{"id":20906,"date":"2016-11-30T02:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-11-30T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/?p=20906"},"modified":"2021-01-07T20:44:16","modified_gmt":"2021-01-08T06:44:16","slug":"review-subway-corned-beef-reuben-sandwich","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2016\/11\/30\/review-subway-corned-beef-reuben-sandwich\/","title":{"rendered":"REVIEW: Subway Corned Beef Reuben Sandwich"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Subway<\/a><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t care what the textbooks say. I don\u2019t care about the debates over the Reuben sandwich\u2019s origins: whether it originated from a Nebraskan grocer\u2019s weekly poker ritual or from a New York delicatessen\u2019s signature \u201cReuben Special.\u201d <\/p>\n

In my eyes\u2014and taste buds\u2014the Reuben was obviously<\/em> invented by Ruben Studdard. I mean, what else could Ruben have been up to after winning American Idol<\/em> Season 2, while the more famous runner-up Clay Aiken became a Christmas album mainstay in my grandma\u2019s CD player for years?<\/p>\n

And before you ask how Ruben could invent the Reuben when the sandwich first appeared in the 1920s, the answer\u2019s time travel. Duh. Next question.<\/p>\n

Okay, that explanation may be more impractical than a Reuben Goldberg machine, but I needed a slipshod introduction for a sandwich as slipshod as Subway\u2019s new Corned Beef Reuben. Because as I soon found out, expecting a fast food joint to do justice to the Reuben\u2019s nearly 100-year legacy was a bit unrealistic. <\/p>\n

\"Subway<\/a><\/p>\n

But let\u2019s start with the rye highs. The popularity of Subway\u2019s Italian Herbs & Cheese and Honey Oat breads suggests that consumers like their bread studded with enough stuff to make a BeDazzler blush, and Subway\u2019s new Rye bread fulfills that desire by baking lightly crunchy caraway seeds into every sub. <\/p>\n

The bread itself is dense, earthy, and spiced, while the seeds pop with a sweet anise bite. The taste may be slightly too sour for Hawaiian roll or Wonder Bread veterans, but fans of aged, yeasty bread will appreciate its subtleties. <\/p>\n

My only gripe is that the rye isn\u2019t marbled, though that kind of doughy swirl might\u2019ve looked too much like a rolled yoga mat for Subway\u2019s liking.<\/p>\n

Meat and cheese are this Reuben\u2019s other strongest elements. While the corned beef isn\u2019t particularly juicy, potently peppered, or too different from Subway roast beef, it\u2019s still thick, tender, and salty enough to give the sandwich a savory, meaty twang.<\/p>\n

By which I mean you\u2019ll want to twang an acoustic guitar string after each bite.<\/p>\n

The Swiss cheese is an underrated, binding force in Subway\u2019s Reuben. It may have all the complexity of a melted Kraft Single, but it still brings creamy dairy balance to the bread and sauerkraut\u2019s sourness.<\/p>\n

Speaking of the sauerkraut: it\u2019s bad, and that\u2019s coming from someone who adores sauerkraut enough to give it an honorary seat at his wedding. Subway\u2019s sauerkraut is far too wet, mushy, and flavorlessly acidic, lacking the light crispness and pickled intricacies of good sauerkraut. But I suppose if I were mashed into a cube and left under Subway\u2019s sneeze guard all day, I\u2019d feel sad and squishy, too.<\/p>\n

And the Thousand Island Dressing? It\u2019s barely there, providing a light, underlying fatty flavor with faint mayo and tomato notes. I\u2019d say I only tasted three islands at most<\/em>, and one of those was Rhode Island, whose authentic island status is questionable at best.<\/p>\n

\"Subway<\/a><\/p>\n

Eating the sandwich together, I mostly taste a sour-sweet war between sauerkraut and bread, while the Reuben\u2019s less flavorful, meaty and creamy children beg their parents to stop fighting. It\u2019s far from authentic, and your limited Reuben enjoyment will hinge on your ingredient balance: I recommend going light on \u2018kraut, doubling up on cheese, and getting dressing on the side to add at your discretion.<\/p>\n

Better yet, take the $5.25 you could\u2019ve spent on a 6\u201d Subway Reuben to Walmart deli and buy enough loose ingredients to assemble a much tastier haphazard Reuben in the parking lot. Just don\u2019t forget to play Clay Aiken\u2019s Merry Christmas with Love<\/em> in the car while you do it.<\/p>\n

(Nutrition Facts – 6\u201d sandwich, no vegetables \u2013 450 calories, 15 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 85 milligrams of cholesterol, 1770 milligrams of sodium, 42 grams of carbohydrates, 6 grams of fiber, 10 grams of sugar, and 38 grams of protein.)<\/small><\/p>\n

Purchased Price:<\/b> $5.25
\nSize:<\/b> N\/A
\nRating:<\/b> 4 out of 10
\nPros:<\/b> BeDazzlingly good rye bread. Guitar strummingly decent corned beef. The complimentarily congealing properties of a Swiss Kraft Single. Parking lot deli sandwiches. Sending my warmest regards to Ruben Studdard, wherever he may be.
\nCons:<\/b> Not authentically Reuben-esque (Reubenic?) enough to justify the cost. Sauerkraut that leaves me sour. Thousand Island Dressing that\u2019s 997 islands short. Not being able to make a \u201cWhy?<\/em> Bread\u201d joke because the bread was actually good.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I don\u2019t care what the textbooks say. I don\u2019t care about the debates over the Reuben sandwich\u2019s origins: whether it originated from a Nebraskan grocer\u2019s weekly poker ritual or from a New York delicatessen\u2019s signature \u201cReuben Special.\u201d In my eyes\u2014and taste buds\u2014the Reuben was obviously invented by Ruben Studdard. I mean, what else could Ruben […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1440],"tags":[1477,21],"class_list":["post-20906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","tag-fast-food","tag-subway"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":20847,"url":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2016\/11\/15\/fast-food-news-subway-corned-beef-reuben-and-turkey-reuben\/","url_meta":{"origin":20906,"position":0},"title":"FAST FOOD NEWS: Subway Corned Beef Reuben and Turkey Reuben","author":"Marvo","date":"November 15, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Subway's new Reuben Duo consists of the Corned Beef Reuben and Turkey Reuben. 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