In a world of drive-thru shortcuts and forgettable lunches, a new Daytona Beach sub shop is betting there’s still room for quality in convenience.
With its opening around the corner, the self-service eatery aims to deliver hefty sandwiches layered with fresh ingredients, bold flavors and a little feel-good indulgence — a place that invites guests to get their “dopamine fix with every bite.”
Dopamine Subs, located at 336 E. International Speedway Blvd., will celebrate its grand-opening June 3 — a day months in the making for owner Brian Zahn, an industry veteran of more than 22 years.
“This will be our third restaurant here, because we own the building — it’s family owned — and we’ve owned it for going on 27 years now,” Zahn said of the 3,700-square-foot space, a location that’s had many lives, from Las Olas, an Argentinian restaurant and bar that opened in 2015, to Henry’s Pizza, a flame-grilled pizzeria that closed its doors in 2023.
The space remained vacant for more than a year, before it was leased to Lady Sugar Shack BBQ, which closed roughly six months ago.
“We’re lacking, obviously, something to eat around here besides 7-Eleven and just something that fits more people’s budget, you know? And sandwiches are just easy,” Zahn said.
“People pick up a sub to go to the beach; they pick up a sub to not cook dinner. It’s just something that’s more accessible … So, I was like, let me open up something of my own this time.”
What is Dopamine Subs in Daytona Beach?
Inside, the restaurant trades the stripped-down look of your traditional sub shop for something far more expressive.
Vibrant pops of pink, yellow and green pair with graffiti-style artwork, neon accents and paint-splattered tabletops — the product of 15-hour days behind the scenes, Zahn said. The result? A space that feels intentionally different, energetic and dopamine-inspired.
“One day, I was just sitting at my computer and, I don’t know, I read something about dopamine and I was like, ‘Dopamine Subs.’ It just stuck with me,” Zahn said. Dopamine, a brain chemical linked to pleasure and satisfaction, ultimately inspired the restaurant’s vibrant design.
“I just wanted it really crazy and popping — something different, something not so serious,” Zahn continued.
“I started designing it and just learning from our mistakes from before. Like, you can’t count on people to always be dependable and be here to run it the way you want it … So, I figured, why not make it into a self-service restaurant?”
With indoor and outdoor seating for 150, the restaurant will feature touch-screen kiosks for placing orders, each of which will display an estimated wait time to guests before they confirm, checkout and grab a table.
In addition to dine-in and carry-out, Dopamine Subs will offer free delivery with DoorDash and Uber Eats through its website, exclusively to Volusia County customers who join the restaurant’s free loyalty program, Zahn said.
What’s on the menu at Dopamine Subs?
A lineup of 17 handcrafted handhelds anchors the menu, with nearly every component — from the breads and sauces to each slow-cooked meat — prepared from scratch, Zahn noted, steering clear of traditional deli meats in favor of a more elevated approach to sandwiches.
“Our sub rolls are the only thing we outsource — our white sub rolls — but 90% of the sandwiches are on ciabatta, a French baguette or our focaccia. So, we have the exotic breads that we make in house,” he said. “… It’s a lot of work, but it shows. It the end, the quality always shows.”
Alongside the chopped Italian with salami, pepperoni and ham, the menu features a Milanesa sub with tender, breaded and fried beef cutlet; a spinach Florentine and tomato grilled cheese; an Angus beef Dopamine smash burger; its signature or hot lobster rolls; and a turkey and cheese sub.
The shop’s hand-carved, thick-sliced turkey breast is prepared using a confit-style technique, slowly cooking the meat in rich beef tallow to lock in moisture, resulting in an especially tender, juicy bite.
“I also own another company called Pura Vida Foods, which is pure life foods, and we have over 750 hydroponic plants. So, we grow all of our vegetables that we put into our sandwiches in house,” Zahn said.
Hydroponically grown produce is the result of vegetables and herbs grown without soil, typically in nutrient-rich water for a fresh, more carefully controlled product.
Inside the restaurant, a former bar space now serves as a small-scale hydroponic plant display, where Zahn is growing cherry tomatoes and basil. In its off-site grow rooms, the Daytona-based business grows everything from eggplant to zucchini, bok choy, lettuce and mustard greens, Zahn said, all free from chemicals, pesticides and preservatives.
Dopamine Subs will offer draft beer and wine, and plans to bring back Henry’s popular house sangria.
Looking ahead with Dopamine Subs
Between curious passersby and the location’s former regulars, Zahn anticipates a line out the door on opening day — and with it, the kind of nervous excitement and adrenaline-fueled anticipation that serves as his own “dopamine fix.”
“I’m excited … I’m fine-tuning things, and that’s what I was always good at,” Zahn said. “… I have no doubt this is gonna work, especially with the response I’ve been getting.”
Dopamine Subs plans to be open from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. Tuesday – Sunday. For information, visit dopaminesubs.com.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Self-service sub shop with hydroponic garden to open in Daytona Beach
Reporting by Helena Perray, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
