The latest project from the owners of Fox in the Snow makes its debut this Saturday, October 30. Icarus Sandwich Shop opens at 10:30 a.m. at 15 E. Second Ave. in the Short North.
Diners will find a streamlined menu of sandwiches, with nearly every component made in-house from scratch. Nary a pre-sliced deli meat to be found, proteins like house-roasted, hand-sliced turkey, family-recipe meatballs and 7-day brined corned beef make their way into classic sandwiches like the Turkey Club, Meatball and Reuben. There’s also an Italian-ish, vegetarian-friendly Roasted Mushroom and more to be had. Breads and garnishes like pickles and sauces also get the scratch-made treatment.
There’s one accompaniment for Icarus’ sandwiches: housemade chips with onion dip, and a little something fun for dessert. It’s not the pastries of Fox in the Snow, but instead a rotating selection of soft serve ice cream.
Founders Lauren Culley and Jeffrey Excell found sandwiches and soft serve the ideal menu partners in a fun, delicious and oddly-fitting way. Colors will be vibrant and flavors will be true to their inspirations. They call it a very Fox in the Snow approach – staying away from anything artificial and making the soft serve really taste like what it’s supposed to be. (Pineapple is up first for opening weekend.)
Opening a sandwich shop has long been on the radar for Culley and Excell. Though the growth of Fox in the Snow initially took precedence, with Culley saying there was and still is momentum around the popular coffee shop and bakery’s growth, there has always been an excitement around building new concepts.
Plans were coming together when COVID struck, putting a pause on things before the business owners realized it was the right time, and they had the right place, to build Icarus.
During COVID, Culley says all of their business shifted to takeout and online ordering – an industry-wide trend that seems to be here to stay. Sandwiches are an ideal fit for the new normal(ish) and made them confident the concept could succeed.
The location is a bit of a full-circle moment for the pair. They initially looked at the address for the first Fox in the Snow eight years ago. While it wasn’t the right fit then, they’d always loved the building. Now the location and the size are big advantages. It’s just blocks from the OG Fox, putting the concept in a neighborhood with which they are familiar, and a smaller footprint is ideal in terms of staffing and a more takeout-focused industry.
Icarus will offer dine-in seating, with online ordering being added to the mix in the weeks to come. The shop will be open daily from 10:30 a.m. – 3 p.m.
For more information, visit icarussandwichshop.com.
All photos provided by Icarus Sandwich Shop