i think they make that cheese out of plastic anyway, so perhaps it’s a blessing you’re getting less. less coal and oil used that way.
how about putting the price up a little instead of cutting corners? an extra five dollars would not be too painful, surely. the price of the actual food content in whatever meal you buy, anywhere, is only a small fraction of the final cost they charge.
Heh. You know what they charge for 2 extra squares of that plastic in Subway? NT$40, believe or not. I haven’t checked, but it wouldn’t surprise me that “extra cheese” is now just ONE extra square – and it’ll still be NT$40.
[quote=“urodacus”]
how about putting the price up a little instead of cutting corners? an extra five dollars would not be too painful, surely. the price of the actual food content in whatever meal you buy, anywhere, is only a small fraction of the final cost they charge.[/quote]
I’m not sure about that one. A franchise has to buy all of their product from the parent company, right down to the napkins.
As for cutting corners instead of raising the price, they are probably just accomodating their broader customer base which is safe to say are not foreigners and cheese lovers, plastic or not, like you and me. 
My wife owns two Subway stores and I can assure you that she would like very much to raise the prices, even if only a little. Unless I am mistaken, McDonald’s and BK have both raised their prices twice in the past half year or so… Subway has not. Yet, Subway uses far more veggies on their sandwiches than do either of McD’s or BK. And Subway has been running promotions endlessly, it seems, and the franchisors make very little profit on these.
Hahaha!
Of course, the price of the food content is hardly the only cost the vendor has.
the majority of the cost of any food product is wages. then rent. only then comes the actual food, and other overheads like power, water, etc. and way down the bottom of the list come business expenses like insurance, accountants, etc.
advertising is a big hit for some but not probably applicable as a cost here in a franchise situation, although their franchise fee of course contributes to that.
food is a minor part of the bill.
cutting the chees is mean spirited rather than good business sense, but they have to compete with tiny noodle stores and bien dang places, so they are already behind the 8 ball. watch the shit hit the fan when a bien dang rises from 70 to 120 as rice, pork and cabbage prices soar next. subway will start to look good again!
[quote=“sandman”]Heh. You know what they charge for 2 extra squares of that plastic in Subway? NT$40, believe or not. I haven’t checked, but it wouldn’t surprise me that “extra cheese” is now just ONE extra square – and it’ll still be NT$40.[/quote]It’s not. You still get two squares for your 40NT, at least at the Nanjing/Fuxing shop.
Very true. Just think back to what happened when they raised the price of mijiu.
Yeah, well, until they start selling andouille and ripe camembert with rocket and real olives on artisan bread, they’ll forever be just cold expensive MacDonalds to me.
No matter how you look at it. Cutting the cheese stinks.
Per my understanding, the cheese rationing only applies to sandwiches sold at the promotional price of NT$ 69.
So…
Per my understanding, the cheese rationing only applies to sandwiches sold at the promotional price of NT$ 69.
So…[/quote]
I had a roast beef sub at jlick’s Subway today for $69 - 1 piece of cheese. It was good value for the money - even with one slice of cheese.
That being said, I think it looks better to raise the price rather than skimp on key ingredients. 
I never thought I’d live to see the day.
I still eat their stinking sandwiches. 69NT is hard to beat. Get soup and it comes to 104NT. Not bad.
Hey, TC, where are you?
They’re being cry babies again. Time for you to post some more boobie pics.
If I was a franchise owner I’d cut it back to half a square, up the price by 15% and call it the “weight watchers’ special.”
HG
Per my understanding, the cheese rationing only applies to sandwiches sold at the promotional price of NT$ 69.
So…[/quote]
Not at my neighborhood Subway (Nan-Jing E. Rd. sec 4). I bought a regular menu item Sub a few days ago and was subjected to the new cheese rationing plan. Not impressed.
As others have said, charge more rather than skimping on what’s expected.
Same goes with Soylent Green. If it is an option on my sub in the future, and I have to pay more for an appropriate amount because times are tough, so be it.
Quick! The foreign residents of Taipei, who already pay way too much for food and housing, are getting one small wedge of cheese instead of two at many of the approximately 87 Subway franchises in the city! Somebody call the WAAAA-mbulance!
Meanwhile, there are riots in the Philippines because the increasing price of rice has put a serious dent in people’s real incomes.
First they came for the cheese, but I said nothing
Then they came for the cold cuts, but again I said nothing
Then they took the jalapenos and again I was silent
Then they took the bread and I looked the other way
Then they came for me
You see? Its a slippery slope we’re on.
Cute! 
This is a quality --not price-- issue for me. Franchises are supposed to maintain a consistent level of quality in all of their locations. The bottom line is that cheese is supposed to come on the sandwich -the whole sandwich, not just a part of it.
If food costs have increased, they should reflect that in their overall prices, not compromise the quality of their product. In the long run, that’s bad business.
Starbucks recently posted signs in all of their restaurants promising customer satisfaction on their products. Subway, on the other hand, put up signs informing customers that they can now expect to receive an inferior product. As a customer, that leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
It would really surprise me if the headquarters in America is condoning this kind of practice, as it is extremely out of line with the way that American restaurants do business in general. That’s why I was pretty shocked, frankly, to see this type of notice the other day when I stopped in to get my regular sandwich. From an American company, I expect better.
Regarding a price increase: almost all the restaurants that I’ve been to in Taiwan have increased prices in the past few months. Why should Subway be any different? Now is definitely the best time to do it, as customers are expecting it. No explanations are needed. Posting a sign in which management complains about rising food costs is inappropriate and entirely unnecessary. Just do it! And stop cutting the cheese!!
It leaves a bad taste in your mouth when someone cuts the cheese?
Yeah, I guess so. But still. Eeeww…
That’s something I’d expect to hear from that nasty Sandman.
If I want cheap, I’ll eat 雞絲飯 ji1si1fan4 at a local stand. I want a quality submarine sandwich, which is hard to find in Taiwan, and I’d prefer to see the current restaurants RAISE their quality, even at an increased cost, than to skimp. Not only do I want to see the AMOUNT of cheese remain the same, but I’d like the QUALITY of the cheese to be seriously improved. If this is all just overreaction to a limit on a particular special offer, then the comment that an IMPROVEMENT in quality is desired still stands, and it doesn’t just apply to the Subway franchise. Sandwiches in Taiwan in general are nowhere near as good as they could be. Using real, flavorful cheese of good quality would be a major step in that direction. Using better bread is a must, too. Costco’s ciabatta (only recently available btw) kicks most sub shops’ butts, for instance, and with a bit of foresight preparation and a mix of ingredients from Costco and a couple nice import shops, I’m able to make my own sandwiches cheaper and better than what Taiwan shops now generally provide.