"Jimmy John's vs. Jersey Mike's with Mano Agapion & Betsy Sodaro" is Episode 339 of Doughboys, hosted by Nick Wiger and Mike Mitchell. "Jimmy John's vs. Jersey Mike's with Mano Agapion & Betsy Sodaro" was released on March 3, 2022.

"Tomorrow... with Mano Agapion and Betsy Sodaro" - @doughboyspod
Synopsis[]
New Doughboys Thursday! Hosts of the podcast We Love Trash, Mano Agapion and Betsy Sodaro join the 'boys to tackle the eponymous region of Munch Madness 2022: The Tournament of Chompions: Hero's Journey: Sub-Optimal.
Nick's intro[]
John Montagu, in 1762, this otherwise-obscure historical figure forever made his mark on Western culinary tradition by naming a dish of meat between breads after his title, The Earl of Sandwich. Two-and-a-half centuries later, the Earl's dish is ubiquitous worldwide and sandwich shops claim a substantial chunk of the chain-restaurant sector.
But which of these countless 'wich purveyors reign supreme?
Whose combo of loaves, deli meats, cheeses, veggies, and condiments will make the Earl feel his carbohydrate-laden legacy is secure?
Today, two appropriately eponymous sub-sandwich chains compete in a closed-face face-off.
The first: an Illinois-based sandwichery, founded by controversial yacht and big-game hunting enthusiast, James John Liautaud, that brags of freaky fast delivery.
The second: a Garden State-based sub shop named for its founder and expanded by former employee, Peter Cancro, who has his own sub on the menu.
Both lurk just outside the hallowed halls of the Golden Plate Club, but today they compete for an even more glittery ultimate prize: the most coveted award in chain restaurant podcasting, The Dave Thomas Cup!
Whose grinders are finer? And whose subs are sub-par?
This week on Doughboys, the second match of the opening round of Munch Madness 2022: The Tournament of Chompions: Hero's Journey: Sub-Optimal: Eponymous region: Jersey Mike's vs. Jimmy John's.
Let's a-go!
Statement from The Commissioner[]
“ | The Tournament is underway! The Tournament of Chompions 2022: Hero's Journey: Sub-Optimal promises to be one of the best tournaments yet! (Or at the very least, the one with the longest title). After Nick and Mitch's diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Doughlympics Susser Games, it is an honor to be back on the podcast and serving in my role as Lifetime Commissioner. I believe the Tournament is off to a fantastic start, but as always, I believe there is something lacking. In this case, more rules! In addition to the rules laid out by Nick Wiger in the inaugural Patreon episode, I'd like to add some more. New Rule: on Alison Rosen's episode, MItch permabanned the chain Charley's. Each Doughboys host has the ability to permaban one chain from the tournament. Mitch has already used his. New Rule: when a chain is banned from the Tournament, it is also banned from The Doughboys podcast FOREVER! New Rule: as Commissioner of the Tournament, I also deserve some power. I am now creating The Commissioner's Sub-stitituon. With this rule, I reserve the right to swap out any of these chains with any new chain at any point in the Tournament. New Rule: There will be Special Correspondents this year. Each episode will have a Special Correspondent! New Rule: In a future episode, there will be two special Pickle Correspondents and they will be The Deli Boys. |
” |
Hero's Journey: Sub-Optimal rules[]
Here are the rules for this year's Tournament of Chompions:
- Sandwiches only! Sides stay on the sidelines, drinks are in the stink, chips get the slip, cookies are ookie, and soup's OFF.
- We are in a pickle: Pickles are eligible!
- If it's national, it's rational: Chains must have locations across the US. This also excludes local LA chains.
- I like Ike: due to personal conflicts, Ike's has been removed from the tournament. (The Doughboys are friendly with Ike.)
- Some heroes are self-made: Customization is encouraged.
- We run hot and cold: one hot sandwich and one cold sandwich from each eatery.
- You can request extra napkins.
- Guests don't have to follow the rules.
- Mrs. Mitchell can ground Wiger if necessary.
- If there's a tie, Emma will break it.
Eponymous Region[]
The first time The Doughboys reviewed Jimmy John's, Nick gave it 3.5 forks and Mitch 2.5.
They also have previously visited Jersey Mike's twice. The first time in 2017, they each rated it 3.5 forks, but when they returned in 2021, Nick went to 4.5 forks and MItch 4 forks and it made the Golden Plate Club. (Nick only mentions the first review during this episode.)
guest / host | Jimmy John's order | Jersey Mike's order |
---|---|---|
Nick Wiger |
|
|
Mike Mitchell |
|
|
Mano Agapion |
|
|
Betsy Sodaro |
|
|
Eponymous Region scoring[]
For this tournament, the Doughboys rate their orders on 0-10 Endorsement Dollars in a number of categories.
guest / host | Bread | Meat | Veggies | Condiments/Sauces/Sausage | Dunkability | Messiness | Blow Factor | Overall | Jared in Prison? |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nick Wiger | JJ: 8
JM: 6 |
JJ: 6
JM: 9 |
JJ: 5
JM: 7 |
JJ: 5
JM: 7 |
JJ: 8
JM: 6 |
JJ: 3
JM: 9 |
- | JJ: 6
JM: 8 |
JJ: no
JM: no |
Mike Mitchell | JJ: 5
JM: 8 |
JJ: 5
JM: 9 |
JJ: 5
JM: 8 |
JJ: 3
JM: 8 |
JJ: 7
JM: 5 |
JJ: 4
JM: 7 |
JJ: 0
JM: 5 |
JJ: 1
JM: 7 |
JJ: no
JM: no |
Mano Agapian | JJ: 9
JM: 8 |
JJ: 8
JM: 7 |
JJ: 6
JM: 6 |
JJ: 3
JM: 8 |
JJ: 0
JM: 0 |
JJ: 6
JM: 8 |
n/a | JJ: 6
JM: 6 |
JJ: no
JM: no |
Betsy Sodaro | JJ: 4
JM: 9 |
JJ: 4
JM: 9 |
JJ: 4
JM: 8 |
JJ: 3
JM: 10 |
JJ: 7
JM: 5 |
JJ: 1
JM: 9 |
JJ: 1
JM: 5 |
JJ: 4
JM: 8 |
JJ: no
JM: no |
Eponymous Region winner[]
Next, The Doughboys decide which sandwich gets sent to Joe Rogan (a hoagy to Rogy) and are so good, they change his mind about vaccines (or to make him stand strong as an anti-vaxxer). They also have to announce the winner in a Batman voice.
guest / host | winner |
---|---|
Nick Wiger | Jersey Mike's |
Mike Mitchell | Jersey Mike's |
Mano Agapion | Jimmy John's |
Betsy Sodaro | Jersey Mike's |
Jersey Mike's advances to the next round, and Jimmy John's drops to the Fat Chance Kitchen loser's bracket!
Roast Mr. Slice (Of Bread)[]

Hulk Hogan
“ | Hulk Hoagie | ” |
–@Lamerod |
Sub Power Rankings[]
The Doughboys also decide their top-3 rankings of subs. They argue about whether specific sandwiches should be included or not (banh mi, Po'boys, etc.)
guest / host | 1 | 2 | 3 |
---|---|---|---|
Nick Wiger | Bánh mì | Italian | Veggie |
Mike Mitchell | Steak and Cheese | Meatball | Italian |
Mano Agapion | Club | Bánh mì | Chicken Parm |
Betsy Sodaro | Italian | Bánh mì | Cubano |
The Bread Correspondent's Bread Box 🍞[]
Joe Saunders from The Bread Cast joins to discuss bread and field their questions.
Joe argues for wheat bread over white bread on a sub. He also prefers Jersey Mike's over Jimmy John's.
They briefly discuss infused breads (Joe likes them).
Mano wants to know if a croissant is bread or not (Joe says yes).
Nick asks if there is a bread that you just cannot make a sandwich with.
Mano then requests some of Joe's sourdough starter.
Mitch's final question is where, in a submarine sandwich, do you rank the importance of bread? Joe, the Bread Correspondent, declares that bread is the second most important aspect of a sub (behind the meat). Most agree, but Mano claims it is his #1.
Joe closes the segment by saying "Bread is good. Keep eating bread. Don't eat too much, but have a little bit."
Quotes[]
“ | Mitch: You're not an architect! Nick: I could be. |
” |
–The Doughboys |
“ | I've changed Mano's name to "Mano (Bread Correspondent)". Sorry, Joe, you got demoted. | ” |
–Nick Wiger |
“ | You look like a Hershey's Kiss. You look like they put a skin texture on Grimace. That's what you look like. | ” |
–Nick Wiger to Mitch |
#hashtags[]
- #SupremeFoodCourt
The Feedbag[]
“ | If you were opening your own mall, and were able to open your own food court, what six restaurants would you pick? | ” |
–Jake from Pittsburgh |
Instead of each picking six, they each just choose one and then decide together on the sixth.
guest / host | food-court chain choice |
---|---|
Nick Wiger | Cinnabon |
Mike Mitchell | Dunkin Donuts / Baskin-Robbins |
Mano Agapion | Taco Bell |
Betsy Sodaro | Lucifers |
Emma Erdbrink | Raising Cane's |
group pick | Panda Express |