J Mo’s Sandwich Shack

52nd & Foster
Portland, OR
(360) 521-3024
J Mo’s Sandwich Shack

I had met J Mo, the owner of J Mo’s Sandwich Shack, a few months back at this EVENT. (I did not eat the whole thing, but if I remember correctly, J Mo did). I had never visited his cart until today. I won’t lie, I was a little hesitant to eat there because it’s a sandwich shop. I’m not a huge sandwich person. I can make them at home and some days I make pretty impressive ones, so you had better wow me.

We talked with J Mo for a bit, then we told him to tell us which sandwich we needed to order. Without hesitation he said the Dirty Mo. I didn’t even look at the description, I just said “I’m in!” I mean if it’s tattooed on his arm, he  must believe in this sandwich.

Meanwhile we are literally purchasing food from 5 other carts. We are sampling small (or as small as you can get at some carts) portions and trying to get an idea of what the pod has to offer. We were actually sitting right in from of J Mo’s cart. So we slowly began to gather all of our food.

Then comes out the Dirty Mo, as Jo Mo himself, delivers it to your table.

Dang! This thing is huge!  This sandwich is garlic cheese bread, with meatballs, marinara and spaghetti on top.

I’m gonna be honest here. Not only do I not like sandwiches all that much, but I’m not a fan of spaghetti and meatballs. I’m kind of regretting not looking at the menu. But trusting that J Mo knows what he is talking about, we tear into it. One bite in and I am SOLD on this sandwich.

I kid you not, one of the best sandwiches I have had in quite some time. I probably ate nearly half. Given the size and all the food we had on our table, that was a lot. The bread, although quite large, did not come off as over powering to the sandwich. The flavor the meatballs was amazing. I don’t know what he did, because like I said I normally don’t go for marinara, but OH MAN, this was good. This sandwich, even though mixed with spaghetti, was heavy on the meat. He clearly did not skimp on that part.

I’m going to stop ranting and raving about this place and just tell you this. Get over there. Don’t write him off because he’s a sandwich shop. He wants nothing more than to wow you and if you give him the opportunity, he will.

• The atmosphere at this pod is changing. It’s got lots of covered seating. Lots of tables also had board games, which makes it feel like there is no rush to get up and go. Just enjoy.
• Service was awesome. J Mo is super personal.
• Pricing was great. These sandwiches are HUGE. The picture doesn’t do it justice.
• He does have cold drinks that he offers, but there is also a beer cart at this pod.
• J Mo’s Sandwich Shack is located at Carts on Foster at Foster and 52nd.