.

Coming this month, Slammie Sammies is the latest restaurant to plant roots in Leslieville, taking over a fittingly unique space at 828 Eastern Ave.

By "fittingly unique," we mean that the restaurant is attached to a carwash.

Home to a Subway location for a handful of years, the restaurant shares an address with Grand Car Wash and, dare we say, provides a mighty fine way to pass the time while your detailing job gets done.

Heed our advice, though: whatever you do, eat these sandwiches outside of your freshly-cleaned car. Or before you have it cleaned. These suckers come piled so high that they'll be bursting out of the seams on the first bite. Really, isn't that exactly what you want out of a sandwich?

Simms tells us that, while the opening date for the new sandwich shop is still up in the air, she and Dos Santos hope to have it up and running within the next few weeks. While the space is already perfectly primed for a sandwich shop, there are still plenty of finishing touches that need to be made.

You can keep up with the latest on Slammie Sammies' new location by following them on Instagram.

Slammie Sammies will be located at 828 Eastern Ave.