We live in an interconnected world. Elvis walked into the White House and shook Nixon’s hand. Abbott and Costello met Frankenstein. Steve Urkel annoyed both Uncle Jesse and Patrick Duffy. I once sat in a Ford Explorer with Eddie Bauer logos on it. We’re all star stuff, guys. It’s exciting.
When titans meet, it’s a reminder that we’re all on the same team, that we all indeed occupy the same universe. Tommy Lee Jones was Al Gore’s college dorm mate, y’all. Betty Crocker uses Hershey chocolate in its mixes! The Justice League fought the Avengers. Doritos Locos Tacos!
So when Subway unveiled its Fritos Chicken Enchilada Melt, I was eager to get one in my maw. I mean, I had already been manually putting chips on my sandwich for years. Wait. Sorry. We’ve already been manually putting chips on our sandwiches for years. (Right? Right?! High fives all around.) Now two giant corporations are joining forces to put chips on a sandwich.
They have research teams and focus groups and everything. This thing should be a masterpiece. I bought a lobster bib and scratched out the picture of a lobster and replaced it with a drawing of a smiling lobster eating a sandwich with chips on it. I’m ready. I’m cheering in my seat.
Unfortunately, I am loath to report that Subway and Frito-Lay came together and birthed the half-breed antichrist of sandwiches. It gurgled and writhed in pain and asked me to put it out of its misery, and after I ate it, I asked the same of myself.
The tragic journey begins in the Subway assembly line. “I want to make it look like the poster,” I say. The sandwich artist grumbles something incoherent and conjures a foot-long flatbread from the ether. The chicken comes pre-sauced and looks all wet. Two (2!) small bags of Fritos are dumped onto the sandwich. “Whoa, I’ve never seen that before,” cries out the guy behind me in line. Lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles are the ingredients I saw on the poster, so that’s what I get.
The Fritos Chicken Enchilada Melt looks weak. The flatbread gives it a limp disposition, and it’s wider than the regular loaves, so the ingredients look scattered like they were dumped into the bottom of a garbage can. Taking the first bite, though, is not bad. The flatbread is chewy and floury like a pita. Going forward, however, the hot part of the sandwich has warmed over the should-be-cold lettuce and tomato (Gross!). The slightly sour pickles tasted out of place in what is, I guess, a Subway version of a soft taco.
The barely spicy enchilada sauce on the chicken has rendered the chicken tasteless—the protein is purely there for texture. Worst of all, the Fritos have strangely become soggy in the five-minute journey from bag to sandwich to mouth. It kind of tastes like if you crushed up a Double Decker Taco Supreme (with chicken, hold the sour cream) into a sandwich bag and then left it in the sun for an hour. The sickly nuclear warmth of the concoction stuck to my stomach for a good 45 minutes.
Elvis died on a toilet and Nixon had to resign from being president. Frankenstein has to be depicted in I, Frankenstein. Steve Urkel never worked again. Eddie Bauer filed for bankruptcy. Titans meet but sometimes the story doesn’t always have a happy ending. Sometimes it’s more like when Freddy meets Jason or when Alien fights Predator, or like whenever they try to make a movie with Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn. Sometimes it just ruins chips on a sandwich.
(Nutrition Facts – 6 inch sandwich – 580 calories, 240 calories from fat, 26 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 20 milligrams of cholesterol, 1170 milligrams of sodium, 60 grams of carbohydrates, 7 grams of fiber, 9 grams of sugar, 25 grams of protein.)
Item: Subway Fritos Chicken Enchilada Melt
Purchased Price: $6.50
Size: Footlong
Purchased at: Subway
Rating: 2 out of 10
Pros: Flatbread was flat, chewy.
Cons: Fritos do not stand up well to sauce. Pre-sauced meats at Subway are all gross. Cold parts of sandwich were warm. Badly constructed, looks like a mess.
I was behind a guy in line the other day who was ordering his third Fritos chicken enchilada melt. He swapped in wheat for the flatbread, had them use four pre-measured paper boats of meat (extra charge), and added siracha. I think they only used one bag of chips, though it was a footlong. I have not had the courage to try it yet.
holy hell, thanks for saving me some money
I wonder how this would taste if a GOOD place with good ingredients made this. #smartass
I stopped eating at Subway back in the late ’90’s because of the sandwich poster problem, I went into one and ordered the sandwich of the month which was proudly displayed on a big poster, was asked “What do you want on it?” and replied “I want it like the poster.”
Do not pass go do not collect $200.
Subway does not put up with the “I want it like the poster” nonsense, they will straighten you out quick if you make that request. The poster is only a suggestion, if you ask them to replicate that sandwich they will size you up as a wise guy and give you the boot.
That’s why I can’t stand Subway. There was a North Sider/South Sider sub promotion in 2004 & I told them which one I wanted, and they said “what do you want on it?”. Ugh. Luckily I had researched it but it was just so dumb. I guess they don’t train their employees there. I’d rather spend my money to a local place, even if it is more expensive.
I knew it would suck. Great review!! (written well- not the actual review of the “sandwich”)
Don’t put lettuce and tomato on a hot sub. Do you put lettuce on a meatball sub? Subways poster is to make it look good. Not necessarily taste the best. I’d go with meat cheese and chips only
Nope, but we do on burgers & tacos. I’m in the camp of not putting chips or fried onions on sauced sandwiches & burritos. It’s pointless & it will get soggy.
Great review!
I bet if you yourself got pre-sauced, a frito melt would taste pretty good.
The one on the poster looks like it has chesse on it. Yours doesn’t… I have to agree with others. Meat, cheese and chips… Warm lettuce & tomato is enough to make anyone turn their nose up, especially iceberg lettuce. Yuck! Good review!
Those are supposed to be jalapenos, not pickles 🙂
I liked it, but I went with lettuce and green peppers. Pickles and tomatoes have no business being on an enchillada.
Not great, but I feel you kinda f’ed it up yourself.
I’ve ALWAYS said that chips should be an every day option at Subway. I’m sure A LOT of people, including myself, thoroughly enjoy the taste of chips on a sandwich. It’s like putting fries on a burger, it makes two great things even greater when they’re together. Some crispy fries instead of avacado would be a great option as well. Subway could make a lot of awesome free add-ons if they weren’t so cheap and lazy.
HAHAHA, reading this is pretty funny. If you honestly expect that the sandwich is going to look exactly like the picture (which is obviously shown as perfect for appeal) please…jump off a bridge now. Plus, when you open up a sandwich that has already been closed with a bunch of sauce and ingredients on it, what do you expect to see? The lettuce spread out completely even or the tomatoes in a straight line? Come on guys it’s Subway, the biggest fast food chain in the world. Ever wonder if the Subway you went to isnt good rather than generalizing all Subway stores (30,000+)?
Gross. I wouldn’t eat this if it were my last meal on earth. I’d rather suffer through the “veggie patty” they sell.
I would not suggest eating this disgusting excuse for a sandwich. I bought and ate it around 7:00 pm, and i woke up ready to vomit. Around noon the next day i was still feeling the sub hanging around and i felt like i was going to puke all day.
i’m pretty sure those are jalapenos in the picture. Pickles on an enchilada sounds pretty horrible, it’s no wonder why the sandwich tasted so pitiful.
also, I find it funny how i have the same issue as everybody else when ordering at subway. Whenever I ask for “whatever is on the picture” they look at me like I’m some sort of plebeian.
All fast foods display posters to make thier product look great. U have the greatest most powerful you can use. Don’t go there anymore. I don’t go to BurgerKing anymore. It’s easy.
All fast foods display posters to make thier product look great. U have the greatest most powerful tool you can use. Don’t go there anymore. I don’t go to BurgerKing anymore. It’s easy.
I’m sorry you had to pay for that. Not all subways are that bad. I am a sandwich artist and I do mean it when I say it. When a customer says they want it like the poster I tell them I’d be more than happy to, but they may not like it very much. The picture is supposed to look good, for the eyes. Not mouth. I eat the Fritos sub all the time. On flat bread, cheese UNDER the chips, and just chipotle and salt and pepper. It’s really good, you just have to find a subway where they do their job. The formula is 1/2 bag for a tf long and 1/4 bag for a 6in. When it comes down to it, it’s about who is behind the counter putting your sandwich together.
You guys are so funny 🙂 I’ve been wanting to try that sub like crazy. I love Fritos yummy! It does really depend on who you get making your sandwich. One time I think this young girl was high or hung over, she was clueless, I had to tell her everything 3 times. This is what I do- No matter what kinda mood I’m in, or if I’m starving, I start with a big dazzling smile and a Hello. Then I chat a little and make sure I say nice things, and do not loose eye contact. You must watch them through the entire assembly line, they’re less likely to mess up. If we want our Fritos to stay crispy, ask for them on the side, then put them on a little area and munch, then on the next and repeat….
Enjoy! 🙂
Haha, this review was so funny! This looks and sounds disgusting to me…I just found your blog so not sure if you’ve reviewed their pizza yet but that looks awful too. Some years ago, Weinerschnitzel came out with these things called Pupsters, it was a cut up hot dog on a Hawaiian roll with pickles and chipotle ranch dressing. My husband and I tried them and they were so bad, so so bad! I got through about one bite and couldn’t take it. I often wonder who sits around and thinks these concoctions up?!?!? A stoned teenager???
My subway doesn’t make it look like that and it’s actually very good…. everyone has different taste but it obviously made moneyb
I tried this sandwich and it was delicious! I have eaten it at least 3 times now and it tasted very good on each occasion. I can say that your choice to use flat bread and the choice of toppings may have been the reason for your dislike. I chose the fresh baked white bread. The enchilada sauce penetrated the bread slightly, flavoring the bread but did not soak threw. I chose white cheddar which complimented the sauce, black olives, a little shredded lettuce, and avocado. It tasted like chicken enchilada with the crunchy texture of the corn chips which enhanced the flavor. I think that if you did not like this sandwich, it has due to your choice of bread toppings….but to each his own.
The sandwich is the bomb.com. I wish it were permanent. Pickles would be a bad choice. I tried to keep it ingredients that would actually be found on enchilada. And and siracha.
Laughs you thought you saw pickles but what yiu saw was jalapenos yes subway has them presliced and they kind of resemble pickles.
i have worked at subway restaurants for over 20 years and i eat alot of subway sandwiches and i have to admit i love this particular sandwich and i’m thankful they brought it vack this year. i never get this on flatbreak. i use italian herb n cheese bread and get it toasted. you can always get your fritos on the side to avoid the chips going soggy. also that pic above of your sandwich is NOT how a subway sandwich should look nor should you have experienced such poor customer service. my customers have NEVER had to ask me to make their sandwich look like the picture i just do that. if you’d like to really put some heat on this sandwich use their sriracha sauce mixed with their chipotle southwest sauce. it gives it that extra oomph you’re looking for.