Sandwiches are some of the most underappreciated yet overly scrutinized foods. They seem simple, yet to make a truly incredible sandwich is borderline impossible. The American sandwich scene is a sparse one; dominated by the mega-chains (Subway has now beat out McDonald’s as the most numerous restaurant in the world), we have continued to settle for mediocrity.
Thus, I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived in Hillsdale to find not one but two independent sandwich places: the infamous Oakley Sandwich Shop over on Hillsdale Street and the newer and less well-known Filling Station tucked away downtown.
Oakley’s, though, is terrible. While I try not to entertain the rumors that the health codes are not, shall we say, “regarded” in some aspects, the service is still awful. My experience there is usually this: I stand in a long line, a disgruntled teenager takes my order after what seems like a millenia, spends the next twenty minutes making my sandwich without any gloves on, and then charges me quite a bit of money for a sandwich that won’t fill me up for more than the next 45 minutes.
Enter the Filling Station, a great restaurant run by a kind couple who love what they do. I am continually impressed by the sandwiches I consume there as well as by an unmistakable consistency in their attention to quality and love for the community of Hillsdale present. The vast majority of the clientele are locals who refer to one another by name and who receive “the regular” without so much as a nod.
The prices are excellent as well. For $4.50, they sell a quality sandwich loaded with freshly cut meat (an essential element). Their daily specials should be noted as well; just last Thursday, I got a delicious, hot, barbecue pork sandwich (made sanitarily) with carrot cake, kettle cooked chips, and free gum (!) for $5.50. Earlier in the week, their homemade soup special got you chicken and dumplings, breadsticks, and cookies (and gum!) for $3.99.
I was also impressed with how fast and friendly their service was. When I arrived at 12:15 p.m. on a Thursday, seven people were in front of me. I walked out with a smoking-hot sandwich and a smile on my face at 12:21 p.m. Both the husband and wife chatted with me as they made my food and rang me up, asking me about my studies and where I am from.
Their attention to detail is also quite refreshing. The restaurant is literally as close as you can get to a hole in the wall, with maybe ten square feet in which to stand and purchase your food, but they have worked hard to make it a warm and receptive environment with vintage decorations and good lighting. They also have cultivated a strong online presence, using Facebook to promote their specials, as well as local community outreach programs.
The Filling Station isn’t perfect, primarily because they don’t have room for indoor seating and they close by 5 p.m. While the former is uncontrollable, I do hope that in the future they will consider hiring a student or two in order to extend their times by an hour or so capitalize upon dinner traffic. I think with a little effort they could definitely draw the “not wanting to go to Saga for dinner” crowd.
The Filling Station provides a stellar example of the small but growing enclave of good restaurants in downtown Hillsdale who desire to serve the community through quality food. We should work as hard as we can to support these places, as the more successful they are the more willing entrepreneurs will be to open other great places to eat.
