Jersey Mike’s Subs has filed to go public. The sandwich chain, which got backing from Blackstone in 2025, is looking to raise as much as $1.09 billion — ticker symbol JMKE. It’s kind of an odd moment for the company to IPO at a time when consumers are a bit touch and go with discretionary spending.John Gordon visits Jersey Mike’s now and then. Partly because it’s his job as a restaurant analyst and consultant. Partly because he likes it. “I always order the honey mustard chicken item. I really like chicken. And I like kind of the spicy sauces,” he said.He also likes that the shop has a grill. (Subway has ovens.) Another thing that’s different about Jersey Mike’s? It doesn’t run many discounts. “In particular, Subway does just a gross amount of discounting. Gross as in horrible,” he said.Gordon said discounts cheapen the brand. And unlike Subway, Jersey Mike’s doesn’t only have franchises — it also has company-owned stores. “You have to run restaurants to know what’s going on,” Gordon said.It might seem like there’s a lot of Subway in a story about Jersey Mike’s. But honestly, a lot of Jersey Mike’s growth has to do with its rival’s downfall, said Kevin Schimpf, director of restaurant industry research at Technomic. Subway is still the biggest sandwich chain in the U.S, he said, but they’ve closed thousands of locations. “Them closing so many locations has opened up this space for Jersey Mike’s to grow into,” Schimpf said.And grow it has, slow and steady, he said. Jersey Mike’s averaged double digit location expansion each year for the past 15 or so years.“That’s the way to do it. I mean that is really the way to do it,” Schimpf said.The sandwich company will probably use the money to continue expanding, including internationally. Schimpf said not many chains have been going public lately. The last food and drink operator to join the market was Black Rock Coffee Bar last fall. “It is a little bit risky I would say. Restaurant chains just by themselves can be kind of volatile and fickle in the consumer space,” he said.The S&P restaurant index is down about 3% this year.