Why Subway's Sandwich Meat Leaves A Lot To Be Desired

Subway is a fast food establishment that does things a little differently than your average burger joint. Customers are free to design their very own sandwiches by selecting from a range of ingredients, including an assortment of nutritious options. For instance, the Veggie Delite, Tuna, and Grilled Chicken subs highlight the many wholesome ingredients available at the chain.

While it's nice to know that Subway offers a few more healthy options than other quick-service establishments, the restaurant's primary sandwich component — i.e., meat — is not always up to par. When Daily Meal evaluated the quality of meat at popular sandwich chains, our reviewer placed Subway dead last. With sandwiches dubbed "mediocre at best," Subway can't hold a candle to Jersey Mike's Subs, which earned the top ranking thanks to its selection of sandwiches that feature "a fresh flavor that always hits the spot." Meat quality is a key aspect of making an enjoyable sandwich, and it appears that Subway struggles mightily in this department.

Digging into Daily Meal's review of Subway's meat selection, our reviewer describes some options as "a little tough and spongy." Similar sentiments were expressed on Reddit, where a poster pondered why, despite the "simple ingredients ... Subway sandwiches manage to be bad." Another person described the chicken as "impressively mediocre," while one commenter complained about "Cheap turkey and chicken blend 'meats.'" And in case you thought the only issue was the quality of the deli meat, remember that Ireland does not classify Subway's bread as genuine due to its high concentration of sugar.

Despite the myriad of quality issues the restaurant chain seemingly experiences, Subway is a verifiably successful undertaking. In 2023, Subway announced via a press release that the restaurant achieved record sales two years running. And when you consider that there are over 36,500 locations all over the globe, it's pretty evident that the chain must be doing something right. If you find this level of success ponderous, you're not alone. As our reviewer wrote, "Subway is living proof that success doesn't necessarily hinge on quality."

Perhaps in response to the criticism it receives, Subway has made a few efforts to provide its customers with better-quality products. For example, Subway began slicing its own deli meat for the first time in 2023 in a bid to provide customers with fresher ingredients. The restaurant has also shared plans to stop using meats containing antibiotics by 2025 (per USA Today). Some of these changes, however, have not been met with as much enthusiasm as those leading the charge at Subway might have hoped. Daily Meal's taste-test of Subway's new sandwiches proved disappointing, and commenters on Reddit questioned the restaurant's push toward a pre-designed menu (as opposed to customers building their own sandwiches).

People familiar with the establishment claim that it conceals the deli meat (now sliced on the premises) under a metal cover in order to get people to order directly from the menu. Some posit that this is counterproductive to Subway's business model, which has historically allowed customers to design their own sandwiches. Others say that pre-designed sandwiches are bound to be better than potentially dicey customer combos that may contain clashing ingredients (as explained by one commenter, "People make bad sandwiches and then are mad they are bad.") Despite the very pertinent critiques of Subway, its meat, and its business practices, it doesn't seem like the restaurant is going away any time soon.