A Publix pub sub is a deli sandwich built to order at the service counter: you pick the bread, the meat, the cheese, the toppings and the dressing, and they slice and wrap it while you wait. The best Publix pub sub orders are the builds regulars repeat, from a plain turkey and provolone to a subham loaded with peppers and relish.
Every location stocks the core lineup, but proteins, party sizes and unusual toppings vary by store, so treat the list below as a starting point rather than a guarantee. Each order is ranked on four things: how well the flavors hold together, how much room you have to customize it, how filling it is, and how reliably it comes out the same way every time.
I have eaten my way through more of these than I would like to admit, and the pattern is clear: the sandwiches people rave about are rarely the most elaborate ones. They are the builds where every ingredient is doing a job. The rest of this guide breaks down ten orders, who each one suits, and how to ask for it.
Table of Contents
- Best Publix Pub Sub Orders at a Glance
- 1. Classic Turkey and Provolone
- 2. Ham and Swiss
- 3. Roast Beef and Cheddar
- 4. Tuna Salad with Lettuce and Tomato
- 5. Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Almonds
- 6. Subham and Provolone
- 7. Italian Sub with Pepperoni and Provolone
- 8. Turkey and Bacon with Cheddar
- 9. Grilled Vegetable and Cheese
- 10. Turkey, Ham, and Roast Beef Combo
- Frequently Asked Questions
Best Publix Pub Sub Orders at a Glance
The table below ranks all ten orders by flavor balance, filling power and how much they reward a trip to the deli counter. Use it to pick fast, then read the section for the exact build.
| Order | Defining ingredients | Best flavor profile | Portion suitability | Customization recommended |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Classic Turkey and Provolone | Sliced turkey, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, mustard | Balanced and mild, sharp dairy edge | Half sub for a light lunch, full for a proper one | Yes, add a roll change and a second vegetable |
| Ham and Swiss | Ham, Swiss, lettuce, tomato, onion, tangy dressing | Mild, creamy, crowd-friendly | Half sub with chips or fruit | Yes, a tangy dressing lifts it |
| Roast Beef and Cheddar | Roast beef, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onion, horseradish or mustard | Rich and savory, sharp heat on the finish | Full sub for a hungry lunch | Yes, extra cheddar and pepperoncini |
| Tuna Salad with Lettuce and Tomato | Tuna salad, lettuce, tomato, onion, celery, pickle relish | Creamy, tangy, bright from the pickle | Half sub, deli-style | Yes, confirm the recipe and the dressing |
| Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Almonds | Chicken salad, dried cranberries, sliced almonds, lettuce, light dressing | Sweet, nutty, lighter than it looks | Half sub or a smaller roll | Yes, manage the filling so it stays put |
| Subham and Provolone | Ham, salami, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, peppers, relish | Salty, tangy, layered cold cuts | Full sub, hearty | Yes, the toppings are the point |
| Italian Sub with Pepperoni and Provolone | Pepperoni and cured meats, provolone, banana peppers, oregano, Italian dressing | Spiced, peppery, the boldest of the list | Full sub | Yes, balance the cured meat with acid |
| Turkey and Bacon with Cheddar | Turkey, bacon, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, mustard | Savory and salty, richer than the classic | Half sub if you want it lighter | Yes, watch bacon and dressing together |
| Grilled Vegetable and Cheese | Grilled vegetables, provolone or cheddar, roasted red pepper, lettuce, vinaigrette | Savory, smoky, meat-free | Half or full depending on the vegetable load | Yes, request the dressing on the side |
| Turkey, Ham, and Roast Beef Combo | Turkey, ham, roast beef, provolone or Swiss, lettuce, tomato, onion, mustard | Hearty, balanced by the cheese and acid | Large sub or a party size for sharing | Yes, a larger size when available |
1. Classic Turkey and Provolone
This is the order to fall back on. Sliced turkey and provolone are mild enough to get out of the way, which means every topping you add tastes like itself instead of competing with the bread.
Lettuce, tomato and onion give it freshness, and mustard adds the acidity that keeps a turkey sandwich from tasting flat by three bites in. Ask for it on a wheat sub roll if you want the bread to hold up to the moisture from the tomato, and add mayonnaise for richness or skip it and go with salt and vinegar for something lighter.
Concretely, I order it like this: wheat sub roll, turkey, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, yellow mustard, no mayo, sub in a tub with the bread on the side. That last part is the trick I wish someone had told me years ago. The filling is a salad, so keeping it away from the bread until you are ready to eat makes a real difference by the second half.
How to Order the Best Publix Pub Sub for a Classic Lunch
Once you know the formula, ordering becomes fast. It works whether you want the classic or something more specific, though no two Publix locations use identical ingredients, so expect small differences between stores.
- Start with a sturdy roll. A sub roll or hoagie roll holds a heavy filling. Soft sandwich bread gives out by the second half.
- Add two complementary proteins or vegetables. Turkey plus provolone is a protein and a cheese, so it counts as one slot. Two meats or two vegetables gives you more contrast.
- Select a sharp cheese. Provolone, Swiss or cheddar all cut through the fat of cold cuts. A mild American-style cheese leaves the sandwich tasting flat.
- Include two fresh toppings. Lettuce and tomato are the standard pair. Onion or a pepper is the easy upgrade.
- Finish with one dressing. Oil and vinegar, mayonnaise, mustard or Italian dressing. Two dressings is where sandwiches usually turn to mush.
2. Ham and Swiss
Ham and Swiss is the mildest sandwich on this list, which is exactly why it works for a mixed group. Nobody argues about it, and the Swiss gives it a nuttier, slightly tangy flavor than a plain ham and cheese.
Lettuce, tomato and onion keep it from being too soft, and a slightly tangy dressing matters more here than on any other build. A sandwich that is all mild flavors ends up tasting like nothing in particular after a few bites.
My order: sesame or honey-wheat roll, ham, Swiss, lettuce, tomato, onion, mustard and a little oil and vinegar, served with a side of chips or a piece of fruit. Ask for it toasted if you want the cheese to melt into the ham, and request a tub if the sandwich is more than about an hour from your first bite.
3. Roast Beef and Cheddar
Roast beef and cheddar is the richest option here, and it is the one to order when a deli sandwich feels like a treat rather than a grocery run filler. Cheddar against warm roast beef is a combination that does not need much help.
What it does need is contrast. Lettuce, tomato and onion cut the richness, and a little horseradish or spicy brown mustard adds a bite at the end that keeps a heavy sandwich from sitting heavily. Order it on a deli-style roll with extra cheddar, then ask for pepperoncini if you want heat rather than sharp flavor alone.
Skip the extra dressing. Roast beef and cheddar already carry enough richness, and a heavy dressing on top is the fastest way to turn this into a soggy sandwich. This is also the one to order full rather than half, because the ratio of bread to filling matters more here than anywhere else on the list.
Who Should Order the Roast Beef and Cheddar
It suits people who find cold cut sandwiches bland and who want something closer to a hot lunch without waiting for a hot sub press. It is less suited to a light appetite or a very hot day, where a heavy sandwich sits badly.
If you are ordering for a mixed table, this is the sandwich to skip. Someone who does not like strong cheese will push it around the plate. Turkey and provolone or the subham are the safer table fillers.
4. Tuna Salad with Lettuce and Tomato
A tuna salad sub is one of the most underrated orders at the deli. The salad is creamy, the pickle relish is sharp, and the combination reads as a much lighter lunch than the cold cut sandwiches next to it.
Fresh toppings are what keep it from tasting like a scoop from a container. Lettuce and tomato add water and crunch, onion adds a little bite, celery adds crunch that survives the creamy base, and pickle relish is the ingredient that makes the whole thing taste deliberate rather than leftover.
Ask for it on a sub roll with the salad spooned in rather than spread, then confirm two things before you order: whether the deli’s tuna is made in house or prepared, and how heavy the dressing is in the mix. The recipe changes between stores, and a very creamy version wants more acid from the relish to balance it.
5. Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Almonds
This is the order that fools people. Chicken salad with dried cranberries and sliced almonds looks like a dessert in a sub roll, and it eats like a substantial lunch with a sweet and nutty edge.
The cranberries do the work of the tomato, adding tartness in a way that reads as fruit rather than vegetable, and the almonds give it a crunch that survives the mayonnaise. Lettuce adds a fresh layer, and a light dressing is all it needs.
The practical problem is that the filling runs. Order it on a smaller roll, or ask for it wrapped instead of on bread, and hold the heavier dressing back. If you are taking it somewhere, this is a sandwich to eat the same day rather than save for tomorrow.
6. Subham and Provolone
A subham is a ham sandwich with attitude: ham, salami and provolone layered together, so you get the clean flavor of the ham, the spice of the salami and the sharpness of the cheese in one bite. It is the cold cut sandwich that actually tastes layered.
What separates a good subham from a plain cold cut sub is the toppings. Lettuce, tomato and onions are the base, then sweet or hot peppers and relish, which is what turns it into something with a point of view. Leave those off and it is a ham and cheese with extra steps.
For value, order it on a standard roll and add a pickle on the side rather than paying for another topping. Ask for the peppers drained if you want the sandwich to stay crisp, and keep the relish to one layer rather than doubling it. It is a full sub in every sense, so this is not the order to halve if you are hungry.
7. Italian Sub with Pepperoni and Provolone
The Italian sub is the boldest order on this list, built for people who like cured meat and sharp cheese in the same bite. Pepperoni brings spice and fat, provolone brings salt and tang, and the combination is closer to a pizza sub than a lunch sandwich.
It needs acid and crunch to work, which is where lettuce, tomato, onion and banana peppers come in. A dusting of oregano ties it to the pizza reference, and an Italian dressing instead of mayonnaise keeps it from becoming too rich. Skipping the peppers is the most common way this sandwich goes wrong, because the cured meat needs something sharp to cut through it.
My order: sub roll, pepperoni and Italian cold cuts, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, banana peppers, oregano, Italian dressing, oil and vinegar on the side. Ask for it lightly toasted if you want the provolone to soften. This is a full-sub order for a hungry lunch, and one that gets better in the last two bites than the first.
8. Turkey and Bacon with Cheddar
Bacon turns the dependable turkey sub into something noticeably richer. Turkey, bacon and cheddar is the compromise order for people who like the flavor of a bacon sandwich but do not want to give up the freshness that makes a deli sub worth eating.
Lettuce, tomato and onion do the same balancing work they do on the classic turkey, and a split of mayonnaise and mustard gives you richness and tang in one build. Use mayo and mustard deliberately rather than letting the deli default to both at full weight, because that is a lot of salt and fat in one sandwich.
If you prefer something lighter, order half, or skip the bacon entirely and go back to turkey and provolone. This one is genuinely rich, and readers who are watching salt intake usually find the roast beef and cheddar a better place to spend the flavor budget.
9. Grilled Vegetable and Cheese
The meat-free order is the one most people skip, and it is the one that varies most between locations. Ask what grilled vegetables the deli has that day, then build around them, since the vegetable load decides how heavy this sandwich ends up being.
Provolone or cheddar both work. Provolone is milder and melts cleaner, cheddar adds a sharper note that stands up to grilled vegetables. Roasted red pepper, onion and lettuce add sweetness and texture, and a vinaigrette finishes it better than mayonnaise, which turns grilled vegetables into a soggy pile.
Ask for the dressing on the side and the vegetables well drained, then dip instead of pouring. On a sub roll this becomes a real lunch rather than a side dish, and it is the order to try if you have already eaten your share of cold cuts that week.
10. Turkey, Ham, and Roast Beef Combo
The combo is the order to end on because it is the most flexible of the ten. Turkey, ham and roast beef on one sub gives you three textures, and the right cheese and toppings are what keep it from turning into a pile of cold cuts.
Provolone or Swiss works, and mustard is the dressing that holds the whole thing together, cutting through the fat of three meats at once. Lettuce, tomato and onion give it the freshness a three-meat sandwich needs more than a single-meat one.
Order it larger or as a party size when the store offers it, because the bread-to-filling ratio is what makes a combo sub work. A regular roll with three meats is all bread. Sizing and availability differ by location, so call ahead if you are planning around it for a group. This is the best Publix pub sub order to split between two or three people rather than finish alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best Publix Pub Sub orders for a first visit?
Start with the classic turkey and provolone on a wheat sub roll with lettuce, tomato, onion and mustard. For heat, go with the Italian sub with pepperoni and provolone and banana peppers. For richness, the roast beef and cheddar with horseradish. Order it in a tub, keep the bread on the side, and eat it within the hour if you can.
Can I customize a Publix Pub Sub sandwich?
Yes, nearly everything. The counter list is a starting point rather than a limit. You choose the bread, the protein, the cheese, the toppings and the dressing, and the deli slices everything to order while you wait. You can ask for a different roll, add a second meat, or request a sauce that does not appear on the ordering screen.
Which Publix sub is the best value for one person?
A half sub with a bag of chips or a piece of fruit is plenty for one person. For more substance, order a half meatball and add a large chicken tender, which regulars describe as a small extra charge for a full lunch. Just watch the premium Boar’s Head proteins, which cost more than standard cold cuts and can move an order up several bands quickly.
Are Publix Pub Sub ingredients and sizes available at every location?
Not always. Every Publix deli stocks the core lineup of breads, meats, cheeses, sauces and standard toppings, but specialty proteins, unusual toppings and party or larger sizes vary by store. A few locations carry extras that most do not. Call ahead if you are driving across town for one specific build.
How should I store a Publix Pub Sub after ordering?
Refrigerate a deli sandwich as soon as you get home and eat it within about three to four days. Leave it out no more than two hours at room temperature, or one hour when it is above 90 degrees outside. Cold cuts and mayonnaise-based dressings are the parts to watch, and tubbing the sandwich with the bread separate slows down sogginess.
Start with the classic turkey and provolone on a wheat roll if you have never ordered from the counter before. It is the least risky way to find out which sauces you like, and once you know that, the subham and the Italian sub are the two to try next.