Family members are reviving The Sandwich Factory in Rockford. First up, a food truck

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — The great-grandchildren of the family that founded The Sandwich Factory are reviving the restaurant with the recipes that made it a local staple for more than four decades.

The Sandwich Factory is coming back as a food truck serving the classic steak deluxe, house sub, rib tip boat and other sandwiches fans remember from the brick-and-mortar restaurant, which ran from 1975 to 2019 when it was sold.

“We’re carrying everything through exactly how it was done 30 years ago, 40 years ago,” said Dane Lungo, the owner of The Sandwich Factory food truck. “It’s all the original recipes.”

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Lungo said he hopes to launch the food truck this weekend. Its locations will be posted on the restaurant’s Facebook page.

He said the food truck is the first step bringing back The Sandwich Factory after a five-year hiatus. He’s been scouting locations for a potential future brick-and-mortar restaurant.

The family’s announcement of the comeback on Facebook garnered hundreds of shares and comments from fans eager to see it return.

“It was a hot spot for Rockford for a long time,” Lungo said. “It was the late-night spot. … There’s still enough people alive that remember it in its prime.”

The food truck is designed to look like a mixture of the two longest-standing locations of The Sandwich Factory: The original on Kishwaukee Street and College Avenue, and the restaurant at 2203 Charles St.

The back of the truck includes a tribute to Evelyn Ballard, Lungo’s great grandmother who ran The Sandwich Factory for more than 40 years. Ballard died in November 2020 at age 91.

Everyone in the Ballard family worked inside The Sandwich Factory at one time or another, Lungo said. A shift inside the shop became a family gathering spot.

That tradition will continue. Lungo, 25, owns the food truck and it will be operated by he and his fiancee, Amanda Tack. You’ll often see Maddox Tongue, Lungo’s brother, working the front counter.

“We grew up in the building,” Lungo said. “Everybody in the family grew up in the building.”

The Sandwich Factory had eight different locations during its 44-year run around Rockford. It was sold in 2019, when the space at 2203 Charles St. was converted into Ali’s Sandwich Factory before it closed. That spot is now Slots of Fun.

The restaurant was often a late-night spot to grab a sandwich after bars closed, Lungo said. He hopes to be that spot again with hours until 3 a.m.

“We’re going to catch that bar traffic, just like it did in the 70s, 80s and 90s,” he said. “It’s going to be accessible and everybody is going to know where it’s at. It’s going to be one of three places in town you can get a sandwich at 3 a.m.”

The food truck will have a limited menu but it will include the most popular items fans remember.

That includes the steak deluxe, which was originally called the Baby Doll steak deluxe after his great aunt, who everyone called Babe. The sandwich features a steak patty with onions, tomatoes, cheese, lettuce, mayonnaise and a mixture and seasonings served on a hearty bread.

There will also be the rib tip boat, Italian beef, Italian sub, house sub, pastrami on rye and three for $5 chili dogs. There are also a variety of sides, including fries, onion rings, cheese fries and barbecue fries.

Tongue said he’s looking forward to helping rebuild the family’s restaurant legacy and introduce it to new people.

“It was the rock of the family, we all met up there,” Tongue said. “When it shut down it was kind of heartbreaking. It’s a dream come true having this open now. Now we get to have other generations come to it.”

Follow | The Sandwich Factory

For updates on the location of the food truck, follow The Sandwich Factory on social media.

Facebook: Go HERE

Instagram: Go HERE

This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas