6-Inch Subway: Does It Measure Up?

 
I took a 6-inch Subway turkey sandwich home with me last night. Since I never had one in ages, I thought it was a great idea. I find a Subway sandwich not only a healthy alternative to the Big Mac, but also offers more value for the money.

Early this year, Subway has gotten some flak. Somebody from Australia I’d call Matt Corby because that’s his name discovered something amiss about the footlong sandwich that he ordered. It seemed like it was shorter than advertised. But rather than depend on his instincts, he lay it on the table like a cadaver and measured it using a tape measure. He was right. It measured a mere 11 inches.

The discovery had got him upset. He had the right to be. It struck a deep chord in his belly. As every guy knows, every inch counts. It matters to his favorite football game. It matters to something more personal and intimate like his height and you know what.

He took a photo of the footshort footlong sandwich alongside the tape for good measure and posted it on Facebook looking for answers. In matter of minutes of his posting, it went viral inspiring similar photos from others who felt cheated by the fast-food chain. Soon all hell broke loose when mainstream media picked up the story and joined the conversation.

To its credit, Subway management went into immediate damage control. It explained that customer satisfaction has always been their top priority. As a result, they have redoubled their quality control procedures to ensure that every sandwich sold at their restaurants doesn’t come up short length-wise. They could have added that although it wasn’t intentional on their part, the undersized sandwiches have contributed to the well-being of its customers because eating less is healthy.

Because of the unwelcomed publicity, my confidence on subway as an honest-to-goodness fast-food chain has been, to borrow from James Bond, stirred and shaken. For my own peace of mind, I decided to do what I didn’t usually do. Needing reassurance that the sandwich that I just bought was really 6-inches long as advertised, I put it to the test. I got a ruler and measured it like every guy would do when in doubt with something. Voila! It was right on the money. After taking a picture as evidence, I had it for dinner. It never tasted so good.