Subway Expands Café Format

Subway’s newest look is a hybrid of McCafe and Starbucks, with perhaps a dash of Panera. Subway Cafés blur the lines between a sandwich store and a coffee bar, with a menu that goes beyond sub sandwiches to embrace baked goods, espresso and frozen blended beverages. The concept, aimed at office buildings and other upscale venues, takes up a little more space than Subway’s standard, 1,200-sq.-ft.footprint.

The café concept has been tested for the past few years but has recently been expanded to about 15 locations. According to various reports, another 10 are likely to debut this year. The rollout, while strategic, is just a blip on Subway’s aggressive expansion plans. The Milford, Conn., chain will add 2,000 new North American locations this year. Since January, the chain has opened nearly 700 new outlets in 50 countries and 43 U.S. states. Subway has about 34,700 stores in 98 countries.