Being hungry while at Disney Springs presents some obstacles. These obstacles have nothing to do with finding something you will enjoy. The critical problem involves making a choice. Maybe you can’t get a dining reservation at a table service restaurant, or dining at some locations are out of your budget. Rest assured. Disney Springs does offer some lower-priced counter service places of quality. The Earl of Sandwich restaurant qualifies as such a place.

Earl of Sandwich resides in the marketplace area of Disney Springs. As you might expect this third-party restaurant focuses on sandwiches. As the marketing for this place on the Walt Disney World site says “John Montagu invented the sandwich in 1762; his descendants perfected it! Try the signature roast beef sandwich on hearth-baked bread or any of number of hot or cold gourmet sandwiches. Soups, salads, wraps, and desserts are also served.”

Most of the items sold at Earl of Sandwich cost under $10. They also offer an e-club program heavily promoted within their Disney Springs location. My experience with that program has varied from good to incredibly poor.

On a recent evening, I ordered “The Original 1762” sandwich. This costs $8,99. It features roasted beef, cheddar, and horseradish sauce on Earl of Sandwich signature bread. That evening, the mobile ordering system failed to work. The queue system lacked consistency adding to the process of getting a sandwich. The staff did not know how to process an e-club promotion. They looked confused. I pointed them to the sign on the wall. Eventually, a manager came out of the back to process the e-club promotion. At least on this night, if you were looking for Disney smiling service, you could not find it at Earl of Sandwich in Disney Springs. In fairness, one should not be expecting that here. Also, every restaurant has terrible days.

I went to pay for my sandwich. The point-of-sale display asked me to pay a tip for my sandwich. The system that evening was only designed for card sales, even though I told the staff there that I was paying with cash since the mobile system was down. I had to back out of the system since paying with cash to get my sandwich; As you might imagine, this experience could influence my enjoyment of this meal.

Despite that, how was the sandwich? The quality of the beef could be described as average. The meat did not hinder the sandwich but failed to help. Yet, for a sandwich at this price point, the portion size qualifies as adequate. The hot sandwich method used appears nice. However, it did not help the bread as much as intended here. For this price point, the bread quality meets expectations. The star of this sandwich would be the sauce. The sauce added the right flavor without overwhelming the rest of the components.

On the negative side, the cheese lacked any authentic flavor. If this was cheddar cheese, then I missed it. I had better flavor cheese on larger sandwiches at Jimmy John’s and Firehouse Subs for similar prices during that same week.

I wish the holiday sandwiches were around all year since they rank as the best sandwiches I have tasted here. However, I will keep trying sandwiches here. I have scheduled another visit in a few weeks to this place due to its popularity with guests.

Overall, this sandwich did its job. Yet, I prefer to eat counter service at Blaze Pizza or D-Lux Burger at Disney Springs. As always, eat like you mean it!