Subway Israel () was a fast food sandwich chain, an international franchise of the U.S.-based
Subway. Opening in 1992, they expanded to 23 branches around Israel before they closed in 2004.
[Eat fresh, eat kosher: Subway the largest U.S. kosher restaurant chain]
– Retrieved 28 August 2014
History
In the early 1990s, Subway began expanding their international franchises at a much more rapid pace, with Israel being one of those places.
In 1992 Subway entered Israel for the first time. In 2004, when the original franchisee died, the chain closed their 23 locations.
Kashrut
Although not all restaurants in Israel were
kosher
(also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, ), from the Ashke ...
, all did refrain from
pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig animal husbandry, husbandry dating back to 8000–9000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooke ...
products. Not wanting to ostracize itself from the Jewish residents of Israel, Subway did not offer bacon or ham.
Other kosher Subways
Outside of Israel, the only other kosher Subways are located in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, which opened its first location in 2006 in a suburb of
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...
. Subway spokesman
Jared Fogle attended the opening of the first kosher Subway branch at the Mandel
JCC of Cleveland. Subway's press release on the opening stated, "With slight modifications, such as no pork-based products, and the use of soy-based cheese product, the menu is virtually identical to that of any other Subway restaurant."
There had been 11 branches in August 2009,
and peaked at 12 branches.
[THE REMAINING KOSHER SUBWAY RESTAURANTS IN THE U.S. ]
– Retrieved 28 August 2014 Soon after, they began closing, however, and were down to 5 by August 2011.
Many issues have led the US branches to close. One of the main issues is that 4.5% of all sales are paid to Subway corporate for advertising; however, they received no benefits from the advertising since it was not kosher-specific.
[Local franchises of sandwich chain were touted as next big kosher thing. What happened?]
– Retrieved 28 August 2014 Additionally, due to the higher cost of kosher meat, non-kosher consumers stayed away due to the lack of participation in the "Five-Dollar Footlong" promotion.
Reemergence attempts
In May 2009 it was announced that a new investor, Gur Gal,
had purchased the franchise rights to Subway in Israel. The new investor had rented space in
Herzliya
Herzliya ( ; , / ) is an affluent List of Israeli cities, city in the Israeli coastal plain, central coast of Israel, at the northern part of the Tel Aviv District, known for its robust start-up and entrepreneurial culture. In it had a populatio ...
and was in talks to rent additional space in on
Rothschild Boulevard in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
.
[Subway to return to Israel]
– Retrieved 28 August 2014 His plans stated he would eventually open 130 branches around Israel.
The new locations never opened, and a lawsuit between Gur Gal and Subway was settled in arbitration, with no details released.
In June 2014, it was once again announced that Subway was looking to return to Israel and was looking for franchises.
– Retrieved 28 August 2014
See also
*Culture of Israel
The culture of Israel is closely associated with Jewish culture and rooted in the Jewish history of the diaspora and Zionist movement. It has also been influenced by Arab culture and the history and traditions of the Arab Israeli population and ...
*Israeli cuisine
Israeli cuisine primarily comprises dishes brought from the Jewish diaspora, and has more recently been defined by the development of a notable fusion cuisine characterized by the mixing of Jewish cuisine and Arab cuisine.Gold, Rozann''A Region's ...
*Economy of Israel
An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with ...
* List of restaurants in Israel
This is a list of restaurants in Israel. In 2007 there were about 4,400 food and beverage vendors in Israel. By 2012 about 8000 such business were reported. With the highest percentage of vegan population by some estimates, Israel is home to many ...
References
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{{Restaurants in Israel
Subway (restaurant)
Defunct restaurant chains in Israel