Firehouse Subs Enos Ranch West — Restaurant in Santa Maria

I'm as much to blame as the next person. When I am in Santa Maria, I tend to satisfy my chain restaurant craving. This time I tried the newly opened Firehouse Subs which I've read so much about through other Yelp reviews.

Upon entering, I was greeted by Saige at the register. They were very patient with me being a Firehouse Subs newbie and answered the two questions I had. One question was the various sizes of the sandwich (small is 4 inches, medium is an average sized sub, and large is roughly a foot long). Upon checking out, I was asked if I was a nurse or other first responder because they offer a discount. It was kind of a giveaway since I was wearing my work scrubs. I was also asked if I'd like a pickle which I appreciated because I don't care for them and hate simply tossing it directly in the garbage when automatically included. Additionally for those with gluten intolerance or celiac, they offer a gluten free bun option.

My carnivorous self was wanting a beef or corned beef sandwich. I ended up ordering the Smokehouse Beef & Cheddar Brisket. It came out fresh and hot on a super soft bun. The cheese and mayo were nice editions, however, I found the beef to be saltier than I like. The BBQ sauce was pleasantly sweet with the tiniest ever spice and managed to balance it out.

While dining inside, I saw the various signs stating how many dollars have already been donated by the franchise to US Firehouses, plus replacement of outdated equipment including lifesaving equipment including AEDs, bunker beds, helmets and more. Additionally, each Firehouse Subs has a hand painted mural front and center. There are plastic helmets for kids to wear. If you would like an empty Pickle bucket it costs $3 versus throwing it away. All in all, great touches for a...

So i'm seeing a lot of bad Reviews. Infact my first experience here was a bad one. I ordered the chicken bacon ranch and it was just dripping in ranch sauce. Like swimming. I didnt go back for a month or two. Well today I went back and I shared my experience, The girl at the register was super cool and listened and a dude(fellow co worker) started listening behind her and crept up. She said she had to get the manager, and that dude ended up being him, it was kinda funny, and convenient he was being so attentive. so i didnt have to explain myself all over again. Well i just told them what happened and asked how they wanted to handle it. He said he would personally remake the sub at no charge for me. I thought that was more than reasonable and said i'd be happy to buy another sub and some chips to show i wasn't just trying to get a free meal. Well He ended up gifting the entire meal 2 subs and 2 chips to us even though i tapped my card and thought i paid, it was completely free. and i checked my statement and didn't see a charge. I think his name was Jordan, he had tattoo's on his arms and hands. He was completely professional and helpful and i can see why he is manager. Now for the subs: This time they were made pretty legit. I wouldn't say they give you a ton of meat or the ingredients were top notch..but i will say the flavor was on point, it had the proper amount of sauce this time and the sub tasted good overall, like a B- or a B. Still pretty solid, waaaaay better than subway. kinda reminds me of a quizno's. I'd say it doesn't deserve the 5 stars i gave, but like 4. And if you had a problem with customer service, instead of giving them a bad review or low rating, talk to the manager, thats what i did. He took care of me. I'll go back again...

I’m very disappointed and honestly frustrated with the service we received today. We came back to this restaurant because our first visit was great—but this time, the treatment we got from Makayla was unacceptable.

As my kids were still choosing their meals, Makayla started tapping her fingers impatiently. The moment I placed our order, she immediately began moving chairs and closing the dining area—without saying a word. We didn’t even get the chance to sit down. When I asked what was going on, she told me they were closing in 30 minutes. If that’s the case, she should have informed us before taking our order.

I considered canceling everything, but my kids were already upset, so I switched to takeout. When she handed me the food, she didn’t include the little firefighter hats for my daughters, which they were excited about. I had to ask for them myself.

To the owner: Please train your staff to communicate clearly and treat customers with basic respect. The restaurant is beautiful and the food is still good—but this kind of attitude ruins the experience. We were the only customers there and were made to feel like an inconvenience. That’s not how you keep people...