Woman Buys A Sub From Firehouse—And Even Tips. So Why Does It Look Like That?

This Firehouse Sub customer’s sandwich is hurting people’s brains.

TikToker @alittlesalty_mostlysweet showed a sandwich she received from one of the franchise’s locations that looks… odd. Can you tell what’s wrong with it at first glance?

She begins her video holding up a Smokin’ Honey Chicken Melt from the chain. Appearance-wise, it looks like a food item that was lifted straight from a cartoon: two tall pieces of toasted bread bookend its contents.

According to the restaurant’s website, the Smokin’ Honey Chicken Melt includes grilled chicken, provolone, smoked honey, caramelized onions, and mayonnaise. In a caption, she said that while she ate it, she was “still laughing about … [it] hours after.” Furthermore, she added that she also purchased a sandwich for her son that was cut correctly.

“I’m guessing someone had a long shift by the time it was my sub,” she penned. As her video progressed, she provided viewers with additional angles of the sandwich.

“This is the sub I just got from Firehouse Subs,” she says into the camera. “I don’t go there very often. But I’m pretty sure we’re not supposed to be serving sandwiches vertically,” she remarks.

As she continues to assess the food item, the reason for its bizarre appearance becomes apparent. There isn’t anything wrong with the bread—just that it was cut the wrong way. “This is the bottom. It should be sliced this direction,” the mom explains, moving her sandwich up and down. intoning where the cut was supposed to be made.

‘I Even Tipped’

Viewers expressed their confusion in the comments section of her clip. “I thought it was a baked potato,” one quipped.

“This is the sandwich I would be served on the worst day of my life,” another said.

And then there was this person who felt as if they were losing a grip on reality, writing, “I’ve been looking at this for so long & now I can’t remember what a regular sub is supposed to look like.”

“It took me so long to realize that the problem was that it was cut the wrong way. I was like why is it so … small?” another said.

“We’re you like mean to them?” another questioned.

The customer responded, “No, she was super sweet I even tipped.”

Sandwich Cutting Methods: U-Gouge Vs. Hinge Cut

Sandwich aficionados all have their own cutting methods. When going for a sliced bread sandwich, there are two primary schools of thought: diagonal and vertical cuts (i.e., triangles and rectangles if you want to get grade school about it).

And when dealing with subs, there are also different methods. There’s the U-gouge, also known as the V-cut, and the hinge cut.

Subway employed the U-gouge from 1965 until the 1990s. Essentially sandwich makers carved a “V” or “U” shape out of the top of the bread, stuffed the sandwich with toppings, and then added that wedge of bread back into the sandwich. The result was a secure sandwich that didn’t have any spillage. Watch a sandwich artist use that technique in this YouTube video.

Subway moved from the U-gouge to the “hinge cut,” which is probably the sub cut most people are familiar with. Sandwich artists simply slice the loaf from its side.

This is also the sandwich-cutting technique Firehouse Subs uses.

That is, unless it’s a meatball sub, which gets a cut down the center from the top. This way, spheres of meat don’t go shooting out the side.

BroBible has reached out to Firehouse Subs via email and @AkSaltyGirl via TikTok direct message for further comment.