Shortly after 8 PM this evening, I decided to get a couple of Subway sandwiches — one to eat tonight, one to eat tomorrow. Naturally, there's a Subway location near me. There's a Subway location near everyone. If you were ever lost and starving in the middle of the Patagonian Desert, there would probably be a Subway within crawling distance of you, right next to the Starbucks and the CVS Pharmacy.
I went on the Subway app on my iPhone and looked up the shop near me. It said it closes at 9 PM so I placed an order. My credit card was charged $18.58 and the app told me that my order would be ready for pick-up at 8:30. Okay, fine. I walked down to the Subway place — about a fifteen minute hike — and found that it was closed. The door was locked. The chairs were all inverted on the tables. The bins where they keep the sandwich makings were all empty. The sign on the door said they closed at 8 PM, not 9.
An employee who was just finishing tidying-up saw me, came over and opened the door to see what I want. I explained and showed him the app saying my meal would be ready for pick-up at 8:30 and I also showed him the text message from my credit card company showing that $18.58 had been charged to my card at 8:14 PM. He said there was nothing he could do and told me to call the company. Their app, by the way, still says the place closes at 9 PM (55 minutes ago) and that my order is waiting for me.
Subway's phone number is not on their app nor is it on their website (of course) but I found it anyway. I called and as I expected, their "SubwayCare Customer Service Department" is closed for the weekend. I have a hunch it's closed Monday, too…but at some point, it'll be open. It has to be and that's when I'll see what they'll do about this. Whatever it is, I'll report on it here. And yeah, I know this isn't a particularly interesting story…at least not yet. I'm just posting it here to remind myself of the details and to bring you all into the loop just in case it turns into a fascinating tale. Not that I expect that…