HW Jersey Mike’s wins big

The Jersey Mike’s team at Westside Shoppes took home first place at the company's National G13 Sub-Making Championship held at the national conference Sunday, March 5, in Orlando.

The Horizon West-based team included members Dakota Thompson (slicer), Victoria Cortese (sprinkler) and Chris Morrone (wrapper), who brought home the winning $90,000, as well as a huge trophy.

To reach the finals, the trio competed against more than 2,500 teams across the country to earn one of six top spots. 

TEAM FORMATION

Collectively, the trio has nine years of experience working at Jersey Mike’s.

Cortese, 18, and Morrone, 23, both started working for the company when the Horizon West location opened in November 2020.

Thompson, 24, has been with the company for seven years. He fondly refers to his position as his “dream job.”

Cortese resides in Windermere, and both Morrone and Thompson travel from Clermont and Lake Nona, respectively.

Frank Bergren, co-owner, runs the store with the help of his wife, Jennifer, and his brother-in-law, Robert Woods, who oversees the team.

The Horizon West location is the first of six the owners have set to open right now.

WINNING THE TROPHY

The competition started with a submission video that goes into an evaluation pool where the process of making a giant Italian sub is analyzed. The sub has to be completed properly, such as weighing the right amount and having the perfect amount of meat.

The team came in four to five times a week over almost two months to train and even stayed after midnight to practice when the store closed.

The event was announced by Michael Buffer, an American ring announcer for boxing, professional wrestling and NFL events.

The team said the weight of the sub was the hardest obstacle to overcome, but they got it perfect at 2.01 pounds in one minute and nine seconds. They said many of the other teams had deductions for actions such as presenting a sloppy wrapper or not using enough tomatoes. The Horizon West team had no deductions.

Thompson said the camaraderie at the shop is unbeatable.

“We all love coming to work with each other,” he said. “I think that was a big part of the win is truly liking the people that we are, especially when we’re together.”