Name of business: Ike’s Love & Sandwiches
Type of business: Sandwich shop
Location: 3202 N. Countryside Dr., Turlock
Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Sunday
Contact information: 209-669-4766
Specialty: “Dirty” sauce
History of business:
The popular Bay Area-based sandwich shop Ike’s Love & Sandwiches has been up and running in Turlock for just over a month and already has plenty of fans.
“Everybody that’s come in always comes back,” store manager Maricela Ruvalcava said. “A lot of our customers are already returning customers. It’s amazing.”
Ike’s Love and Sandwiches was started by San Francisco native Ike Shehadeh in 2007, when he opened his first shop in the city. From there, the franchise has grown to over 40 locations, but Turlock’s is just one of a few located outside of the Bay Area.
Turlock’s Ike’s offers the same atmosphere as its further-west counterparts, but with small-town hospitality, Ruvalcava said.
“I think what makes us different from the other stores is our team and our crew. We work so well together that we’re able to talk with our customers and communicate with them,” she said.
Ike’s is famous for its extravagant sandwiches, stuffed to the brim with meats, sauces and veggies and typically named after famous San Francisco athletes or other stars and celebrities. Their “dirty” sauce, which is similar to a garlic aioli, is extremely popular among patrons and a must for nearly every sandwich, Ruvalcava added.
“I like it extra ‘dirty,’ and even when I’m not at work I think about that sauce,” she said.
Turlock’s location has several specialty sandwiches which can only be found here, like the Mitchellville, a vegan sandwich named after Turlock’s founder John Mitchell, or the Green Acres, which features halal chicken, a pesto sauce known as Ike’s green sauce and pepper jack cheese.
The city’s high school students will also be excited to learn the shop offers a Bulldog sandwich, with halal chicken, barbecue sauce and cheddar cheese, and a Pride sandwich, which features turkey, ham and melted brie.
“Turlock is a big little city where everybody knows each other and appreciates the town, so when people come in and see these sandwiches named after things that they know, they get excited,” Ruvalcava said.
