Subway is heating up its menu with Ghost Pepper Bread, a spicy spin on the chain’s signature sandwich bread.
The new carrier starts with the same Italian bread dough but kicks up the heat with a coating of ghost pepper, habanero and paprika-seasoned panko breadcrumbs. Before baking, the loaves are topped with shredded cheddar and jalapeno slices.
Customers can opt for Ghost Pepper Bread on any 6-inch or footlong sub, but it’s automatically featured on two new limited-time sandwiches launching Wednesday:
• Spicy Nacho Steak is a variation of Spicy Nacho Chicken that debuted earlier this summer. In this version sliced steak is smothered in creamy cheddar cheese sauce, then topped with green bell peppers, red onion, spicy jalapenos and SubKrunch—Subway’s new crunchy sandwich topping. The sandwich is finished with a drizzle of Creamy Sriracha, one of the sauces in expanded Subway’s lineup.
• Fiery Meatball amps up the flavors of Subway’s iconic meatball sub. The Ghost Pepper Bread encloses layers of pepperoni, meatballs and pepper jack cheese with extra jalapenos, creamy sriracha, melted pepperjack cheese and parmesan.
Subway’s culinary team spent over a year perfecting the bread to achieve the desired balance of heat, crunch and flavor.
“It’s been three years since Subway added a new sub bread to our menu, so we wanted to surprise our guests with something unexpected and capable of elevating every sub on our menu,” Paul Fabre, SVP of culinary and innovation, said in a statement. “Spicy food is wildly popular, and our guests have told us they are craving more spice on our menu. Subway’s new Ghost Pepper Bread opens up so many delicious possibilities to try, whether you are looking for a hearty kick on your favorite sandwich or maximum heat from our spiciest subs yet.”
The Miami-based chain is tying the launch into a promotion based on the dating world’s pet peeve: “ghosting” a romantic interest by cutting off all communication.
Subway is making it easier for guilty ghosters to redeem themselves with a former flame. Starting Thursday at 9 a.m. and running through end-of-day Sunday, those willing to share their dating misdeeds can visit SubwayGhosterRedemption.com and explain why they are seeking a second chance at love. In return, Subway will reward up to 10,000 former ghosters with a two-footlongs-for-$12.99 offer to reconnect over shared subs.
Ghost Pepper Bread is the latest move in Subway’s continuing menu innovation acceleration that began several years ago with a makeover of its bread. Since then, the chain has upgraded sandwich ingredients, introduced the Subway Series of chef-curated subs, expanded its sauce selection, added a Sidekicks platform of footlong snacks and made many other enhancements.
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