Subway Passes McDonald's

[The Straight Story]

Subway Passes McDonald's

It's official: the Subway sandwich chain has surpassed McDonald's Corp. as the world's largest restaurant chain, in terms of units.

At the end of last year, Subway had 33,749 restaurants worldwide, compared to McDonald's 32,737. The burger giant disclosed its year-end store count in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing late last month.

The race for global dominance is an important one for an industry that's mostly saturated in the U.S. High unemployment and economic uncertainty have battered the restaurant industry in the U.S., and chains are increasingly looking overseas for growth, particularly in Asia.

Starbucks Corp. recently said it plans to triple its number of outlets in China, for example. Dunkin' Brands Inc., parent of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, plans to open thousands of new outlets in China in coming years as well as its first stores in Vietnam in the next 18 months. Subway just opened its 1,000th location in Asia, including its first in Vietnam.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703386704576186432177464052.html

[devils chaplain]

1. Good...

You can certainly load up on empty calories at a Subway also (Cheesesteak, etc.) but I'm sure your average Subway meal is much less calorie dense and actually contains some (gasp!) nutritional value.

[speltwon]

13. Um, cheesesteak has significant nutritional value

and is hardly "empty calories".

A 6" has 520 calories, 160 from fat (less than 33%. I tend to try to get at least 40% of calories from fat, granted more quality fat. But it's still not bad)... 9 gms of saturated fat (so, 1/2 the fat is saturated. Again, not bad at all) and only .5 gms of transfat. It has a higher protein/fat ratio than many other subs.

It has far less sodium than many other subs, although hardly low sodium (certainly lower than the sandwiches with the cold cut meats). It's also got 39 gms of protein, which is excellent. That's 80 friggin grams in a 12 incher.

As for phytonutrients, vitamins, minerals, etc. it has the minerals found in steak of course (zinc, etc. which are good for you) and depending on what veggies you get in it, it has just as many vitamins, etc. as any other sandwich

Please don't be hating on the beef.

I'm an athlete, so I usually go for cheesesteak or the chicken breast. The big philly cheesesteak is amongst the best in this regards btw.

I like subway, btw.

[louis-t]

15. I get the tuna or buffalo chicken.

Tomato, green pepper, olives, spinach on wheat or honey oat. Love it. Many years ago, a friend tried to get me to invest in a Subway franchise. $25,000 was what they cost at the time.

[azurnoir]

2. K&R cause

I love Subway and despise McDonald's it tastes nasty and greasy IMO

[Renew Deal]

3. I'm pretty sure I've never seen a Subway outside the US.

But I haven't left the country in a few years.

I wonder if they make a Bahn Mi at the Subway in Vietnam.

[marmar]

6. I've seen them in Canada, the UK, Germany etc.

nt

[BlueJazz]

18. They're also all over Australia. I ate a lot of their food when I visited there.

:)

[pinboy3niner]

20. I saw a Hard Rock Cafe in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) nearly 20 yrs ago

After that, these stories don't surprise me anymore.

[magdalena]

16. That would be delicious.

When I lived in Thailand I lived near a Subway so went there quite a bit, but it was exactly the same as any US Subway. No different meats or fixings.

[cali]

4. wtf? why do these giants need constant growth. And both Subway and McDonalds are vile

[LoZoccolo]

7. Because people keep eating there?

I'd love to have another somewhat-healthy fast food choice, if one were available.

[LoZoccolo]

5. I like Subway and go there more than anywhere else because of the healthier food but

from what I used to hear, they would get criticized by their franchisees for not controlling the number of restaurants open in proximity to each other, making it a riskier proposition to open one. I know three different places in Chicago where there's more than one within 4 blocks, and one of the pairs is within 2 blocks.

[cali]

10. the bread might as well be cotton wool and those fillings are gross

[RandySF]

8. I'm much happier with Subway

My five-year old actually likes it better than McD's. Every Saturday after karate he wants a 6" chicken brest with nothing on it. I have to plead guilty to liking the pastrami.

[tridim]

9. Yea, but I think the average Subway about 25% the size of the average McDs

Both places make me feel ill afterwards, so I tend to avoid them.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

11. Stores mean little compared to sales...

Also, a Subway is frequently attached to rental space next to a gas station or in a strip mall...most McDonald's are stand alone and actually require a kitchen (not that what they produce is really 'food') so it is no wonder they have 'out-stored' them!

sP

[LupinSansei72]

12. I can live with that

Subway is much, much more healthier, and even more BETTER tasting--their salads and footlong subs always hit the spot :-) Their breakfast offerings are good too, i love the western omlette sandwich!

[JI7]

14. i haven't tried the breakfast but have been wanting to

[eagles55]

17. I saw a Subway store

My husband and I were on a cruise to the Bahamas to celebrate our 20 wedding anniversary. We were walking around the shopping district of Nassau when we saw the Subway store. We didn't go inside. There are three Subway stores within a short driving distance of our home. Why go to the store in Nassau? We also saw a Domino's Pizza place in Nassau.

[alphafemale]

19. Eat at Subway much more often.

BigMacs are one of my slovening loves though. I have no idea why I like them so much but I do. I allow myself one about once every 3 to 6 months. I figure that's not going to kill me.

[mmonk]

21. That's good. When I get off, I look for places to eat.

[K8-EEE]

22. Subway is one of the better fast food chains IMO

At least there are vegetarian choices. Here in L.A. they always have fresh avocado too! Whenever I go to one out of town they have yucky avo paste in a tube!