Franchised by brothers Steven and Anthony Karmo and cousin Marius Essak, the East Lansing Firehouse Subs will be the eleventh to open in Michigan.

After growing up in a family built on decades of police and fire service, brothers Chris and Robin Sorensen envisioned a restaurant that would give something back to their community while paying tribute to those who serve and protect.

In 1994, that vision became a reality with the opening of their first Firehouse Subs location. Eighteen years later, Firehouse Subs can be found at 653 different locations in 36 states and one in Puerto Rico.

The franchise offers fresh subs with steamed meats and cheeses, which Firehouse Subs area representative John Kupiec said enhances the subs’ flavors.

But that’s not the only thing that sets them apart from other sub shops — Firehouse Subs also runs a public safety foundation that donates funds to equipment for firefighters, police and emergency response.

“We sell the buckets that our pickles come in for $2, and all that money goes to the public safety foundation,” Kupiec said.

The restaurant’s interior also resembles an actual firehouse, in homage to the shop’s founders. Kupiec said the decor was necessary to represent what the restaurant was founded behind.

“It’s not a theme, it’s a culture,” Kupiec said. “It represents how our brand was founded, by firefighters.”

To add to the fiery motif of Firehouse Subs, the restaurant offers 50 different hot sauces to spice up the customers’ experience.

The opening of Firehouse Subs only will add to the business diversification in downtown East Lansing, Community Development Specialist Heather Pope said.

“Firehouse Subs will provide another dining option for the community,” Pope said. “It will be a nice addition to our mix of downtown restaurants.”

Economics senior Scott Tarnowsky was intrigued by the fact Firehouse Subs was created by firefighters and said the restaurant definitely seemed like something he would enjoy.

“One, I am a very big fan of spicy food and I’m curious to taste their variety of sauces,” Tarnowsky said. “And two, it was founded by firefighters, that’s awesome. I would love to support (it) not just because the business is cool but because it was created by firemen.”