Is Subway Really A Place to “Eat Fresh”?

January 8, 2014 87 Comments

Whenever I bring up Subway, there is a serious debate here on Snack Girl.

I have been watching the NFL playoffs and I feel like the whole thing is a big commercial for Subway and Bud Lite. Subway hired all these winter Olympians to promote the food and Bud Lite has this crazy commercial with mountain climbers.

Subway is the largest restaurant company in the WORLD. I know that it is the largest one in my world. My tiny town of 30,000 boasts three Subways and ZERO McDonald’s. Really. Amherst also has three Dunkin’ Donuts and recently added a food cart serving falafel.

If I want a Subway sandwich, I can have one within a three minute drive of almost anywhere in the town (that is how small it is).

Now that we agree that you can’t avoid passing the place, should you eat there? I am going to give you my list of pro’s and con’s and hope that you can add your own.

Pro’s:

There are no fries to tempt you.
It is CHEAP ($5 for a foot long sandwich – wow!)
Compared to other fast food venues it is a garden of Eden with the vegetable choices at your disposal.

Con’s:

The bread does not taste good (to me) and has some questionable ingredients.
The sodium content of most sandwiches is too high.
Cookies, soda, and chips are everywhere (not fresh or healthy).
Many of their choices are not healthy (meatball sub? Philly cheesesteak? Pulled pork?)

Jared lost a lot of weight by eating there but I bet he didn’t order the Philly cheesesteak.

I think Subway is a better choice than most but you have to order carefully. I like the 6-inch “Veggie Delight” and I don’t add mayo. I add an Italian dressing and call it a salad sandwich and it works out to only 280 mg of sodium and about 250 calories. I drink water (because I am cheap) and I don’t order the cookies or the chips.

Did I do better than a Big Mac? Absolutely! I ate spinach, onions, peppers, mushrooms, lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers instead of 2 beef patties, cheese, and special sauce.

Did I like it as much as a Big Mac? No, I did not. I have stopped eating Big Macs because they make my stomach hurt but what I remember is better than the Veggie Delight.

What do you think of Subway? Do you eat there? What do you order?

Photo Credit: Dwight Burdette