# What do they call a footlong in France? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [August 23, 2025, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421 "2025-08-23T23:21:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/21 "2025-08-25T17:56:35Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > The more important question is who is living in or visiting France and decides to eat at a Subway restaurant Did you ever see _The Accidental Tourist_? Sometimes we don’t want snails, or things covered with heavy sauces. Sometimes you just want a nice sandwich. If only they had french fries there. 🙂 > [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I ever met someone who ordered the 6in sandwich on purpose. Hello. Why would anyone buy a footlong if you’re not that hungry? It’s not like a meatball is going to be anything but a soggy mess as a left over. BMT, sure, _if_ you want one tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/22 "2025-08-25T18:06:46Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > > The more important question is who is living in or visiting France and decides to eat at a Subway restaurant > > Did you ever see _The Accidental Tourist_? Sometimes we don’t want snails, or things covered with heavy sauces. Sometimes you just want a nice sandwich. If only they had french fries there. 🙂 If you just want a nice sandwich but are at Subway, you’re in the wrong place. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/23 "2025-08-25T18:10:16Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > If you just want a nice sandwich but are at Subway, you’re in the wrong place. Let’s not be hipster-snobbish. I will defend Subway, I think the bread makes the sandwich, and I like the consistency of theirs. Some places think crusty hard to chew is good. They can have them. A Subway BMT is to me what a “hero” is. Lots of meat, accessories, on a good bread. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/24 "2025-08-25T20:02:45Z")
I literally have not bought a footlong since high school. Always the six inch for me. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/25 "2025-08-25T20:08:32Z")
I’ve never eaten at Subways and don’t intend to, but it’s totally beyond my imagination how I could eat and stomach a foot long sandwich in one sitting. ---
**Author:** ![Kropotkin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kropotkin/32/18045_2.png) [@Kropotkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kropotkin)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/26 "2025-08-25T20:27:48Z")
Eat past the pain. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/27 "2025-08-25T20:28:10Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > > If you just want a nice sandwich but are at Subway, you’re in the wrong place. > > Let’s not be hipster-snobbish. I will defend Subway, I think the bread makes the sandwich, and I like the consistency of theirs. Some places think crusty hard to chew is good. They can have them. > > A Subway BMT is to me what a “hero” is. Lots of meat, accessories, on a good bread. There is nothing hipster or snobbish to recognize the fact that a good deli is a thousand times better than Subway. Many years ago Subway was my first and only job in food service. The bread has always been fresh and decent. The meats have always been the absolute cheapest available. At least they got rid of the U cut which was only used to make the sandwich look fuller than it was. Oh and they very carefully measured the amount to meat that went in every sandwich to make it the less than any deli would put on it. I will grab a Subway sub every now and then when it’s convenient. I do it mostly because I know I’ll get enough to not be hungry but not enough to make me feel fat. I do feel that Jersey Mike’s is better. But with both I don’t understand how they stay in business around here. I know of 5 delis within a short drive of here with far superior products. No Subway but there is a Jersey Mike’s. Coincidentally I drove past the very first Jersey Mike’s today. I didn’t make a special trip, it’s very close to my sister’s house. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/28 "2025-08-25T20:33:09Z")
Similarly, I’ve been eating from Subway restaurants for _decades_; I graduated from high school in 1984 and grew up a few miles from their former headquarters location (which was on a street called Sub Way). In my (perhaps faulty) memory, the sandwiches used to taste better. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/29 "2025-08-25T21:02:40Z")
Jersey Mike’s is an order or two of magnitude better than Subway. Hell, it’s better than some ma & pop delis that I’ve been to, to be completely honest (but Chicago doesn’t _quite_ have the deli tradition that places like Philly and NYC have. I mean, we have them, but not like over there.) I’m not a fan of Subway bread at all (it’s not the style, it’s just their particular bread), but when I do find myself having to go there, the herb and cheese one is okay. I’m not sure what they’ve done with their bread in general over the last few years, but I do find it better than it used to be. I used to be so turned off by the smell of Subway bread – I’m not sure what it was about it, but I just couldn’t do it. I’d rather do a Jimmy John’s or Mr. Submarine (here in the Chicago area) than Subway. Now, I don’t notice that smell any more, and it seems a bit better, and a BMT with lettuce, tomato, onion, giardiniera (or banana peppers), oil, vinegar, salt and pepper, shake of herbs, will be reasonable enough to get me through until dinner. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/30 "2025-08-25T21:07:12Z")
> It’s bacon, mutton, and tomato sandwich, where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomato is ripe. They’re so perky, I love that. **LIAR!** ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/31 "2025-08-25T21:21:30Z")
> [@Kropotkin](#): > > Eat past the pain. I see what you did there. > [@Loach](#): > > I do feel that Jersey Mike’s is better. But with both I don’t understand how they stay in business around here. I know of 5 delis within a short drive of here with far superior products. How do the prices and the service compare? There are places around here that make absolutely amazing sandwiches, but they cost three times as much as Subway and you’ll wait for 45 minutes if it’s a busy time. Personally, a footlong hasn’t been a meal for me since I was in high school, but when I get Subway, I’m usually with someone else, and we split it. Or if I’m alone, I’ll eat half for lunch and then half for supper. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/32 "2025-08-25T22:10:37Z")
Getting back to the OP’s question – I’ve never been to France, specifically, but in other European countries I have been to the footlong and 6" sandwiches at Subway are simply called “large” and “small” in the local language. I, too, initially thought “hotdog” when I saw this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/33 "2025-08-25T22:26:47Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > We just say Subway sandwich. I’m not sure I ever met someone who ordered the 6in sandwich on purpose. Kind of a waste of cash. I’ve done that when it’s just me ordering a sub because that’s all I wanted to eat. Especially if I was going somewhere afterward (like back to work) and had no way to refrigerate it so it would keep. I hate wasting food. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/34 "2025-08-25T22:52:54Z")
Maybe it was the sugar content, if you go to Ireland one will find that because of the sugar content, it is not considered bread, but goes into the pastry side of things for tax purpouses. > **[Subway bread is not bread, Irish court rules](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/01/irish-court-rules-subway-bread-is-not-bread)** > > Judge finds that sugar content of US chain’s sandwiches exceeds stipulated limit and they should thus be classified as confectionery ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/35 "2025-08-25T22:53:57Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > Maybe it was the sugar content, I doubt it. All American mass-market squishy white bread is pretty sweet to me (I have a bit of an anti-sweet tooth). There was something else about it. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/36 "2025-08-25T23:32:45Z")
That article talks about the Italian white bread but in the United States at least, there are multiple bread options at the restaurants. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/37 "2025-08-25T23:50:40Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > I’ve never eaten at Subways and don’t intend to, but it’s totally beyond my imagination how I could eat and stomach a foot long sandwich in one sitting. This is me, too. In fact, the local supermarket deli makes far better but smaller subs than Subway. I happen to have one so I actually measured it, and it’s about 7½" squeezed into its plastic package, so nominally an 8" sub. And my usual lunch (or small dinner) is often just half of one. Sometimes when I decided to eat the whole thing I felt overly full afterwards. But these are packed much more thickly with filling than anything from Subway, especially for some reason the turkey subs that can have filling an inch thick. And unlike Subway, there isn’t a mass of lettuce – it’s mostly meat, cheese, and sometimes tomato. > [@Loach](#): > > There is nothing hipster or snobbish to recognize the fact that a good deli is a thousand times better than Subway. Many years ago Subway was my first and only job in food service. The bread has always been fresh and decent. The meats have always been the absolute cheapest available. At least they got rid of the U cut which was only used to make the sandwich look fuller than it was. Oh and they very carefully measured the amount to meat that went in every sandwich to make it the less than any deli would put on it. That’s always been exactly my impression. The bread, which I believe is parbaked at some central location and delivered to the stores frozen, is fresh and tasty after the baking completes in the store’s oven. The meat fillings are generally low-quality and may be of dubious freshness. There’s some question about whether their “tuna salad” has ever even been within a hundred miles of an actual tuna. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/38 "2025-08-25T23:55:24Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > And unlike Subway, there isn’t a mass of lettuce To be fair, that’s only if you ask for lettuce. I personally like lots of lettuce, onions, and tomato on an Italian sub. But you can ask them how you like. They are rather skimpy on meat. You can ask for double meat (at a price, though.) I’m sure you can ask for even more than that, but it’s not worth it. I’ve never had any issue with the freshness of their meat, but they are probably sourcing among the cheapest, if not cheapest, deli meat they could get away with. I don’t think the tuna salad is made of anything but tuna. Once again, not the highest grade tuna, but edible. Apparently, it’s skipjack from Southeast Asia, which makes sense in terms of cost. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/39 "2025-08-26T00:10:19Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I don’t think the tuna salad is made of anything but tuna. Once again, not the highest grade tuna, but edible. Apparently, it’s skipjack from Southeast Asia, which makes sense in terms of cost. Yeah, probably comes from the same internet rumour mill that says that McDonald’s “Filet-o-fish” isn’t really fish. It is, of course, but it’s appallingly bad quality, especially because the patty often sits around in a warming oven for hours. But overall, I’d have a lot more faith in many (not all) McDonald’s offerings than I do those from Subway because at least McD’s has a corporate culture emphasizing at least a mass-market level of quality in most products and consistency across all their franchise operations. I tend to think of Subway as just emphasizing low cost across the board, period. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421/40 "2025-08-26T00:24:56Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > > [@pulykamell](#): > > > > I don’t think the tuna salad is made of anything but tuna. Once again, not the highest grade tuna, but edible. Apparently, it’s skipjack from Southeast Asia, which makes sense in terms of cost. > > Yeah, probably comes from the same internet rumour mill that says that McDonald’s “Filet-o-fish” isn’t really fish. It is, of course, but it’s appallingly bad quality, especially because the patty often sits around in a warming oven for hours. But overall, I’d have a lot more faith in many (not all) McDonald’s offerings than I do those from Subway because at least McD’s has a corporate culture emphasizing at least a mass-market level of quality in most products and consistency across all their franchise operations. I tend to think of Subway as just emphasizing low cost across the board, period. It wasn’t an internet rumor. It was an actual class action lawsuit that stated they tested the tuna and found no tuna DNA. Not really surprising since it’s cooked not raw. The lawsuit was later dropped. Tuna is pretty much the only sub I will get at Subway. On toasted wheat bread. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-they-call-a-footlong-in-france/1022421.md?page=3)