Baldinos is coming back to downtown Macon, thanks to this couple and an interstate stop

Maconites Andy and Jan Clark were exploring the idea of opening a franchise restaurant when something caught his eye that would ultimately settle the matter in their hearts.

Andy said he was driving back from Savannah from a business trip four or five months ago when he needed to take a call around lunchtime. As he pulled off interstate 16 at Metter, he saw a sign for Baldinos Giant Jersey Subs.

A Baldinos fan, the sign led him to a gas station, which housed the Baldinos.

He parked and joined his Zoom work call. He couldn’t help but notice the steady stream of people coming in and out of the gas station with Baldinos bags.

“I watched, I mean person after person, basically go to this gas station not to get gas but to get Baldinos,” he said. “I was like, ah, this is interesting.

“Knowing the brand has a history in Macon, I was like, ‘Hey, I think this will work. I think this will be a great concept. I think we can bring it back downtown.’ ”

He shared the experience with Jan, who was immediately on board. When she was at Mercer University, Baldinos was the go-to, happening spot.

Just a few months since that fateful trip, the Clarks are owners of a Baldinos franchise, with plans to ultimately open three restaurants: two in Macon and one in Warner Robins.

A return to downtown

Their first Baldinos will be located at 596 Cherry St. in downtown Macon at the corner of Cherry and Second streets in the first floor of the building that houses the Barfield Lofts.

The move comes at a time when two of their three children are off at college and at a time when more and more people are wanting to live, eat, play and invest in downtown Macon.

“We have such wonderful restaurants downtown where you can have a sit-down meal with a waitress and a cocktail if you want,” Jan said. “I just felt like we were missing that little sandwich shop. “

A Baldinos was once located at the corner of Walnut and Spring streets in the building that now houses 3 Countries Restaurant at 195 Spring St.

Growing up in Macon, Andy also has fond memories of Baldinos.

When he was in elementary school, he went to St. Joseph’s Catholic School. He recalled walking to Baldinos after school and picking up sub sandwiches on his way home.

He also recalled attending parties in town when he was older at which the mega 6-foot-long Baldinos party sub was served.

Jan has been interested in the restaurant industry for years.

After a short stint at Mercer, which first brought her to Macon, she went to culinary school at Johnson & Wales University, which had a campus in Charleston, South Carolina, at that time.

Upon returning to Macon, she was working at a brokerage firm downtown during the day and at Natalie’s, a fine dining Italian restaurant, at night.

“I think as soon as I got into the culinary school and really kinda came back and worked for Natalie’s for a little while and realized what a hard life that is on a family, it just kind of didn’t pan out for me,” Jan said. “So, I’ve always wanted to get back into the restaurant business. I really love it and the people in it.”

During that time, she often ate at Baldinos.

“When I was pregnant with my oldest, I would literally walk in and the ladies behind the counter would say, ‘There she is,” and they’d start marking my lunch,” Jan said.

Pepperoni rolls

She was asked if she had cravings during her pregnancy for specific foods at Baldinos.

“I totally did. The pepperoni roll was a go-to,” she said.

People have been asking her if Baldinos will have the pepperoni rolls.

“That’s been one of the things we’ve told people that we’re opening this … Everyone has said, ‘Please tell me you’re doing pepperoni rolls.’ And we’re like, ‘Absolutely.’ ”

True to its name, Baldinos offers a variety of Jersey subs served up cold, toasted and grilled.

“It’s a traditional sub sandwich shop,” Jan said. “Italian subs are very popular. A steak and cheese is very popular … Baldinos does specials and daily specials … so you can get a steak and cheese for $4.99 on a Saturday, which is really inexpensive for that type of sandwich.

“The bread is a big love for people … which we bake in house … We get our meats and cheeses from an Italian purveyor. And so, just the quality of the product is what makes the difference with Baldinos, I think.”

Of the 27 subs currently offered on the menu, one of the “big ones” that comes with “extra everything” is #24, the Italian Battalion, according to the company’s website. This sub comes with extra press ham, boiled ham, hard salami, cappicola, pepperoni and provolone cheese.

For children, the restaurant offers the Bambino Bite, which are small ham and cheese or turkey subs.

The restaurant also serves up salad plates like the American, a plateful of turkey, boiled ham, roast beef and provolone cheese with shredded lettuce tomatoes, sliced onions, peppers and deli salad with a roll.

Deli salads include cucumber, pasta, macaroni and potato in 5 ounce, 8 ounce and 16 ounce sizes.

Sides and sweets also include potato chips, a cup or pint of the soup of the day, gourmet cookies, the popular pepperoni rolls, and don’t forget the dill pickles.

Beginnings

When Baldinos was originally founded, the sub shops were strategically located outside of military bases in the southeast. That appealed to Jan, who has veterans in her family and who looks forward to bringing a Baldinos back to Warner Robins, which is near to Robins Air Force Base.

At some point, two business partners based in Glennville took over ownership of the restaurant chain, Jan said.

“So that appealed to us; that it was a Georgia business,” she said.

After his experience at the Baldinos in Metter, Andy reached out to Gene Edwards, the company’s CEO, and liked what he heard.

The Clarks did their research, signed a franchise agreement for Macon and Warner Robins, settled on the location for the first restaurant, and recently met with architects to transform the downtown space.

“We’ve got to get through permitting and the supply chain issues that are out there,” Andy said. “We know some of the timetables on getting the equipment aren’t quite as fast as we like. But we’re shooting to be open ideally sometime in April.

“That’s our goal. That’s a lofty goal. So it’ll probably be sometime in May, but we’re excited. We’re going to move as fast as we can.”

Once they get their first Baldinos up and running, they expect to expand into catering, and then turn to opening their next sub shop, he said.

At that stop in Metter, Andy didn’t just get the idea for a Baldinos franchise.

“I got — it’s called the American Army. It’s roast beef, turkey and ham, and it’s one of their most popular subs.”

This story was originally published December 11, 2021 at 7:00 AM.