Place: Subway
Items: Atkins-friendly wraps
Price: varies
We here at Lunch Guys Headquarters do watch what we eat, in the sense that we often say, “Hey, did you just see me down that foot-long roast beef sub in six bites?” If we lost a Jared-esque 200 pounds, the Lunch Guys would cease to exist (you can only hope).
That's why we weren't too thrilled when Subway announced it was introducing two Atkins-friendly wraps -- made of wheat gluten, oat, soy protein and stuff for 5 grams of net carbs -- and Atkins-izing any sandwich for 60 cents. If loving bread is a crime, let us be guilty. That said, we went to Subway to join the Atkins nation, at least for one lunch hour.
Tom: Now I'm all for eating more meat, bacon, eggs, cheese and even fried food. But if losing weight the Atkins way means not eating bread on a sub, I'd rather take up jogging or some other unpleasant exercise.
But just to make sure, I tested my tried and true Subway Club in a wrap version. As I suspected, you might as well just have rolled the meat around the condiments. It was terrible. To make matters even worse, the oil and vinegar had nowhere to go but through
would have had 10 times the turkey instead of the three Post-It note slices, six measly bacon strips instead of two, and slap on another hunk of cheese while you're at it. Otherwise, Subway takes away the carbs but doesn't give me enough of anything else, so I had to top it off with a cookie. Now that's not healthy.
Tom: Clearly, subs need bread. Besides, it's not like a normal Subway was ever bad for you. Jared didn't need wraps to lose a tenth of a ton. If this Atkins trend continues, what's next? A hot dog in a wrap? I hope the Atkins people don't invade 7-11, Coney Island or Wrigley Field.
Chris: I just hope Subway doesn't lose sight of its mission as a sub shop. I appreciate that Subway has healthful options, but the South Beach, the Scarsdale, the Dr. Phil -- none have anything to do with my beloved 12-inches of BMT, loaded with the works.
Rating: 1 spork (out of 5)
Food Facts: Turkey and Bacon Melt Wrap: 430 calories (51 percent from fat), 25 grams fat, (9 grams saturated), 22 grams carbohydrates (5 grams net), 30 grams protein, 1600 milligrams sodium.
E-mail The Lunch Guys:
tomandchris@thelunchguys.com
my wrap like water through a hose. Just as the bread acts like a sponge for a sandwich's juices, thebread must soak up some room in my stomach because the Club wrap wasn't nearly as filling as a standard Club. You could order more but you can't even get a 12-inch or double meat wrap. The wrap can't handle the load. So the concept must be “eat less and you'll lose weight.” You'll be hungry, too.
Chris: I'm with you on that, Tom. Imagine a burlap sack smashed paper thin, then wrapped around a turkey, a pig and a wheel of cheese, themselves all smashed paper thin. What you've got is Subway's new Turkey and Bacon Melt Wrap (that may even be the actual recipe). I try never to consciously eat wheat gluten or soy protein, yet there I was choking it down, dreaming of the flaky, fresh-baked bread it had replaced.
The saving grace of the Atkins plan is that you can gorge on meat and cheese. If this wrap was truly in that Atkins philosophy, it
