It is a weekday afternoon and you are probably starving from the work you did all morning. It is time for you to grab lunch, but you are thinking about where to go. A hoagie sounds pretty fulfilling, but you’re not in the mood for something like Subway or Jimmy John’s.

If you like local, family-owned and traditional, Ricci’s Hoagies is your one-stop shop.

Located near the circle on Rowan Boulevard, Ricci’s opened in October of 2017. The name has been in operation since 1920, opening their first location in South Philadelphia.

I sat down with Allena Vespa, the owner and manager of Ricci’s on Rowan Boulevard, to ask about the business.

What are some of the hoagies you sell here? Do you sell anything other than hoagies?

We have Italian, we have an American, we have turkey and cheese, ham and cheese…we do chicken cutlet. We now just started hot sandwiches, so like chicken parm, roast beef, barbecue chicken and then we just started soups actually today.

What is the most popular hoagie that everyone gets?

Depends on the day. Turkey and cheese or the Italian. They’re very, very popular.

Are there any special discounts that you give to Rowan students or the general public?

No…I mean on Monday’s and Wednesday’s we do a lunch special, so it’s any size hoagie, a small bag of chips and a can of soda for 10 dollars. We’ve noticed that pulled people in. Other than that, not really.



Are you open on weekends and do you deliver?

So weekends…we’re family owned…it’s my mom, my dad and my sister on the weekends. Delivery…we don’t want to open it to the students, due to hearing stories and not having access to the dorms. We do deliver to the public though, if they come in here and introduce themselves to us, we’ll offer the option to them, since we know it’s more public than students. Other then that, it’s local businesses only.

For someone who’s never been here before, how would you explain this place to them? How would you get them in here?



It’s a good authentic sandwich and we’re also family owned, so it’s not like you’re just getting random people, with miserable attitudes. We keep the, you know, customer base level.

On the review website Yelp, Ricci’s is rated 4 stars out of 5. Kyle C., from Glassboro, NJ, said, “Great hoagies! Very nice people behind the counter always help me make my decisions!”

Patrick G., from Warren, NJ, also gave 4 out of 5 stars and said, “Respectable sandwiches at respectable prices. Fits between a Jersey Mike’s and a Jimmy Johns imo.”

An option to order online is available through their website, where you can customize your sandwich and pick it up at the store. Ricci’s also operates a Facebook page, with special events and promotions.