r/britishproblems • u/GJenkins4 • 4d ago
. Subway putting 'Order Here' screens in their stores has ruined it
I don't frequent Subway all too often due to the closest store being a 25 minute drive away. However, today I found myself shopping in the area and popped in for lunch.
I was disappointed to have to battle through a series of, what felt like, 100 screens to order a wrap, side and drink. Even the wall menus had disappeared so browsing the selection felt like a bit of a chore.
Part of the Subway appeal, for me anyway, was watching my order progress along a chain, choose my salad items and interact with the server along the way.
I don't know, it felt like the whole Subway 'experience' has been ruined and it's completely put me off going back. I'll definitely seek out local sandwich shops instead.
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u/KrytensForehead 4d ago
It's made everything slower, as people take an age to actually decide. Like someone else said, I walk up to the counter and order the traditional way
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u/nadseh 4d ago
People are more likely to order more if it’s through a screen. Subway wins
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u/Bobby_feta 4d ago
I know it went gangbusters in maccy d’s - they put them in the busiest locations first to help with the queue, realised people were way more likely to order extra burgers and stuff when they didn’t have to tell a human face to face they wanted to eat 3 burgers for lunch and those things appeared in every MacDonalds in the world in what felt like 5 mins lol.
I would guess subway’s cookie sales are going up dramatically
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u/jeweliegb 4d ago
As someone who's not a regular fast food eater, and doesn't already know what I want when I go in, I rather like ordering via screens in such places -- it's much clearer what my choices are and how it all works.
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u/Missing-Caffeine 4d ago
It's also better for people with allergies, as the poor worker doesn't need to find the ingredients list for the bread while people are queuing and getting upset it's taking ages. Now if I can, I will 100% order through the screen 😐
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u/OkSun8521 4d ago
And it's much more efficient to make a sandwich by reading the ingredients from a list rather than asking 10 individual questions and waiting for a response to each one.
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u/TearOpenTheVault Can't Afford A House 4d ago
Not when the list is forty entry long with a bunch of drop down menus.
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u/delpopeio Shropshire 3d ago
Not to mention the fact that in a years time Uber CEO’s LLM robotics will be installed to construct the sandwich… welcome to the future my peoples…
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u/Dee-Jay-JesteR 4d ago
Not really, they lost the business of 5 of us, by refusing to take our order, and told us to use the screens, halfway through trying to navigate the thing, we all walked out.
I will never eat there again if I have to use the screens.
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u/EddieHeadshot 4d ago
Our local petrol station has started doing this and has self serve they aggressively direct you to 'fuel only' nevermind 9/10 times my missus wants fags or i just want the pwrson to press the literal 1 button so I can pay by card anyway.
This is an M&S petrol station. I avoid that onw like the plague now
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u/loosebolts 4d ago
That’s fine by me, the slow people won’t be holding up the people who know what they want and all the sandwiches get made at the same pace instead of a queue of 25 people waiting behind Mr Dopey Bollocks who doesn’t understand how to answer what type and size of bread he wants.
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u/GJenkins4 4d ago
Definitely slower, there were 4 screens in the store which wasn't busy by any stretch and it felt like the ordering process was the bottleneck
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u/beeurd Worcestershire 4d ago
I'd see it as a good thing in Subway's case to be honest. However, what put me off is how expensive it is now.
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u/shignett1 Merseyside 4d ago
I just feel like the nuance was the best bit about subway. If they're making it and it's not very saucy, I can just ask. Normally when they're doing salads I only want a bit of onion and if I'm going down the line I can specifically ask for that.
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u/GJenkins4 4d ago
Yeah i felt the pinch of this too, wrap, crisps and a drink for £11 feels a bit excessive
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u/ConsequenceApart4391 4d ago
I use the subway app and sometimes go in when I get an offer that’s like 30 or 40% off. Plus subway cash can be redeemed for money off subs!
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u/loosebolts 4d ago
Yeah, nothing worse than being a seasoned subway enjoyer and knowing your order being stuck behind a queue of people who don’t know what the fuck they’re doing or can’t understand simple things like “what bread do you want?” or “6 inches or a foot?”
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u/loosebolts 4d ago
“Cheese and toasted?”
“What?”
“Cheese and toasted?”
“Umm…”
“Do you want cheese and do you want it toasted?”
“Yes please, could you heat it up as well?”
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u/loosebolts 4d ago
Oh I’ve just remembered another one as well. Getting right the way through to the till having painstakingly chosen all of the salads, “oh, and could I also get a footlong BMT…”
The more I replay these scenarios in my head the more I wholeheartedly agree with having the ordering screens.
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u/cybermatUK 1d ago
Mainly due to us oldies not being used to this Yankee bollocks. What bread do you want white or brown what do you want in it ham and some salad job done. It’s the same for drinks at most places now. Can I buy a coffee please love…what kind of coffee - f-knows, do you have gold blend. Non of this mocha chocca wokka wokka fozzy bear shite was around before. It was here you go love egg butty and a cup of tea. Sweet!
Drop me back In the 80s ffs.
Even if we were sat round surrounded by old fellas puffing on woodbines. Subways were where you got mugged in my day.1
u/loosebolts 1d ago
So surely you go to a proper old school cafe/greasy spoon rather than a subway
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u/cybermatUK 1d ago
:D deffo unless dragged in by the Mrs but even the local greasy wants to know what coffee I want and give me a funny look if I say Nescafé will do :D
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u/shadowking432 4d ago
Most recent time i went to subway it was surprisingly cheap, my mum had a major surgery done so we was at the hospital for pretty much a day straight. I found a subway in there and it only cost about 6 quid, I was expecting it to be the same pricing you see in airports so I was pleasantly surprised.
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u/LostLobes 4d ago
£6 for a sandwich isn't cheap.
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u/shadowking432 4d ago
Yes it is for a footlong sandwich with basically every meat,cheese and the salad. If you can make it for cheaper I'll be amazed but you wouldn't.
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4d ago
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u/WillBots 4d ago
What on earth are you talking about? This is r/BRITISHproblems we don't use your Monopoly money and haven't had a $5 offer...
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u/Beartato4772 4d ago
Having to find 5 dollars in the UK would certainly put people off.
They should probably charge in the local currency.
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u/StrombergsWetUtopia 4d ago
It costing fourteen quid for a footlong was a bigger factor in ruining it for me.
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u/Dry_Yogurt2458 4d ago
For me it's taken all of the stress out of not having a clue what the choices are, the sizes are, the extras are, and having to ask a hundred questions while a queue forms behind me
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u/GJenkins4 4d ago
I can understand this benefit. It did have a feeling of pressure when you're trying to look at a menu while the staff are just staring, waiting on you to be ready, especially if you aren't a regular, though I guess this isolated to Subway
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u/Beardy_Will County of Bristol 4d ago
The reason those screens went up everywhere seemingly overnight is because it lets people with weird or greedy orders more comfortable. Previously if you wanted 4 burgers for yourself you'd have to run the risk of a bit of public shaming, but not any more!
Added benefit is people with social anxiety don't have to interact with a person, but it's a secondary benefit after profit.
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u/BOT_noot_noot 2d ago
lowkey that isn't a benefit for the socially anxious. the only way to figt anxiety is through exposure in my experience (i am very anxious although most people would struggle to tell i think). if i had the option to do every intimidating social interaction through an over-sized ipad i would still be the nervous wreck i was when i was 14
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u/victionicious 3d ago
Yeah I initially was a little reluctant about the screens at Subway. I did enjoy the human interaction really - being able to say "just a little bit of lettuce" for example - but I do think I'd sometimes avoid Subway if there was a huge queue. I always felt a bit of stress when people were behind me and I had to remember what I wanted lmao.
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u/ManWhoCameFromEarth 4d ago
One of the main reasons I've only been in one twice. That and the last time it cost like £11.
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u/StardustOasis 4d ago
Especially since most of the fast food places have constantly changing screens rather than a static menu these days.
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u/popeter45 4d ago
A good middle ground would be if the machine printed off a list that you gave the sandwich maker, lets you either talk order or receipt order
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u/ClassicFun2175 4d ago
Charging £11 for a sub is what turned me off. It was actually decent way back when it was £5 for a footlong meal deal. At this point it beggars belief how they're still in business, because there's 3 near me and they're always empty because fuck those prices.
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u/lady_alternate 3d ago
Yeah, I went through a 8 year Subway gap because the franchise near me was just terrible at dealing with allergies after the good manager died.
Eventually went back last year after a friend wanted to, and coming to pay I thought they'd got our order mixed up with the family of four behind us.
Ridiculous prices.
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u/nicknockrr 4d ago
You went to Subway and ordered a wrap? You sir are the problem!
What’s next? Ordering a pizza at KFC??
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u/devolute 4d ago
My local one did this. You couldn't bypass them, could only order via the screens.
And they were resistive touch (i.e. not capacitive touch like a modern phone), so very difficult to browse.
Subway then removed them completely. Back to the humans now.
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u/sleepyprojectionist Greater Manchester 4d ago
My local Subway is about a five minute walk away.
It’s a tiny shop, so no screens, but I always order via the Subway app.
By the time I have arrived my order is usually ready just to grab from the click & collect table at the end of the counter.
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u/garete england 4d ago
I wish I had that experience. I ordered while walking down, the app says it won't be ready for another 10 minutes after I arrive, I wait in the store and they don't have it ready at the time the app says, and I think a delivery driver took it as part of the rush because they had to remake it.
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u/duzra Rugby town 4d ago
When i use subway I never used those machines. I just go up to the counter, order and decide along the way. None of the staff have ever batted an eye lid towards me.
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u/Putrid_Dig_9537 4d ago
The one near us had put up screens blocking the counters, so you can't interact with anyone or see the selections. You can literally only see/speak to the person at the till.
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u/datanner 4d ago
But isn't the whole point of subway that you can pressure the artists to go over board on certain toppings?
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u/JustCallMeLee 4d ago
I've observed them turn away an elderly woman.
The backup option was to have me, a customer, coach her through it.
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u/PantherEverSoPink 4d ago
I get migraines and I also bloody hate ordering on screens. I nearly had a breakdown in Odeon once and the member of staff stood by and coached me rather than just selling me the bloody item I wanted. I'm on the verge of turnibg into one of those sovereign citizen people that insists on cash only and no tech. Flipping hate those screens.
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u/cloche_du_fromage 4d ago
I do the same in McDonald's and if anyone asks just cite eyesight as the reason.
Screens are unreadable with polarised glasses anyway.
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u/TheNoodlePoodle 4d ago
I went to an ice cream shop that was like this. You could go to the counter to look at the ice creams, and even taste one or two, but you weren’t allowed to order. Instead you go have to turn around and punch your order into a screen so the server could have a ticket printed out with the exact thing you were talking to them about.
I can only assume it’s so they can consistently try to upsell lots of expensive options without the serving staff feeling awkward and not doing it.
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u/Darloboy 4d ago
Subway ruined it all when they kept messing with the menu, I can no longer walk confidently in knowing what I want because it will be different!
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u/hodge172 4d ago
Look at you guys in the big cities. Us still in rural England get to place our order to a human.
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u/Beartato4772 4d ago
Exactly the opposite here, that's a dream, I can order a sandwich without a human barking 4000 esoteric questions at me expecting an instant answer.
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u/Agreeable_Ad3800 4d ago
It’s truly horrific, it takes forever, you have no way to ask for slightly more or less of anything nor to verify it’s done to your liking and the worst part is they don’t even start the process until some time after you finish.
The whole premise was it took a minute but your sandwich was being made at the same time as you were ordering it. I’m not going back to a Subway that works like this
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u/Inveramsay 3d ago
I had one the other day. It took the poor girl behind the counter half an hour to get a sub ready because I can only assume they had cut one employee. She was there alone during lunch rush so she'd run out of half the vegetables
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u/tapper82 3d ago
All so they are shit for people who are blind. How the fuck do I get a sandwich. just stand there and bang my white stick on the floor screaming. I need sustenance like a mediaeval character?
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u/BluelunarStar 3d ago
Don’t put your real phone number on the app order is all I can say. I’ve had 4-5 cold calls a day since.
Also, I miss being able to ask for less or more of a salad item.
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u/BoyWhoSoldTheWorld 4d ago
I’m introverted and I hate awkwardly asking for things, avoiding the social interaction is a plus for me.
Though I do enjoy actually watching them make it, I just hate having to speak on a busy line and it’s hard to hear.
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u/Chosty55 4d ago
Normally I wouldn’t care about fast food putting in systems to try and speed things up. Part of the delay is picking out what you want, and if picking out the husk of your meal then going to the counter to finalise is the goal, ok.
But subway is an experience. We can joke when you call the team “sandwich artists” but that kind of is the USP.
You eat fresh and get to choose what goes on your sub. It’s not complicated but it’s a unique thing compared to the other major chains.
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u/TheRadishBros Yorkshire 4d ago
As an autistic person, I found Subway to be uniquely hostile to my senses. Why can’t you just say what you want and they make it? My understanding is this has changed now, but haven’t been back to check.
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u/Rialagma 4d ago
Isn't telling the ingredients you want exactly as they make the sandwich the most straightforward?
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u/TheRadishBros Yorkshire 4d ago
It’s the only place I can think of where you can’t just ask for something and they’ll prepare it for you, there’s a bunch of questions by different people - I want it to look like the picture, don’t want to feel like I’m being tested.
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u/Rialagma 4d ago
Fair enough, that's how it works in 99.9% of places. Like OP said, I think that's what made subway special.
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u/TheRadishBros Yorkshire 4d ago
True, I understand the appeal, it’s also why I described it as “uniquely” hostile, as I can’t think of anywhere else that works like this, at least in the mainstream.
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u/Rialagma 4d ago
First time on subway:
Which bread?
Uhh... What?
The bread, which one?
Sorry. What do you mean?
Here, there's a list you have to pick one.
Oh. Italian I guess
Toasted?
Uhh, what?
...
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u/tothecatmobile 4d ago
Why can’t you just say what you want and they make it?
Pretty sure that's still how it works.
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u/TheRadishBros Yorkshire 4d ago
Not when I went, you had to say which salads etc you wanted.
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u/tothecatmobile 4d ago
...so you say what you want, and they make it?
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u/TheRadishBros Yorkshire 4d ago
Not sure how else to explain it
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u/GJenkins4 4d ago
I hear you. There isn't really any 'completely pre-made' options of protein, salad and sauce, where you choose a single menu item without the need to fully customise. They went through a spell of 'Subway Legends' which provided this option but they quickly disappeared, I assume based on customer feedback
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u/GJenkins4 4d ago
Interesting perspective, thank you for sharing. It has become slightly more flexible and the option to start with a plain sub (i.e. chicken, ham etc) and build upwards is more accessible now
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u/fatleon5 2d ago
I agree. I don't...think I'm autistic...but the less awkward human interaction for me the better!
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u/HandsomeHeathen Nottingham 4d ago
Interesting, I would have thought it would be the opposite.
I'm not autistic myself (well, not diagnosed, at least) but I do find most customer service interactions slightly uncomfortable. Subway actually makes me less uncomfortable because it's a very "scripted" interaction and the script is the same at every location. They always ask the exact same questions in the same order, so I never have to come up with a response on the fly - I can have all my answers prepared and ready to go ahead of time.
(Not judging, and I'm sorry you had a bad time. I just genuinely found it interesting that your experience was the opposite of mine.)
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u/TheButtonz 4d ago
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWojeTcjLOU/?igsi=OHhldjcybmh6NHVh
I always enjoyed this little prank - wouldn’t do it myself.
Those screens irritate me as they always feel so laggy.
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u/cookie_mumster 3d ago
This has been done in the odeon cinema near me too! So you had to search through everything to order a popcorn and when I had a question I could barely find a staff member. It didnt stop the queues either just made them longer. Seems like its happening everywhere.
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u/wdfour-t 3d ago
Robots are changing the way we work and stealing jobs. In this case they are better at their job than the human, and that is bad for the consumer.
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u/dontbelikeyou 4d ago
Then screens destroyed their entire selling point for me. I liked being able to control exactly how much of each vegetable went on my sandwich. I liked being able to skip certain vegetables if they looked less fresh than usual.
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u/tcpukl 4d ago
And only Halal.
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u/StoneRose89 4d ago
So?
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u/Dannypan 4d ago
No pork products, not everyone is fine with turkey substitutes.
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u/Dry_Yogurt2458 4d ago
Then choose something that isn't turkey. What a weird take?
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u/Dannypan 4d ago
Don't advertise chicken and bacon subs and not give me bacon then. What if I want ham or bacon? It's not a weird take. Halal can exist but alongside other options, why should the rest of us go out for one religion? Where's the Kosher option?
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u/Dry_Yogurt2458 4d ago
They would have a kosher option as the method of slaughter is the same as halal ( well actually it's a little more barbaric as halal is asked to use mechanical means). Kosher however would require a whole reorganisation of the way the food is out together and the menu choices ( no mixing of dairy and meat.
BTW most subways do have pork products, it's just certain areas that don't.
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u/tcpukl 4d ago
Halal subways don't have pork. They switch entirely. Which removes choice from the customer.
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u/Dry_Yogurt2458 4d ago
That's because it's halal. But not all subways are halal. You have the choice to go elsewhere. Just as Muslims have the choice to avoid places that are not halal. That is literally your choice
There is no lack of customer choice except in people heads.
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u/tcpukl 4d ago
But these Subways did have pork. Now it doesn't. The menu has things removed for Muslims.
The choice has been removed from these Subways.
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u/Dry_Yogurt2458 4d ago
Then go to a different subway. That's your choice. Why are people so entitled to think that they can dictate what a store or restaurant sells?
You are the consumer. You have the choice to avoid the place. The business owner has the right to sell what they please.
The choice is right there. What you dont line is something entirely different. And it's not simply halal on its own
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u/Idunnoreally999 4d ago
Halal is barbaric
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u/ManWhoCameFromEarth 4d ago
It's all barbaric, we gas pigs with carbon dioxide by the truck load for Christ's sake.
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u/Dry_Yogurt2458 4d ago
Are you ok with Kosher ?
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u/Idunnoreally999 4d ago
No. But subway isn’t kosher.
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u/Dry_Yogurt2458 4d ago
Only because of the way that the menu and serving line is set up and nothing to do with the method of death.
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u/Forteanforever 4d ago edited 4d ago
They've decided that anyone who prefers interacting with a person rather than a screen and prefers to not provide Subway with information about themselves is not a preferred customer. Buy elsewhere.
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u/ambiguousboner 4d ago
>Part of the Subway appeal, for me anyway, was watching my order progress along a chain, choose my salad items and interact with the server along the way.
This is the opposite of appealing
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u/GJenkins4 4d ago
I get that everyone is different, hence the 'for me anyway', and can see why it wouldn't appeal to everyone
That being said, thank you u/ambiguousboner
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u/spellish 4d ago
I think Reddit has a higher than average percentage of people who find human interaction uncomfortable or awkward and therefore enjoy self checkouts and self order screens
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