I have never been made to feel this stupid, unwelcome, and genuinely belittled over something as insignificant as changing a sauce on a Subway order.
I stopped at the Subway at the Lee Traffic Circle and ordered a Protein Pocket. I asked for one simple modification: Sweet Onion Teriyaki sauce instead of the Baja sauce it normally comes with.
That was literally it.
The employee refused and started giving me some explanation about how I supposedly could not have Sweet Onion Teriyaki with that chicken and would have to change the chicken to rotisserie.
The problem was that his accent was extremely heavy and his English was so limited that I could barely understand what he was trying to tell me. I had to repeatedly try to decipher the explanation, and instead of recognizing that there was obviously a major communication barrier and trying to explain it another way, his attitude became increasingly dismissive and condescending.
That is what bothered me the most.
If you are going to tell a customer that something they order regularly is suddenly impossible, you should at least be able to clearly explain why. Instead, I was standing there trying to understand broken fragments of an explanation while simultaneously being treated as though I was the one who couldn't comprehend something obvious.
I order essentially this exact thing at the Somersworth Subway all the time. Nobody has ever told me Sweet Onion Teriyaki sauce somehow requires a completely different chicken.
Maybe there is some obscure policy. Fine. Explain it.
But don't struggle to communicate the policy yourself and then make the customer feel ignorant for not understanding you.
I work with the public. I know what difficult customers look like. I wasn't yelling, demanding free food, holding up the line with twenty modifications, or asking for anything outrageous.
I asked to change a sauce.
Somehow that turned into one of the most uncomfortable customer-service interactions I've had in a long time.
I walked into Subway expecting dinner and walked out feeling like my intelligence had been insulted because I couldn't understand an employee who could barely communicate the explanation he was insisting I accept.
That's not customer service. That's humiliating someone over a sandwich.
I will gladly drive to the Somersworth location from now on, where somehow the monumental logistical challenge of putting Sweet Onion Teriyaki sauce on chicken has never caused an international crisis.
AS
Animation Studio
Aug 12, 2026
This place is very Nice, The employee was very friendly, prepared the food very well as told.
And the owner Maulik He was extra ordinary.
RP
Robbie Pallozzi
Aug 4, 2026
Maulik… awesome service friendly and gets your orders right
JN
Jeffrey Norton
Jul 18, 2026
Very rude service from the employee who runs the counter. I Forgot to add toppings in my mobile order, and when I got there and kindly asked if it was possible to add just some lettuce or pickles he flatly and rudely refused, and chided me for forgetting to add anything to the order, in very broken English. The store was completely empty so it’s not like he was too busy to add anything, and it would not have costed more anyway. Shame, as I probably would have given him a tip for the hassle. Clearly the owner does not care about his product and is only interested in your money. Will not be going back and would recommend if people want good service to go someplace else.
JN
Jessica nye
Jul 12, 2026
Went to this location with my daughter and the Genoa was literally grey almost green. That’s the only meat she ever gets but we were both so grossed out by the color that she passed on eating there at all. I have no clue how they’re in business knowing they would serve that 🤢