Finding The Perfect Sandwich: Subway

Subway, located in the Livingston Mall food court, is a popular place to stop for a sandwich.  Although it's a rather "generic" place, it attracts students, workers and shoppers and usually offers good deals.

Menu-wise, the deli chain offers eight different types of 12" sandwiches for $5, under their popular "Five Dollar Footlong" special. Among the subs in this category are the ham, BLT and spicy Italian sandwiches. But notably absent from the promotion are the restaurant's popular turkey and buffalo chicken sandwiches. Instead, these sandwiches are priced at the "premium" rate of $6. It's a bit of a head scratcher as to why turkey is priced at the premium rate, but I guess the price is still within reason. The chain offers a discount offer where you can add a soda and a bag of chips to your foot long sandwich for the price of $7.50.

If sub sandwiches aren't your thing, Subway offers salads and some pizzas.

Recently, my friend Melissa and I decided to take a trip to Subway in the Livingston Mall to taste their offerings and see how they stack up against other local delis. Since it is draws a a crowd, we decided it was only fair to evaluate it, even if it's a chain that can be found in many towns, not just Livingston.

What Did We Think?

Phil:

I decided to order the footlong turkey sub. It's traditional and I feel it's a good choice for comparison since just about every deli offers it.

To me, the most important part of any sandwich is the bread. I had my sandwich crafted on Subway's Italian bread and it was very fresh. If I had to guess, the bread was baked no less than an hour prior to me ordering it.

The bread was very soft and cake-like. It was easy to chew and wasn't overly thick, which is a good thing since you want to actually be able to taste the contents of the sandwich.

I felt that the sandwich artists, as they prefer to be called, could have put a little more meat on the sandwich. I found myself having a hard time tasting the turkey underneath all of the vegetables and honey mustard dressing.

Sure, I could have gotten the "double meat" option, but that would have added $2.00 to the sub. The main selling point of Subway is that the sandwiches are supposed to be cheap and if you're going to spend $7 or $8 on a sandwich, you might as well order one from a gourmet deli.

Also, the hot peppers I tried as a topping should have been renamed "nuclear" because they were very, very hot. I am no stranger to spicy food, but I felt these particular peppers were too strong. I ended up having the pluck them off of my sandwich.  Maybe I should have gone with the banana peppers?

All things considered, I would have no problem recommending Subway as a fast lunch option, especially if you are already at the mall.

Melissa:

I choose to have a half of a Black Forest Ham sandwich with American cheese. The sandwich was flavorful and filling. The ham used on the sub was sweet and had a hint of brown sugar.

Additionally, the meat wasn't overly salted, which is a good thing considering the fact that certain chain restaurant tend to overdo the sodium.  I also liked the ability to customize just about every aspect of my sandwich and choose whatever vegetables or dressings I wanted on it.

Although it may not be my first choice, I would certainly eat at Subway in the future, especially if I needed to grab something quick.

Overall:

If you've eaten at a Subway, then the sandwich shop in the Livingston Mall will not disappoint. The cold cuts and vegetables were fresh and the food was relatively inexpensive. With a friendly and efficient staff, Subway proves to be a solid choice for those looking to grab a quick bite to eat while on-the-move.

But it probably can't be called Livingston's best, as we've tasted some good sandwiches at Tutto Fresco and Mitola. On our next stop, we will visit Irving's Deli.

Subway

Address: 112 Eisenhower Parkway, Livingston (in Mall)

Date Reviewed: July 2, 2010

*Story has been updated.