Al's Tech Square Cafe

Had a great experience ordering lunch for the office. Everything was well packaged and labeled and they were accommodating of allergies. Food arrived a little ahead of schedule and the driver was friendly and communicative. The subs are huge. The large could very easily feed 2-3 people. The bread is fresh and has a nice crusty texture. They missed one of my toppings, but not a big deal. Overall solid place for a sub and a good price point.

I ordered a large sub and it was so long that I couldn't fit it in my backpack and had to carry it home in my arms like a baby!Their regular subs are around $9.50 and the large is $11.50. I got a hot pastrami Al's way which came with swiss cheese and hot mustard. I also added onions, pickles, and banana peppers.The sandwich was really tasty and I could see why this is such a popular lunch spot. The pastrami was flavorful without being too salty or greasy and balanced perfectly with the tangy mustard. The bread was also very soft and held everything together well, although the bread itself did not have a lot of flavor.For a lunch sandwich shop I highly recommend this spot! I did not come during a busy time but I could see myself taking advantage of their online ordering system to avoid long lines/crowds.

This is for delivery. Ordered the lunch small bag w/ Italian sub, chips and soda. The sandwich was ok, the French bread didn't taste super fresh and it was meager on the add ins (lettuce, onion, tomato, balsamic, olive oil). The sandwich in terms of size was generous (ordered a small, felt like a large). Delivery was prompt but came at a whopping $8 delivery fee, on a $16 order and 0.8 miles distance.

Three stars for Al's based on my rating of their steak, cheese and pepper sub. Al's does have ginormous portion sizes, fast turn around time, very reasonable prices, and overall tasty food. That being said Al's is crowded pretty much every second of the working day and it can be very chaotic so you have to mentally prepare before arriving. The small steak and cheese sub with peppers was humongous (about the length of my forearm). The steak in the sub was very ground up. I was expecting the steak to be thinly sliced with less of a powdered meat consistency. The meat to pepper ratio was not equivalent which left me with giant bites of meat and bread. Regardless, I could barely finish half of my sub Because my belly was stuffed! If I do end up coming back to Al's, I will probably order the chicken teriyaki sub. I have heard good things, and they stuff the sub with more veggies!

The food is delicious! I always get the steak sub. I always order pick up because going in the store to order lunch is like going to a sold out musical festival for the first time.Literally there's no organization of who is in charge or where does the line starts. If you're new to Cambridge MA, I would only go here if a friend brings you here. The only downside here is the customer service, the lack of energy and enthusiasm here. People look miserable working here, especially one of the ladies in the front. There's only one lady in the front that's looks nice and greets their customers!! CheersHey management, can you feed some happiness to your team? I know you can feed the locals well, but what about your Ale family team? Let's get that going because small things goes long ways.

I had the small chicken arriana sub first time earlier this week and I loved it. Decided on Friday to try sharing the large size with a friend, and it was delicious as always, but that night we realized we had both gotten food poisoning. My friend told me today that last year he had also gotten food poisoning after eating chicken at Al's. There have been a couple other people who have reported getting food poisoning after eating the chicken at Al's on "iwaspoisoned dot com" so I would say proceed with caution. 1 in 4 Chicken Arriana's being poisoned is not worth the risk for me to try again. Unfortunate because it tasted great and the price is excellent.

I would give Al's 3.5/5 stars for taste of the chicken salad sub I got, but rounding it up to 4 stars for the value ($7.50 for a "small" that is actually like two small subs put together). I visited the one right in Kendall Square after reading several positive reviews online, most notably how much people are infatuated by Al's self-declared homemade chicken salad "with just the right mix of seasonings" sub as being "the best ever". I stopped by for lunch around noontime, and the place was already bumping. When I reached the front door, there was a line slightly protruding outside which I noticed was for the cold subs only. The line for the hot subs wasn't nearly as long and people seemed to head straight to the register. It looks like Al's has an efficient system going for ordering their subs (hot vs. cold), and it's an assembly line once you get to one of the 4-5 people at the counter who make your sandwich in front of you Subway-style. You get a choice of cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and hot peppers (which are the thinly sliced pickled banana peppers)-- that's it for optional included "toppings". The server slabs on a somewhat thin layer of chicken salad onto what appeared to me a light-brown/honey wheat bread + 2-3 tomato slices and cheese slices, lettuce. A very simple sandwich ordering system indeed. I didn't think the chicken salad was amazeballs, just kinda average dressed in lots mayo and black pepper. Straight up chicken, no celery or grapes or what have you tossed in the mix. Actually too salty for my tastebuds. But I was impressed by the freshness of the sandwich bread. From first glance, it looks meager and borderline crispy-stale but it was the perfect amount of gluten-y chewy that I enjoyed. Like others have said, I was able to save 1/2 for a quick snack later in the day. A decent deal for the area!

I owe Al's this review. I spent a summer in Cambridge and I tried Al's hot sandwiches many times and made a lot of memories with my friends. Absolutely delicious and I wish they were in DC too!

Al's is known for the best lunch deal in Boston, with high quality sandwich ingredients, fresh baked bread, fast service, and a chips and a drink for a bargain. Now you no longer need to go into Boston to get it! The Kendall area had a sore lack of affordable quick lunch options, and almost nowhere to get a good sub, now Al's has saved the day.I eat lunch at Al's several days a week, and now that I've been to this location over 50 times I thought I would update my review.Subs are large or small, but the small is larger than anyone else's large and will fill any big appetite. Order hot subs in the line to the right, and cold subs to the left. They also serve soups, salads, and chicken kabob meals at the far left line.Here are some of my favorites:1. Roast Beef with Mayo and BBQ (and provolone, lettuce, and basil)2. Turkey & cheese add bacon (a ton of tasty crispy bacon makes it well worth the extra cost)3. Chicken salad add bacon (with lettuce, cheese, and oregano). The best chicken salad sandwich you will ever have.4. Steak Bellino with american cheese. A decent steak and cheese that melts right into the fresh bread.5. Hot Pastrami ("swiss and spicy" with swiss cheese and mustard)6. Chicken Eggplant Parmesan. As the chicken is not breaded, the breaded eggplant adds that needed flavor7. Pesto Chicken Kabobs. When I'm not in the mood for a sandwich. Awesome homemade pesto chicken breasts on a bed of rice, plus a salad and a loaf of fresh bread. 8. Meatball parm sub. Highlighted by their excellent homemade sauce.The chili is also that perfect balance of flavor and spice, meat and beans, and can be added on the side for a big meal or good enough on its own.Service is still very quick without the insanity and yelling of the downtown locations. There is just enough seating inside, and tables on the sidewalk on nice days.

Great value subs. You can get a "small" 10 inch subs for less than 8 bucks or a 16 inch sub for a few more dollars. The 10 inch sub is probably going to be more than enough for most people unless you are really really hungry or can find a buddy to split the large sub with you. You can order either cold or hot subs on separate ordering queues. I enjoyed their Italian cold sub. Definitely superior ingredients and much better assembly than what you would get at a large national chain, but perhaps not quite as good as a more gourmet deli with freshly sliced meat. The steak sub with peppers and onions plus melted cheese was satisfying. The meatball wasn't bad, but it was not served as hot as I would have liked. A great option for a quick, affordable, and satisfying lunch in Kendall.