Route 79

Having had one of the salads I can say that if they ever become famous for their salads it won't be for the right reasons.

Subway have got the right recipe at the right time: healthy food, good value, fast. They're popping up all over the place here, too - particularly in food courts and next to big petrol stations.

Meanwhile McDs are bombarding the tele with ads for salads and their McCafe franchise.

I hate, loathe and detest beyond all imagination the way Macdonalds think they have a god given right to penetrate the world with their revolting food that is specifically targetted to children. All this so-called 'healthy' salads etc is a farce. Their chicken caesar salad for example has as much fat as a burger mainly because of the stabilisers/gum and other noxious substances that make up the dressing. Don't get me started - they are the biggest child abusers of the century.

were we live here in our oz suburb - we've had a subway for about 3 years now. Their slogan here is 'subway - eat fresh' AND I must say their subs are really good. again stuff you'd prepaer at home if you can be bothered, and buy all the ingredients. Somtimes its nice to get a take away!! easy! But...the subs tillnow have been fairly cheap, a few weeks ago their prices shot up, now I will have to think twice before I go there to buy! shame!

I think you've hit the nail on the head regarding McDonalds: the parameters of fast food have shifted and they don't know how to respond. The slogan "I'm loving it" smacks of desperation (even more so in German "Ich liebe es"); it's just too unspecific and bland. Subways are springing up all over the place here but I've yet to try them. Personally, I find the corporate identity off-putting: it's too hard, artificial and sterile for my taste and doesn't suggest healthy, tasty food at all. But my taste is hardly the benchmark for mass-market success. In fact it's always very intriguing to see what combinations can suddenly open the floodgates of mainstream success.

i noticed that subway there and was pretty excited actually. i like the fact that maybe they'll be more of these places around here. i get funny enough looks when i carry a pret a manger bag home with me from uni, with my lunch in it.

sorry to be a comments box hog, but I just went and saw your lucozade sign - OMG!!!!! I used to see that so many times on the way to kensington when I lived there and my dad used to drive me back to college along that m4. there was always a traffic jam there and he used to get mad!! lol!
Once you saw the luxcozade sign it meant that you were nearly in London! for a slough girl - that was sheer excitment!

For the good of humanity the world over we can only pray that McDonalds implodes at some point. Speaking of fast food, have you ever done any cooking with a pressure cooker? They cut the cooking times in half and might work well for some of the bean recipes that take alot of time. I am shopping for one right now.

Strop: Agreed. It'll be all about how much money they spend on the marketing.

Fi: You confirm my theory that McD's will try to use their deep pockets marketing budgets to advertise us to death about their salads!

Astrid: I can see that McD's target segments are the younger folks (and their mothers) - this is clear from their strategy blurb - but I can also see that they appear to be going out of their way to try to not be seen as negatively exploiting these segments. I do agree with you about their ceasar salad - I had that once - and the dressing wasn't very nice - so I didn't eat it!

Krissie: Yes - Subway's prices are NOT cheap! (But then - neither is McD's)

David: you should perhaps try Subway some time. You will probably conclude what I did: which is that it's nice (for most of their subs that don;t involve meatballs) - but you can make it yourself much cheaper!

Jaina: You carry your Pret bag home? You mean you never eat your lunch? (Or perhaps you come home at lunch time! :-) )
Anyway - I, too, am excited to see more variety in terms of eating places in our area - there's just too many kebab shops and veggie Indian places - it's nice to see more non-Asian stuff - e.g. Nandos, Subway etc. (PS - quite by coincidence Jaina - I took an interesting pic of a new Pret near Bond Street - see my next posting! )

Fritz: My mum used to use a pressure cooker all the time when I was a kid. I have one now - but I only really use it for cooking dishes that take a LONG time - e.g. saag. Mine pressure cooker is a "Prestige" if that helps - this seems to be the most common brand amongst Asian/Indian families!

Krissie: Glad you have fond memories of the Lucozade sign! (For those wondering what we're talking about - go see: http://www.route79.com/journal/archives/000014.html )

I like the Maccy D Big Breakfast. Subway food is mank.

Astrid: child abuse means something more serious than selling bad food. That comparison is beneath you.

The problem with McDonalds is not that they sell unhealthy food, it's that people like to buy unhealthy food. One of the interesting things about McD's rebranding is that by advertising salads they're selling more burgers. You walk in with something healthy on your mind, then end up buying something you like. If you don't like people buying fatty food, talk to the fat people, not the happy clown.

I must say that I was pleasantly surprised to find that a 6" sub (which is all an average person needs :-) ) costs £1.95.

It's nice to think that NZ fish is getting such a big contract, but personally I try to avoid eating fish as much as I can. The sea is being turned into a desert because we have extremely efficient ways of taking fish out of the sea, but no-one's trying to put any back.

That's the Subway in Kingsbury right? I think that it was opened by the same guy who owns the one opposite Wembley Park station.

He owns the Phone/Food city brands too, and as you predicted, he's Asian - and drives a stunning black Lamborghini. He must be raking it in...

When the Wembley one opened, it had queues of 5+ consistently for the first 2 weeks - morning til night! Subway's USP amongst other things is that it is so damned new! Even though Subway has been around for a while, in a saturated fast-food market (no pun intended) it's newness combined with it's healthyness, trendy coffeeshopness and annoying tastyness is just so fresh that its bound to pull in those customers who have eaten so much McDonald's their blood is part Strawberry Shake. I speak from experience.

(I've just re-read this before posting, and it sounds like i am a Subway anorak/fan/nerd/stalker or something very similar. The type of nutter able to recognize Subway stores around the world, just from a vague picture of the storefront, while pulling facts and figures about not only the Subway owner, but his choice of car and investments from memory. Well...maybe i am...)

Vanessa: Disappointed: MaccyD Big Breakfast was awful - the colour of the so-called scrambled egg put me off (bright orangey yellow) - and the muffin was, well how shall I say: so ... chewy! Yuk. I have to say though - the breads used in Subway are a little manky - but the cheesy bread is nice like that.

Rhys: Yes - I believe you are right: the "healthy" promotion thing sells more "unhealthy" stuff. That 1.95 sub you are talking about is probably the cheapest of the lot. I always end up spending 3 pounds something at Subway - perhaps I am buying the wrong type of sub?

Nosa: Yep - it's Kingsbury. Wow - owned by an Asian tycoon eh? I like your term "annoying tastiness" - as this is definitely my own experience too!

Nothing wrong with being a Subway geek! Cheers!

Exeter has two Subways and I'm afraid I avoid them for the same reason I avoid burger chains: I just don't like the look of them and I distrust the vegetarian stuff (luckily there is a sandwich bar run by hippies by my office). Yesterday a friend had a burger from BK and I was surprised by how small it was.

re cornershops: our local corner shop was run by an old English bloke until two years back when he retired and it was taken over by an Iraqi couple.

Hi Mags: sandwich bar run by hippies: luxury! Well - subway isn't so bad in my experience - but I, too, distrust their ability to separate veg from non-veg processes.