Business Spotlight: Sandwich Queen

 Local Business Spotlight: 

Sandwich Queen — "The One The Locals Know And Go To”

 

by Paul Johnson

"I've been driving by this place for the longest time and never stopped before." Deborah Mize, owner of Sandwich Queen, says she hears that all the time from new customers -- now, from me as well. I ducked into the cafe for the first time a few weeks ago and found to my delight that they sell BYU ice cream for a little more than a dollar for kid-size cones -- easily the most inexpensive ice cream in town, even beating McDonald's. Perfect timing for treating my kids during the upcoming hot months. 

Sandwich Queen is a tiny restaurant tucked into a corner of downtown Payson across from Fossil Shack and Total Fitness, occupying the same block as Fat Jacks and Preloved Payson. Although I only visited for the first time this year, the shop opened four years ago in May 2022, and has steadily become a local favorite. As of this writing, it currently ranks third place on Yelp's "best sandwiches in Utah County" page. However, since the first- and second-place shops on that page are in Midway and Nephi, respectively, it ranks first in Utah Valley. Naturally, the shop is a roadtrip magnet for travelers passing through on I-15. The shop is family-owned and family-run, and after the sad departure of Freedom Subs from Payson, Sandwich Queen is, to my knowledge, the only remaining non-chain sandwich restaurant in town. "We love what we do, and we put love into each sandwich," Deborah says.

Deborah relates that she was raised in an entrepreneurial family. Her dad owned a new and used furniture store, and she hoped to someday go into business for herself just like her father. Growing up, she loved trying new recipes, and her dad used to say she made the best sandwiches. Partly because of that, and being a foody herself, when she was ready to make the jump to self-employment in 2022, she opted for a sandwich restaurant. Along with her sister, her mother Aloha made aprons for the store's grand opening; Aloha enjoyed seeing the store prosper before passing away in 2024. "My mom was my biggest fan, and I wanted to make her proud." To honor that support, Deborah named one of the creative sandwiches on the store's menu lineup after her, "The Aloha."

Deborah's family has been grateful for steady, dedicated local support. In return, she has been finding ways to give back to the community. For instance, every Wednesday, they feed all the missionaries in Payson for free. They donate food to the senior center, including homemade cakes and cookies, and are hoping to start doing more for the seniors there. As part of their emphasis on creating a welcoming environment, they give out free samples of ice cream or cake to the many kids who visit the shop throughout the year. (From what I've seen, they tend to make ice cream scoops a little too large to make any profit.) They offer free deliveries for orders in Payson when they are not short-staffed -- just call ahead, she said -- which has allowed her to serve many of the homebound elderly residents in town. They offer gluten-free sandwich options and dairy-free ice cream selections, and Deborah emphasized that any sandwich can be made to order as a salad if preferred. It was also easy to understand their popularity, hearing about their enthusiasm for customizing everything to the customer. Deborah says simply, "We try to meet requests." 

Sandwich Queen has catered for schools, funerals, and weddings, and they also offer birthday cakes to order. Paysonites are likely to see them at a food booth during annual events like Adventure Days, the Rock Festival, and Onion Days. In addition to the ice cream and their variety of sandwiches and salads, they offer dessert options like cookies, cake, and "magic bars" -- sort of a nut-chocolate-butterscotch-coconut s'more. They also offer seasonal soups, such as their own unique version of traditional Olive Garden-style recipes like tomato basil, Zupa Toscana, chicken gnocchi, and poblano soup. Soon, they will be running a "sandwich of the week," discounted all week. The bread on all the cold sandwiches is homemade by a local baker, and they make every item fresh to order -- everything, all the time. "Ain't no vegetables sitting over there marinating," Deborah says with a wry smile. 

She also expressed gratitude to be part of the tight-knit cluster of shops stretching from Fat Jack's Pizza to Roots Coffee. Visiting the shops on this row and hearing about their mutual-support efforts, I've come to appreciate that this row has quickly become Payson's "second Main Street." The store owners all try to get out and support each other on a regular basis. They also find ways to collaborate, such as making the adjacent parking lot on the north side of Utah Avenue a collective parking area, as downtown parking is painfully limited, and planning mini-hometown markets in the area.

Besides the cheapest ice cream around (as you can tell, my obvious priority) and "made with love" sandwiches, the family-business aspect is what makes Sandwich Queen special. Deborah's sons Tyson and Kevin work alongside her at the shop daily. Tyson even created some of the sandwich offerings. She says she couldn't do without them: "They're my rock and biggest supporters."

I asked how they attract new customers. They don't pay for advertising, she said. Other than their website (www.sandwichqueenut.com), everything is word of mouth. 

For readers curious about sampling this treasure for the first time, I would definitely suggest calling ahead (the shop's number is 801-658-5385), since the wait can be a tad long at lunchtime due to the demand. Doing so also enables customers to take advantage of their free-local-delivery offer. The shop also plans to become a DoorDash vendor soon, for those wanting short-notice delivery. 

Sandwich Queen will be holding a grand reopening this year (date TBD) to roughly coincide with its fourth anniversary, including rolling out a new menu. As part of that event, they will be launching a wider menu: for the first time, the cakes and magic bars will no longer be  an "off menu" open secret but will appear on the menu.