Bite Club: Just what the doctor ordered, soup season at Doc’s

MANSFIELD – Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the cool, crisp air, the sound of leaves crunching underfoot and wearing a cozy sweater.

But more than anything, there’s something about this time of year that makes me crave a warm bowl of soup.

So, with soup season on my mind, I headed to Doc’s to see what was on the menu.

A menu made for mixing and matching

Doc’s has been serving Mansfield lunch-goers since 2007, becoming a staple for many over the past 19 years, but a good bowl of soup is only half the appeal here. The sandwiches are just as central, and finding the right match for each bowl was a lot of fun.

The Unlikely Tuscan seemed simple enough, smoked turkey, Monterey Jack cheese, sliced tomatoes, and pesto mayo on basil focaccia, grilled until warm. But the freshness of the ingredients and the bread really made this one stand out. The focaccia had a wonderful basil aroma and a crisp crust; I could eat a whole loaf of just that.

The roasted red pepper and smoked Gouda soup was velvety and smooth, with a savory warmth and little chunks of cheese throughout. It was great on its own, but paired with the Unlikely Tuscan, it was delicious and comforting. The pesto, smoky cheese, and roasted pepper complemented one another, and the bread soaked up just enough soup to make every bite even better.

Another surprising standout was The Dr. Phil, built on a flaky croissant with smoked turkey, pepper jack cheese, avocado, sliced portobello mushrooms, tomatoes, mayo, and an apricot chipotle sauce. Portobello mushrooms aren’t something I would typically think to add to a deli sandwich, but it worked! I liked how the flavors melded together, how the sweetness of the apricot chipotle sauce balanced the rich avocado and buttery croissant without weighing it down. Ultimately, this sandwich felt light and fresh, just as much at home paired with a warm soup as it would be enjoyed on a hot summer day.

And because I like to mix things up, I dunked The Dr. Phil in the cream of broccoli, which turned out to be another great combination. Broccoli soup isn’t usually something I get excited about, but this one had a fresh, almost roasted broccoli note with a creamy texture. Its earthiness helped ground the sweeter, brighter ingredients in the sandwich, giving it a full range of flavor.

Next was the Italian Pretzel, with salami, capicola, provolone, red onions and sliced pickles with mayo on hearty pretzel bread. The pickle aroma hits you first, and the briny acidity and bite from the onions cut through the rich cured meats. I’m usually inclined to leave raw onion off my sandwiches, but I was glad I didn’t this time. It worked better than I expected, even if I might recommend keeping a breath mint handy afterward.

The potato with bacon and cheddar soup was exactly the kind of hearty potato soup I love. The creamy potatoes, cheddar, and salty, crumbly bacon all worked together, with plenty of bacon in every bite. I didn’t get around to dunking the Italian Pretzel in this one, but that is a combination I wish I’d tried.

Finally, the chicken corn chowder felt like the perfect transition between summer and fall. The chicken and corn gave it plenty of substance, but it still had a lighter feel. I love anything with corn, so taking something as familiar as chicken soup and adding sweet corn is a win-win in my book.

Nearly 2 decades of familiar faces

Susan Vander Maas and her husband opened Doc’s in 2007, turning the former Doc Cole’s Naborhood Store into a custom sandwich shop. Keeping the Doc’s name was a nod to the building’s history as well as its location across from the hospital.

Nineteen years later, Vander Maas is still part of the business. After selling Doc’s to current owner Gary Cassady roughly two years ago, she stayed on as catering director and continues to fill in behind the counter.

Cassady originally bought the building for its real estate potential, converting the upstairs space into an Airbnb loft and purchasing the house next door for the same purpose. Taking over the restaurant came with a learning curve.

When asked which was tougher, real estate or the restaurant business, he didn’t hesitate.

“Owning a restaurant, 100% hands down,” Cassady said. “It is a lot more work than I initially anticipated… I have a lot more respect for other local restaurants and wait staff. It’s really given me an eye-opening view of the entire industry.”

A big part of Doc’s continued success comes down to the personal connections behind the counter, where some staff members have worked for more than a decade. They’ve gotten to know regular customers over time, often recognizing who’s coming in and knowing what they usually order.

For Vander Maas, one of the most rewarding parts of owning Doc’s was watching customers return over the years, sometimes with an entire generation of memories in tow.

“When we first opened, a lot of people came in with their newborns from across the street,” Vander Maas said. “Those kids are now going off to college.”

She recently had a couple show her pictures of their grown children, bringing those early memories full circle.

“I’ve just gotten so close to so many customers. And it’s great that I’m back in here a little more often now, so I get to see people I haven’t seen for a while,” Vander Maas said.

The cure for the common sandwich

With more than 100 ingredients on hand, Doc’s approach to lunch has always been built around letting customers design their own combinations and giving them a name. The team started a database to save those recipes early on, allowing regulars to walk in years later and order their creation by name.

“Every day we get somebody coming in that has named their sandwich,” Cassady said. “Some have been ordering the same sandwich for 20 years.”

Much of the food at Doc’s is prepared in-house, including most of its soups and many of its sauces. Managers Rachel Barnes and Olivia Pidgeon each play a big role in that part of the kitchen, with Barnes credited for making the soups and Pidgeon creating many of the deli’s sauces.

“We’ve developed most of the condiments over the years,” Vander Maas said. “It really does make the sandwich.”

Local sourcing plays a role, too, from the custom bread made for Doc’s by Bakehouse at Maple Lake to seasonal produce delivered throughout the week by local Amish growers.

Vander Maas traces that scratch-cooking tradition back to her childhood.

“My grandma was Italian, and when we were growing up, she always had people over at Christmas,” Vander Maas said. “She had a full basement with the kitchen in it. When the holidays were there, we all just set up one big table and had a family meal down there, and then she would invite anybody over that didn’t have a place to go. We spent a lot of time cooking, and I just grew up loving to cook. That’s how we got some of our recipes for soup.”

What’s next for Doc’s

As Doc’s approaches its 20th year, Cassady is looking at a few ways to grow the business.

Doc’s recently introduced breakfast options, which are available beginning at 8:30 a.m., Monday through Friday.

Looking forward, Cassady wants to introduce a weekly meal-prep service featuring prepared soups, salads and sandwiches for local seniors and busy professionals.

He is also working on a vintage lunch truck concept reminiscent of the old Hostetler catering trucks. The idea is to bring prepackaged deli lunches directly to local manufacturing plants and industrial areas around Mansfield.

For now, the truck is still working through the permit stage, but it’s one more way Cassady hopes to expand the deli’s footprint.

I came to Doc’s looking to kick off soup season and walked away with a new appreciation for a good deli sandwich, too. Whether you stick to the classics, build your own from scratch or find the perfect sandwich to pair with a velvety bowl of Gouda soup, there’s plenty to love at Doc’s. And as far as my soup craving goes, I’d say I found just the cure.

What soup are you? Take the quiz and find out!