Newk’s Express Café

This place can never do me wrong. The Italian Sandwich (Meat and Cheese only) never disappoints me. Clean plate club!

Always fresh, always friendly. Great menu selection. You can get really healthy or totally splurge.

A little pricey but the food is very good. I am a fan of their pizzas and soups. Be sure to check their menu to see which soups they serve each day. I love their lobster and crab bisque soup and a cup of it was very filling. I have tried a few different kinds of pizzas and each have been very good. The latest one I tried is their current special crawfish pizza. It had just a little spice and kick to it but was piled high with other goodies. Be sure to sign up for their emails and get a birthday entrée each year.

Tasty options, prompt and friendly service. don’t leave your wallet!!! You’ll certainly need it… psssst. it’s a bit pricey.

Wonderful Lunch. Kudos to staff. This was my first time. Met a really close friend for lunch. I was immediately impressed with the place upon entering. Busy front entrance but nice n clean. As u look to the left u see the seating area which has a kinda homey feel to it w/​both booths n table seating. U place your order, pay n u get a number then go sit. They bring your food promptly. You’re self service for your beverage. I love this place!

So, this is a very cute place and since it was packed I made the mistake of assuming the food was going to be delicious… I was wrong. Let me explain:
My daughter is sick today but I had to run errands. I called in two salads, soup, a and a chicken Parmesan sandwich. We get home and I was like… 20.00 for this? I could have gone to subway or McCallister’s honestly. The chicken parm was dried out and tasted old. The salads were «meh» and the soup was salty. I’m not sure why the place was packed like that but it’s not the place for me.

Although this place has high prices, it’s worth it. Great food, good service, and not to bad wait time.
I would recommend this place to everyone!

Newk’s has and will always have my favorite ceasar dressing. Their melty pimiento cheese sandwich is great. Everything else has left me kind of disappointed. Their cake is routinely dry. Their sanwiches are so so. Their pizza is nothing special. Soups are not good at all. I come just for that darned dressing and those yummy croutons.

I love newks. I have loved it for awhile. I used to always go for the newks favorite salad, but recently I have really been enjoying their half salad/​half sandwich option. My favorite sandwich would have to be the grilled chicken. Fresh grilled chicken, apple smocked bacon, Swiss cheese, lettuce tomato, olive oil, mayo, and newks honey mustard. Yum. When it comes to the salad I get the Caesar. Oh and I just love their croutons. They’re little slices of toasted bread (I think). Either way they are soft but still have just enough crunch.
I like this location, too. Unlike the newks in collierville, this on has a nice little outside patio that they even cover in the winter.
The prices can seem a little high compared to similar style restaurants, but this place is great to have a quick lunch or get to go!

I really liked it. Fast fresh delicious. What more can you ask for lunch. Well done for a chain

Great atmosphere! Nice place to eat for lunch! They have amazing subs, pizza, and salads! They offer a self serve round table with complimentary items such as bread sticks, pickles, hot peppers etc. My favorite part is the cup, when you order a drink you can take the cup home with you!

I usually love my Newk’s experience, but today was a bit off. The service was a joke and my order was incorrect more than twice. Check-​out took a very long time as it seemed the person at the register wasn’t familiar with the restaurant at all. It was two hours before closing, however, most of everything was put away. After our salads arrived, my mom’s half size came in a full size and was soaked in ranch. My chef salad came with no meat and when I asked them to correct it, the employee brought over two containers of meat… one half full and one with ranch smeared on the lid. To say, «I was disappointed,» is an understatement. This was my mom’s first visit and I’m pretty sure, her last. I do not think I will frequent this location anymore. It’s unfortunate because it’s not very far from the university.

Very good. Food was fresh, tasty and pretty fast. After my other dining experiences as of late, this was refreshing.

I really like Newk’s. They have a great selection of soups and sandwiches. The service is always great. My favorite thing here is the pimento grilled cheese. It is soooo good. The bread is super crusty and great to dip in their tomato soup… Downside to this place, they don’t have tomato soup everyday so check the menu online before you go.

This is a great place to eat, especially for lunch. I generally get a half-​sandwich and a cup of soup. Their sandwiches are good, but not amazing. I usually get the Club or a BLT. Their soups, especially their chili, are very good, although it will depend on taste. I really love the chili, and the tortilla soup, but didn’t care for the vegetable.
I’ve also gotten their pizzas, including the pepperoni and margherita. They are thin crust, perfectly cooked, and enough for one person’s entrée. Newk’s also specializes in salads, although I haven’t tried them all. Newk’s Favorite Salad is a solid go-​to!
I will say that it isn’t cheap, lunch or dinner for two will usually run $ 25-​$ 30, if you decide on getting a rice krispy treat… which you should!

I’ll say this about Newk’s — they’ve found their niche and they know how to work it.
They appeal to the nearby 8 – 5 crowd. They do their food fast, and they do it fresh. I’ll also add that they don’t do it for cheap. I was shocked the first time I grabbled a to-​go lunch from here — half sandwich half soup for $ 12!!! I NEVER spend $ 12 on lunch!!!
However, their servings are BIG. Like, I can make two meals out of it big.
While I wasn’t impressed with my first order (I ordered in a rush), the second time to visit, I LOVED my salad. I had the Newk’s favorite — grilled chicken, pecans, cranberries, artichokes — YUMMM! Again, it was $ 11, but it was so big and delicious that I couldn’t complain.
While I can’t justify the price to eat at Newk’s for lunch everyday, they are a good option for fast and fresh food in east Memphis. That combination is hard to find sometimes.

Upon moving here, I found that people seemed to love their Newk’s, so I decided to pay them a visit. I ordered a steak sandwich that comes with chips (or other options like a small pasta salad), and although I found the sandwich to be good, I thought the price to be too high, and I did not anticipate coming back. However, my girlfriend is an avid fan of Newk’s, and I decided to give this place another try.
This time, I ordered the pimento grilled cheese sandwich. Oh my lord, this is probably the best grilled cheese I’ve ever had. After enjoying this sandwich, I came back the next time and tried their pimento mac and cheese, which was also quite the delight. I also like that they serve rice-​krispies desserts, and that you get to take your soda cup home.
The environment has a relaxing feel that you would find in the ambiance of a coffee shop and it is very easy to lose track of time and get lost in conversation here. My only issues with this place are that the price point is still a bit high for the food you get. However, this place is a fantastic local chain and I look forward to my next visit.

I love me some Newks! I get the pimento cheese sandwich every time. The staff is always very friendly, the food comes out promptly and the place is very clean. It gets pretty crowded in the early evenings — lots of groups meet here or familys grabbing a quick meal. The prices are a little higher than other casual counter order places in town but they have a wider selection and the quality makes it worth it in my opinion.

I LOVE NEWKS! Their restaurants are always very clean and roomy. Today I had a half sandwich and cup of soup combo for a little over $ 9. This did not include a drink which with tax brought it just north of $ 12. For my sandwich, I chose the shrimp po-​boy. The bread was GREAT! It was crunchy and soft, just as it should be! The shrimp were tender and not tough which is hard to do for most restaurants. It comes with lettuce, tomato, red onion, olive oil and pickle. I took off the lettuce and tomato and added mayo and it was delicious. For my soup, I opted for the loaded potato on this chilly Tuesday. The soup’s presentation was excellent and the flavor was very tasty! Real bacon chopped up on top and a sour cream swirl.
Overall, I left extremely satisfied and the cups they let you keep are ADDED VALUE for the customer. If you’re like me, I take them home. I have a cabinet full and use them as my every day cups. I will definitely return!
Love ya Newks!

I know it is a chain… but I really like this place. The soups are delicious, the sandwiches are fresh, and their salads are huge!
After all, there is something to be said for consistency.
This isn’t really my kind of place for dinner but it a safe spot for lunch — especially a working lunch where I need to be on my laptop.
FYI, their soup selection is the largest I’ve seen at any Memphis restaurant.

Don’t understand why it’s rated so low. One word to describe newks — CONSISTENCY. You’re always consistently going to be getting the same amazing thing that you know to love and like!
I love:
Newks Favorite salad — this comes in a ginormous bowl! I love this salad. I was craving for an amazing salad place similar to what I had eaten and expected in NYC. And I’m so glad that this is comparable! Grapes, cranberries, goat cheese, walnuts, and the best dressing ever.
Tip: I ask for dressing on the side so I can take half of the salad home without the dressing ruining the fresh leaves and have it as another meal later!
Loaded potato soup — you can ask for a side of toasted bread to complete your soup eating experience. This soup is always piping hot and amazingly delicious! I used to love paneras loaded potato but this one takes it. Also it’s much cheaper and comes in a very surprisingly full cup.
Full club — this is amazing piping hot with melted cheese and amazingly soft yet crunchy bread. One of the best consistent sandwiches in Memphis. It’s not a «foodie» sandwich, it’s just a good olé delicious satisfying filling sandwich.
I’ve ordered their half salads too and it’s amazing as well! All fresh ingredients. Unfortunately half salads only come in plain, or Caesar. (They won’t make any of their specialty salads «half» for you)
Side note: Their Croutons are AMAZING!!! Also, I Love that they have cherry coke in the vending machines. and unlimited lemons for your water.
They are fast during rush lunch hours, and very clean. They’re amazingly fast and efficient at cleaning up the tables. Great amenities. They have this gorgeous sink located in the middle of the two gender bathrooms for guests to wash their hands prior to eating. I’ve used it many times!
Note: if you happen to be there when Aaron is, you’re lucky! Get to know him. I’ve been there thousands of times, and on my 5000^th time, he called me out and said that I’m always there. (Yes I’m a fatty). But very glad that he did, and now I always look forward to seeing him whenever I frequent this establishment.

I’ve driven by this place (and the Cordova location) a thousand times. Why, oh why have I never stopped?! I can’t answer that question, but I can tell you that my silly over-​site has cost me an untold amount of salad joy. Yes, joy and salad!
Newk’s offers salads, sandwiches, pizza, soups, and a few side items. It’s a walk up and order, service your own drink, and sit were ever you like kinda place. In other words; casual. I couldn’t resist the Black and Blue Salad. I love steak and I believe nothing goes better with steak than blue cheese. Yum! The salad was constructed while I waited, which means I could have modified it to my liking if I wanted. With this being my first visit, I decided to test the standard. I didn’t have to wait long before my order was up. The salad was beautiful… and HUGE! I knew I wouldn’t be able to eat even half of this monstrosity. Speaking of which, the menu did not indicate that one can order half of a Black and Blue Salad, or else I would have gone that route. Next time I will have to inquire about that.
The salad was really, really good. I noted that the dressing was not the typical, heavy mayonnaise-​based blue cheese. It was oil based with blue cheese crumbles. For a blue cheese fan like me, this was just fine! The meat, cheese, and other topping were generously dealt, and the whole thing was tossed with even distribution. Not one stab of the fork resulted in mixed greens alone. One quarter of the salad devoured and I had to call it quits. I grabbed a take-​home box from the self-​service station and happily packed the rest away for later. I kept munching on my salad throughout the day. I just could not stop eating it! Lucky for me, it was large enough that I still had some to enjoy the next day.
I would like to say that next time I visit I will try a different salad. Truth be told, I will probably order the Black and Blue Salad again. Salad joy!

You know what? I’ve kind of come around on Newk’s, and no one is more surprised than I am. Repeated exposure (it’s super close to work, so it makes a convenient lunch spot) has taught me what items to order, and what they do well, boy do they do well.
I mentioned the pepperoni pizza on my last review — it remains the best pizza I’ve tasted in Memphis. I’ve also discovered (finally!) a decent salad, the shrimp remoulade. It’s not fancy, just shrimp with a creamy remoulade dressing, but it’s the best signature salad on their menu, in my opinion.
Last but not least, they apparently have different soups for the spring/​summer and fall/​winter. Let me tell you, their tomato basil soup is SO GOOD. I get a bowl of that and a chicken Caesar salad, and I’m practically licking the dishes. I think it may be more of a bisque, but honestly, I don’t care if they put crack in there, I’m eating as much of it as possible this winter, and I will be very sad when they switch back to the fire roasted tomato soup for the spring.
One final tip, if you want to save a couple bucks, skip the bucket-​sized (32 oz, I believe) drink and just get water. You might have to get up a couple times for refills, but it’s better for both wallet and waistline, and something I hardly miss. Lunch for two sans the drinks is around $ 22, which I can totally live with.