This place is a hidden gem! At first glance it looks like a sandwich shop, but they have some pretty awesome Taiwanese food here. It's a mom and pop shop run by a sweet older couple who remember you each time you come in. Oh, I almost forgot the most important thing.... They serve Taiwan beer! read more

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I've only had the pork chop rice, pork stew rice, and beef noodle soup. All were delicious and flavors reminded me of the SGV. I've introduced this to my co- workers and now we come one or twice a week. Getting hungry just writing about it. read more

Great food at a great price! This place is always great! I always order to-go and the woman always does a great job packaging the food for me so as to not spill in my car. Also, the food quality and quantity were always optimal, I love this place and would recommend anyone to get food from here for lunch. Specifically taiwanese food. read more

A standard sandwich shop set against the backdrop of a BUSY food court (at least at lunchtime). Tons of sandwich options. This place has a mind-boggling menu - it took me a couple takes to pull it all in. I had to grab a menu :P I settled on the Turkey Club with Swiss and Bacon on Sourdough. (Notice how all of the nouns in that previous sentence are capitalized? Just making sure.) The sandwich was BIG. Your choice of lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, mustard, mayo (hold the mayo). I was thoroughly satisfied with this fine sandwich. Also decided to score the lunch time meal deal - choice of chips, choice of salad (potato, green/garden, and something else - i forget) and a small soda. The typical lunch deal is $7. Mine ran north of $8, likely because of my choice of sandwich. Friendly and attentive service. A good alternative to the belt-busting Baja Fresh or ubiquitous teriyaki bowl. My experience was obviously not as bad as previous reviews! read more

Although I'm just the 5th reviewer on Yelp, let me start off by saying I've been coming here about once a month over the last 10 years and although the friendly face seems to change every 2-3 years, the signature sandwiches that they have are still consistently very good. This isn't Quizono's or Togo's or even Blimpie's; this is a "mom & pop" sandwich shop that's main goal is to serve simple yet great tasting sandwiches. That being said, do you recall a time when sandwiches were made simple with simple ingredients? There were no special sauces and the meat wasn't divided by "regular" or "house" or even "deli" but was just meat? And the ingredients were every day garden vegetables; pickle, onions, lettuce and tomatoes (sorry, no artichokes, pesto, or baby greens). Well, I do and this place is the closest in the business area of Irvine that serves up sandwiches that conjure up sweet memories of mom's sandwiches. The menu is extensive, but is well organized by the type of meat (and cheese) that you want. I am a man of habit, so I've tried the Turkey & Swiss as well as the Roast Beef & Swiss, but my favorite is "The Magic Mountain". This sandwich is a pile of Roast Beef, Ham, Turkey and Swiss Cheese topped with Avocado. And since Squaw is the bread I always had in the great sandwiches I remember as a child, I always get it here (Hmm, they don't have Squaw bread at those "other chain" places). The sandwich is custom order, which I get mayonnaise and sometimes mustard. And when I get the sandwich, it is always this 1-1/2" thick sandwich of delicious food waiting to be eaten. The bread is never soggy and never falls apart. The portions are very good and for me very fresh. And it is in a very busy food court so please, don't judge your sandwich by the loud seating area (or lack of seating) but by your taste buds (this isn't a sit down restaurant). The only reason I don't come here more often is because it's a little out of my usual driving routes (again, habit of routine) and $6.49 + tax isn't the most bang for your buck. But to defend it fairly, if you take the relationship a regular grocery store (ie. Ralphs, Albertsons) is to healthier places (ie. WholeFoods, Mother's Market) then First Sandwich is the later compared to those sandwich "chains". read more

Favorite sandwich shop in irvine! The owner is very friendly and made everything perfectly. I always come here for a quick bite and am always satisfied. I recommend the pastrami and cheese sandwich it is delicious and filling. I've brought many of my friends here and all of them loved it. I definitely recommend this to everyone! P.S. the cashier is really cute and nice :) read more

I've been coming here on my lunch break recently because like the FOUR STARS I am giving, Yay! I'm a fan of their huge sandwich for only 5.99. A great size portion with roast beef, turkey, avocado, pickles, and cheese. Yum! I have only tried the roast beef, turkey, and the two combined with bacon. Will try the others sometime this week and next week. Service? I have only seen the owner there and he normally makes the sandwiches by himself and he's pretty fast at it. I'm also starring at half of my sandwich that I have left over and thinking...yummm bacon! read more

The Taiwanese beef noodle soup was a bit watered down, but still better than a lot of other places. What weirded me out was the excessive use of broccoli in everything. Wish the pork chop rice had more meat and less bone. read more

I grab a sandwich from here every once-in-while. Apparently, I do it often enough the owner remembers my order by heart. It seems like that kinda place. The sandwich is HUGE for the money, and the place is across the street from where I live, so I'm happy. I sometimes wish the food court had enough business to keep them open on Sundays. read more

Saw the reviews for the stew pork here and decided to give it a shot. The Taiwanese guy who took my order was very friendly . I ordered it to go and it came out fairly quickly . The flavor was really good and soaked into the rice , fatty pork was quite good however the some pieces of lean meat were a little dry . Comes with egg, veggies and pickled veggies as well. Portion was a good amount for one person . Will come back again read more

First Sandwich - Stew pork to go. Delicious - Sandwiches Near Me - Irvine, California

Not that great. I've cut back on going here when I am at this food court. I guess it's a sandwich, but nothing memorable at all. Often times, the sandwich I order is too soggy and falls apart. Blah. And yes, seating does suck at this food court. Try not to go during the 12 o'clock hour and you should be fine. read more

Brought a pork chop rice. It was burnt and dry. I can feel the passion from chef. He seems sick and tired of his kitchen and doesn't care about his creation anymore. I am not going back there ever again. If a chef doesn't care about his dish anymore, that's a sign that they wouldn't want you (customer) there either. I can take a hint. I give one star for the lady at front desk. She is a very sweet and nice person. read more

This is the place to go! Very authentic Chinese/Taiwanese food and the people are friendly. Also has many great tasting sandwiches with very reasonable prices!! read more

This place is in the same shopping center where i work. Its convenient for me to come here and i really like the customer service. Very friendly people. I come to get their clam chowder and their turkey sandwich: both which are at a reasonable price considering its inside a food court. read more

First Sandwich - Well made turkey sandwich. - Sandwiches Near Me - Irvine, California

OMG why have I never tried the pork stew rice?!! Upgrade to 4.5 stars. I was literally expecting pork stew but what a surprise. On a day when I was feeling so low this box of rice really lifted me out of the doldrums. There's fried pork chop cut in strips exactly the size that I like on a bed of rice with pork stew gravy, beancurd skin soaked in gravy and a hardboiled egg. Finish with preserved vegetables. Simply comforting. read more

Love this place! I'm here almost every Friday, meat is fresh, I hear their soups/plates are pretty authentic as far as quality Chinese food (co-worker). I go cause it tastes fresh and I like the sandwiches lol But! Don't miss out on this hidden gem of a sandwich spot located in food court plaza off main and von karman. Lunch time M-F call and order before you go cause it gets pretty busy from 11:30AM-1PM. If not I suggest you take lunch between 11-1130AM I normally would take a pic but I ate it -__- haha read more

You have got to try their "Cold Noodles" dish!! It's freshly chopped and made, upon order. The signature sauce is on the side, for you to blend. And, the portion is HUGE! Heat wave is coming, whether you like it or not! If you find yourself lack of appetite in the mist of hot season, you now have a great option! The flavor is YUM! read more

Random ass place! Stopped here on the way to Vegas because I was nearby at a work conference right before.They have sandwiches, and then they have all this random Chinese/Taiwanese food. I got excited about that. I ordered a beef stew with rice (niu2 rou4 hui4 fan4). Really, really delicious! The portions were also quite generous, so it was more like 2 meals. read more

Pork stew rice! I love this stuff, and it is great here because the owner-couple is Taiwanese :)

This food court is near my work so I stop by often. I've never had a sandwich but one day I saw pictures for Taiwanese food and being Taiwanese, I tried the pork chop rice. It was really good! I've basically tried all their Taiwanese food offerings and can say its all really good, reasonable priced, and fast. The owners are very friendly. The con's, which I'm not docking the place for is that it's in a sometimes-dirty food court area with a gross bathroom and the parking is sometimes a challenge. read more

I've only had their sandwiches, but they are super good. They are large sandwiches with a lot of filling in it. They don't scrimp on the meat, cheese or veggies read more

What's great about first sandwich is that they will make custom food for you. You look and see what's on their menu and you can pick and choose and put it together however you want. I always do a custom order and there is never a problem. Food is very good and generous. So don't be shy and tell him what you want and see if they will make that for you. read more

The lady was cool but she overcharged me on my order. I'm not the type to check people on this type of thing, I'll consider that, their tip and not go again. Also my meal might as well have been a vegetarian dish. The taste of it was OK. But virtually no fried pork in it what so ever. And oddly my coworker ended up with pork and chicken in his order. Never again... read more

Absolutely love this place. My go to sandwich is the seafood salad on sourdough. The crab and shrimp mixed with the sauce they use make it heaven on earth. The lady who takes your order is one of the nicest and friendliest you'll ever meet. All of their prices are fair but it does get a bit crowded during lunch time which is the only con for me. read more

I was running errands today at lunch and needed to eat something semi-healthy. Pulled in to check out the food court and ended up at First Sandwich. Boy was that a mistake. I ordered a turkey and Swiss on a French roll...simple enough. What I got was that heavily processed turkey "meat" that is loaded with water. This is better referred to as turkey loaf in my book. The tomato was red on the outside, but bright green on the inside. The kicker was the Swiss cheese. It was some horribly dry and grainy stuff. It gave the sandwich a nasty taste. So I removed the tomato and the cheese from my sandwich and was left with a very tasteless sandwich. For the price you get a much better sandwich at some place like Togo's or maybe...just maybe...even Subway. I won't be back. Oh and there's not too much seating at this food court. read more

Great spot in a strip mall food court for beef noodle soup, pork chop rice,beef stew rice, spicy pork dry noodle. Order to go.

Good fried pork chop rice and beef noodle soup. Definitely a cheaper, but just as tasty, alternative to the ones you'll find in the more popular parts of Irvine. Limited selection of Taiwanese dishes. We went there on a Friday afternoon and the food court was pretty empty. I suspect it would be pretty empty on weekends as well. We had the fried pork chop rice and beef noodle soup. Fried Pork Chop Rice As other reviewers have pointed out the, there were quite a bit of pickled cabbage and vegetables in the Styrofoam box. There was also a braised egg and fried tofu. Each bite of the fried tofu was filled with the rich gravy it was braised in. There was a good layer of rice and it had a decent amount of gravy which was great. The pork chop was fried well and delicious. I just wish there were more of it. Beef Noodle Soup There was a good portion of noodle and it picked up the flavorful broth in each slurp. I found the beef to be tender. I was missing the standard pickled vegetable (the English name escapes me) found at almost all good beef noodle soup joints. That aside, I think it great. Overall, definitely would return there and avoid the long lines at most places in Irvine if I'm craving fried pork chop rice or beef noodle soup. read more

Friendly family run deli serving delicious Taiwanese dishes. I've tried pork chop rice, stir-fried vermicelli, stir-fried seafood noodles, and the famous beef noodle soup. All taste great! If you eat very spicy, ask the nice chef for his secret spicy sauce made of 10 different chili's! read more

I came to this place when I saw they were serving Beef Noodle Soup, and that's what I ordered. The entire experience of the place really brought me back to feeling like I was in Asia; basically I have some amazing asian food that is inexpensive, but I'm eating it in a food court with plastic utensils. This feeling of nostalgia is what bumps up the score for me in First Sandwich. The beef noodles themselves were great, but not amazing. I'd say the flavors are pretty classic and favor the heavier soy flavors. If I had to classify it, I'd probably say that this is food that my grandmother would love, but may be slightly old fashioned for myself. Nevertheless, it's always great to find a gem in the rough, and First Sandwich is exactly that. read more

Best sandwiches for the dollar. I would have to say that First Sandwich is in my TOP 3 of all times....and i LOVE sandwiches. Try the Magic Mountian and I can easly say you wont be dissapointed! read more

First Sandwich - Sandwiches Near Me - Irvine, California

Hybrid sandwiches and taiwanese food stall in a food court. The taiwanese food is on point in taste, reminds me of the same flavors I grew up on in the 626. I had the pork stew w/rice and beef wrap...thumbs up! read more

Authentic Chinese food, very tasty n cheap. Close to where i work and most Friday i would go there for lunch.

Housed in the middle of a food court, First Sandwich offers a straight forward sandwich in its many variations. There are a couple of surprises on the menu, such as the Hungarian goulash. Otherwise, its offerings are to be expected. There is usually a well-priced, sub lunch special with a few different lunch meat choices. I chose to pay more for the turkey, avocado, and sprout on a whole wheat roll. As I said, it was straight forward, but good and generous. This is the lunch place to check out if you don't feel like surprises or exotic ingredients. read more

Very good value for the price! I enjoy coming to First Sandwiches because with all these big cooperate shops popping up all around Irvine, it's nice to have a friendly neighborhood mom and pop shop with a lot of character and good authentic Taiwanese food. Get the pork chop rice....soo good! The portions a very big so you will definitely get your money's worth. The owners are super cute and friendly as well! read more

This is my go to spot for lunch.. their vegaterian sandwiches are the best!! Customer service is excellent and fast!!

Found out about this place a while ago after my work is right next to it. They have great sandwiches and Chinese food. The owner and the employees are all very courteous. I've tried only limited amount of sandwich from them (ie: the super submarine, magic mountain, etc) and they did not disappoint. I'll be going there more often to try their other food. Oh did I mention the couple cashiers I've seen are very nice and courteous and cute :) read more

Came in expecting some 4 star sandwiches for lunch and instead had beef noodle soup. Wtf and yessss at the same time. Better than Chef Hung, but didn't knock my socks off. Their other stuff does look good though. read more

Had their Turkey Avocado on Squaw last Saturday and had to came back today and get another one because it was too delicious. I really appreciate the freshness of the ingredients, and squaw bread is just super tasty. Super fast service, too. In and out for 5 minutes! read more

Why the High ratings?!!!! This place service and speed suck!!!! Waited for a very long time for my food and I think I was their only customer! This isn't good! It looks like they only have 1 cook which is OK, but what the hell was he doing? I saw him moving so slow and confused! Definitely not a place to come back!!!!!! read more

I love this place. The owners are so warm and welcoming and everything on the menu is so good and the prices are great.