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By DCist Food and Wine Writer Michael Mugmon.
Like Hall & Oates, DCist is so close, yet so far away. On Tuesday afternoon, we stopped by our local Subway sandwich shop at 20th and M Streets NW for a footlong meatball sub. When we asked for the two Sub Club stamps we thought we'd earned (one stamp for each six odd inches of grunt), the cashier brusquely informed us that the venerable Sub Club program –- Subway's longtime frequent-buyer promotion through which 12 stamps and the purchase of a medium drink get you a free 12-inch sub –- had been discontinued. Now, DCist will forever be one stamp away from a free footlong.
To be fair, DCist had heard nasty rumors of the Sub Club program's impending demise. It seems that enterprising counterfeiters have increasingly replicated Sub Club stamps on home computers and printers, either redeeming the fabricated stamps themselves for free sandwiches or selling them on eBay. Although individual franchisees may stick with the stamps if they choose (the Subway at 15th and L Streets NW, for example, reportedly continues to give out stamps with sandwich purchases), the Subway home office has officially replaced the Sub Club program. By using the Subway Card in conjunction with purchases, habitual Subway goers may accumulate points that they may then exchange for Subway food (and, we hope, life-sized Jared Fogle cut-outs!). It's basically Subway's version of the CVS ExtraCare card.
If your local Subway hasn't yet clubbed the Club, find a Subway franchise that still distributes stamps and finish out your uncompleted cards as soon as possible. Why? The cashier told DCist that the 20th and M Subway would accept completed cards even if it won't dole out any more stamps. Personally, and mainly because we're bitter about the lone stamp that the 20th and M Subway had withheld from us, we prefer the close-out approach taken by Capitol Video Sales –- the local video rental mini-chain that recently ended its own frequent-renter promotion. Provided that you already have a frequent-renter card and are on your way to renting the 20 DVDs that will entitle you to a single free DVD rental (yes, we are gluttons for punishment), Capitol Video will punch the card for each DVD you rent until you've earned your free DVD rental. But they will distribute no new cards.
DCist doesn't want to hike to 15th and L for our lunchtime Subway fix. So, if you have a single Sub Club stamp to spare, please send it in. We don't want to know where you got it.
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Wasn't this column being snotty on wine lists and regurgitating tasting notes just the other day? And now the writer wants a P.O.S. Subway sub? And is pressed that it might not be free?
That is not true about the 15th and L Subway. They are not giving out stamps.
Subway? SUBWAY?
No really. I'm all for lunchtime sandwiches. But unless you live in the suburbs there’s no excuse for liking effing SUBWAY. I guarantee the local deli around the corner is 10 times better.
Yes, we got this from another reader: "I work around the corner from there and visited the Subway for lunch just today. Even that location has ended the program. It seems to be dying a quick death."
To Dan: You're definitely right. But Subway is CHEAP and I'm on a budget.
This is bad news, I have a half-filled card. :( Despite what others may say, Subway is cheap, and healthy for a quick lunch fix. Where are these awesome, local mom & pop "delis" others have mentioned? AFAIK, you can't get a quarter pound of sliced pastrami anywhere in downtown DC... until then, I'll stick with Subway.
Quiznos already killed their old program. Now they have a different card each month. I think I prefer Subway's replacement better.
I personally choose a syrah for my footlong meatball sub.
I am much cooler since I refuse to eat lunch at one of those "Chain" fast food places. Mom & Pop's might be slow, expensive and serve soggy food, but at least I'm keeping it real. I'm a real outsider and I think differently than the herd! Yeah man!
I, for one, support our new Subway Overlords.
I'm gonna have to go with a Spatlese or Kabinett for my spicy Cold Cut Trio. (I ask for chipotle sauce and hot peppers).
the subway on 17th between Q & R are giving out stamps and accepting cards until the end of the month (at least the weekday guys are) -
Or maybe they just taste better, have better service and are no more expensive than Subway.
Some of us are more interested in quality lunch than sounding cool on the internet in front of people we don't know, Mr Special.
^
One mistake there. Meant to say no more expensive than QUIZNOS. I will concede that Subway is cheap.
I'm special: It has nothing to do with your pompous blanket statement. There are plenty of craphole mom and pop delis, but there are plenty of dynamite ones too. PS- This is the DCist "DINING" column. I think we deserve better than someone's blog entry on the Subway Club.
I occasionally eat Subway and always find myself having felt like I just made a big mistake. The food there tastes like cardboard-- all of it. And when eating there, or anywhere else, I never wonder whether or not I feel like I'm in a herd of any sort.
For my money, So's Your Mom on Columbia Rd. is one of the best delis in DC, and price wise, totally competes with Subway. I don't care what they call themselves or who shops there-- they make a damn good sandwich.
Dudes, in DC it's called the Metro. Honestly.
Please note that the column doesn't praise or pan Subway. Indeed, I took no real position on their food other than to say that I eat there. Though I'd love to be able to go to So's Your Mom, Litteri's or the Italian Store on a regular basis for lunch, doing so just isn't tenable. Short of making my own lunch, Subway is a reasonably priced, consistent, efficient option located close to my office. And believe me, having lived in Philadelphia for seven years and enjoyed Philly hoagies on a regular basis, my midday isolation pains me. What's more, I'd argue that this piece certainly belongs in the DCist Food and Drink section by virtue of the fact that so many Washingtonians do eat each day at Subway (and collect[ed] stamps there, for that matter). Why not let them know what's going on with the frequent-purchaser program? And for what it's worth, I'd probably do a Chianti with a meatball sub.
I wish I could go to Comet instead of subway at lunch(but haven't been since the owner died). And, by the way, it's going to be awhile before the the New Hampshire and U Subway gets rid of the stamps. I just got one yesterday (but had no idea why they were giving me a stamp, thanks Michael).
this sucks! thanks for the heads-up though. i too have a half filled card. though i hate that they make you buy a drink to get a free sub (at least that happened last time i had one)
To bring up an old complaint, the royal "we" really grinds in this post.
oh lordy.
dear "i'm special" and other subway suckers: it's not about thinking differently. it's about having taste. which dc doesn't. i'm canceling my dcist subscription asap.