8 Potbelly Secret Menu Hacks Everyone Should Try At Least Once

Potbelly Sandwich Shop has all of the sandwiches, salads, and soups that you might want, but sometimes, a special option is in order. The underground menu may not be posted on the big board, but there are still tasty combinations of flavors to enjoy, as long as you're in on the secret names. 

I went to my local Potbelly's to try these hacks, assessing everything from the ordering experience to the taste of each secret menu item. You may need to walk your server through the ingredients lists, depending on how familiar they are with the secret menu. I promise, though, it's worth the extra time for one of these tasty — and sometimes quite unusual — combinations.

My sandwich-making pro was in-the-know with the underground menu and loved whipping up something a bit off the regular path for me. With lunch in hand, I sped home to let my family in on the secrets (and to make sure that my ice cream sandwich didn't melt). These were the favorites that we all devoured.

The TTLT is a solid choice for those who enjoy their cold cuts and cheese. This sandwich is known by the ingredients list, which showcases turkey, lettuce, and tomato — but that last and super important T means that this sandwich is toasted. The grilled aspect is key because it helps the ingredients meld well together. It also allows your cheese — I went with Swiss, which is what comes on the standard turkey sandwich — to melt over top of the meat.

You can dress it up a little bit more with condiments, which you'll add after toasting, alongside the lettuce and tomato. I ordered mine on multigrain bread, which is my favorite at Potbelly's, but you could also go with flatbread if you want to make the sandwich a little bit easier to bite into.

A lot of the underground menu options have hot peppers, which give them quite a bit of kick. The TTLT is one of the few that doesn't include any extra spice, meaning it's good for those who prefer not to have a five-alarm fire at lunch. If you like a classic turkey sandwich, don't get us started on the great club sandwich debate. Just enjoy the TTLT and call it good.

When I asked for a Lucky 7, my server didn't even have to look at the underground menu cheat sheet behind the counter before they started pulling out various types of meat. She said that it was pretty popular, and it's easy to see why, especially among those who want a really hearty sandwich. It has seven different types of meat and cheese, including ham, turkey, Angus roast beef, salami, pepperoni, Capicola, mortadella, and provolone. This means you'd better come at this one with a hearty appetite or share it with your family, like I did.

If your server isn't familiar with a Lucky 7, you can ask for a Wreck sandwich, then add pepperoni, Capicola, and mortadella. It also swaps out the standard Swiss for provolone, but either would be pretty tasty. The meat, which is layered over the bread then topped with the cheese before toasting, is definitely the star of this sandwich. Like other Italian-style grinder sandwiches, the key is the abundance of ingredients, especially different meats.

I didn't add any condiments or toppings, but I'd consider some oil and Italian seasonings next time to give it a little something extra. Lettuce and tomato would be another welcome addition for some extra oomph and crunch. I wouldn't recommend any strong condiments or spicier peppers because I really liked that the meatiness was able to come through. 

If you like something with a little spice, ask for a Fireball sandwich. It is like a meatball sub with an extra kick from spicy giardiniera, a pickled topping with different types of peppers. It was definitely one of the spicier ones that I tried, especially when I got bites full of hot peppers. Potbelly's has its own jarred version, which you can get on your sandwiches or buy by the jar to take home.

I went with multigrain bread for this sandwich, which worked well to keep everything together. I always seem to have trouble with the filling of any meatball sub staying in place, but didn't run into that problem with this version. It is toasted with the meatballs and marinara, which helps soak the bread with tons of flavor.

This one is very similar to a Mama's Meatball, but has the hot peppers added for extra kick. It doesn't come with cheese, but you can add some provolone to help balance out the spiciness if you want a creamier version. The Mama's Meatball made our list of best meatball subs in the U.S. and you can think of the Fireball as the spicier, edgier cousin to this classic sub.

Don't let its underwhelming appearance fool you, the Elvis sandwich is one of my favorites and my go-to when I can't decide what I want to order at Potbelly's. It has peanut butter, bananas, and bacon. It's a combination that Elvis Presley himself made famous, along with his other favorite Southern comfort foods. 

The entire sandwich is toasted, which helps the flavors meld together and gives the bread the perfect amount of crunch with every bite. You can ask to skip the jelly if you don't want it to be as sweet, but I always like the extra addition for both taste and texture. When you're at the shop, just ask for The Elvis; you can also replicate this when ordering online. Bacon is an add-on option to the standard peanut butter and jelly.

This Elvis-inspired secret menu item is one of the sweeter options that you can get, but the addition of bacon makes it unlike any other peanut butter sandwich that I've tried. The combination of salty bacon with sweet jelly and bananas, plus creamy peanut butter, is absolutely delicious. This menu item also gets enthusiastic thumbs up from my younger kids, who are pretty much experts when it comes to peanut butter and jelly. 

There are plenty of inventive options for the basic peanut butter and jelly. Blue cheese can also give peanut butter sandwiches a fancy twist, so consider this addition to your sandwich as well. Who knows? Maybe that will become the next underground menu favorite!

I was most excited to give the Black and Bleu sandwich a try. Before this test, I'd only heard whisperings about this appropriately-named sandwich on the underground menu, but never actually tried it myself. It's made with roast beef and blue cheese, plus hot peppers that brings a little extra zing.

The blue cheese is the perfect pairing for the hot peppers and roast beef, making this one of the boldest flavor options on the secret menu. If you don't like blue cheese, don't order it because it isn't light on the stinky stuff. However, if you're like me and love this flavor, you'll be really happy with this sandwich. The hot peppers add spice and most versions call for added hot sauce as well. My Potbelly's didn't have regular hot sauce so I went with the hot pepper ranch, which added even more kick. 

The heat is tempered a little bit by the creamy ranch, plus the plentiful blue cheese, but I still needed a drink on standby to sip on every few bites. This was also the messiest of the sandwiches that I tried, so make sure to ask for extra napkins.

No, Potbelly's isn't expanding the menu to include burgers, but you can get the same combinations of flavors with the Cheeseburger sandwich that hits the same taste notes. This is a sub version of a cheeseburger that combines meatballs, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, and mayo.

The Cheeseburger was the only secret item that my sandwich maker didn't know off the top of her head, so I had to detail what was in it. You can ask for a meatball sub as a base, but don't forget to ask for no marinara. The other important step is getting it toasted to let the cheese melt over the meatballs, then adding the toppings later.

This is a fantastic sandwich for those who want something savory and meaty, but don't want to go with cold cuts. It's a little bit different from other meatball subs, especially when you get to bites with mayo. Next time, I'll add pickles as well to really lean into the cheeseburger flavor combo.

There are plenty of meats on the Sicilian sandwich, including salami, pepperoni, and Capicola. Provolone cheese brings some creaminess, but it's the addition of hot peppers that makes this one especially memorable. The meatballs are also doused in marinara, which replicates a pizza flavor and reminded me a lot of the pizza melt sandwich on the regular menu.

This is another meaty sandwich, which is similar to the Lucky 7 and the Fireball. It has the same kick as other underground favorites that include plenty of hot peppers, so be ready for that. If you prefer your sandwiches with meaty flavor rather than heat, stick with the Lucky 7 instead. If you like a lot of different flavors in one super loaded sandwich, this is the one for you.

I recommend keeping the provolone, which pairs nicely with the peppers and the meat trio. Anything with a bolder taste, like blue cheese or Swiss, would dominate and keep the flavor of the other ingredients from coming through. What makes this hack so fantastic is how well balanced everything is, which isn't easy to achieve when you have this many ingredients.

I normally go with one of the tasty Potbelly milkshakes for something sweet, so I hadn't even tried any of the chain's cookies and I was excited to try this dessert hack. The Cookie Collision on the underground menu calls for chocolate chip, but you can ask for any other type of cookies that the shop has on hand. Mine had sugar cookies and a yummy-looking s'mores cookie for summer, but I stuck with the oatmeal chocolate chip to get the most authentic version for this tasting.

The collision comes with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream in between two cookies. My server didn't skimp on the ice cream, which made this one messy in the very best way. She double-wrapped it in aluminum foil to keep it from melting on my way home. 

If you end up with any leftovers or just want a firmer ice cream sandwich, pop this treat in the freezer for an hour or two. It becomes easier to cut into pieces, if you're forced to share it with your family like I was. The only thing that I'd do differently next time is enjoying this treat at the shop instead of taking it home so that I get every tasty bite for myself.