I am so aggravated; my hubby loves Arby's and it really doesn't excite me all that much, so we don't go very often. So the other day I decided to be nice and said "Lets go to Arby's for dinner," after looking in the Dining Out companion and seeing that they had light sandwiches that were very few points.

So I go there, and after looking at my guide had decided I would have a light turkey sandwich with a side salad. I was informed that sorry, they 1. didn't have salads of any sort, and 2. no longer had the "light" sandwiches, they were replaced by the market fresh sandwiches. They replaced 4 and 5 point sandwiches with 18 and 20 point sandwiches????? How F*(#*$(*ing ridiculous!!!

So I said "umm ok (nose in food companion), I guess I'll have a Light roast chicken sandwich [or something liek that]" and she said "oh, we dont have that anymore either".

So I ended up getting a crappy, tiny, not-tasty baked potato and my happy good deed ended up sucking. I should write and complain. Is this a national thing or does our Arby's just suck?

Hey Aggie Carrie,
Good for you! You made a plan, consulted the food companion, and did your husband a favor. *THen* life got in the way, but you still perservered. That's great. When you couldn't get anything like what you wanted in points, you had a baked potato. That's a great thing that you did.
As far as Arby's I can't comment. I find Blimpie's a great place to go. But I just didn't want to let your accomplishment go unnoticed in all your frustration. Keep on keepin' on.

234/thinner

Congratulations on making a wise choice in the face of frustration. Not to defend Arby's, but it a food item doesn't sell, they aren't going to keep it on the menu. They are in the business to make a profit. Unfortunately, the majority of Americans would rather eat fat and junk than a healthy item. That's why 60% of us are overweight...a national disgrace!

These sandwiches (Market Fresh) were introduced shortly after the food companions were printed (so they been around a while). They are quite large and supplemented with a salad you could probably have had 1/2 of one and been very satisifed.

I know we have discussed this when the sandwiches were first introduced but it is always good to remind us. When I go somewhere I always have a back up choice in mind for cases when the 'lighter' fare is gone.

Arby's has had many people from sites contract them however they said the light menu (just like Taco Bell's light menu) wasn't a hit with most of the people thus they have been discontinued. It's a case of demand or no demand.

Carrie, I had the exact same experience w/my Dad, who just loves Arby's sandwiches & horsey sauce. We used to go there every time I took him to a medical appt., and I' d have one of their light sandwiches and a side salad. I was SO upset (just a few weeks back) when they said they'd discontinued that line, and their salads to boot. (Hey, they have lettuce on hand for their other sandwiches; how hard is it to make a salad?) The mgr. there was very nice, and suggested I try a junior sandwich or potato, but since they don't do a good job on either of those, I just didn't eat anything; went to another place later for a salad.

I understand that chains have to discontinue unpopular items, but I wonder if it has EVER occurred to them that they could easily lose an entire family of customers if they don't provide SOME choice for everyone? And since the parents decide where to go, why would a health-conscious Mom or Dad drive the family over to a place that has absolutely NO choices that fit his/her program? So they lose out on the entire family's order just because they can't keep a few items on their menu; it doesn't make sense to me. The number of light sandwiches sold tells only part of the story.

I think when I take Dad back to Arby's (he's 84, and he enjoys those bland, mushy sandwiches so much) I'll just pick up a salad or meal at some other, more simpatico drive-through first, and then eat it at an Arby's table with my Dad. Or I'll pack a lunch. But if it weren't for my situation with Dad, I would never go near an Arby's again. I'm STILL angry, call me crazy, but what a total disregard for their customers' health! Maybe if we all wrote letters ...

About Arby's. The turkey market fresh sandwich should be decent if you don't get cheese or mayo on it. It's whole grain bread and pretty lean meat, but at least our didn't just give up and eat curly fries and a shake. I've had the same thing happen where Mc Donald's ran out of their salads. Good for you for checking the book and for getting a potato. Good luck!

I doubt that writing letters is going to help. They expected to see money in the register when they had those selections and they saw food go into the garbage can because all those health-conscious people didn't eat it. Most of these are franchises and the bottom line is profit.

Unbelievable the amount of sodium, calories and points in their market fresh sandwiches. I won't eat there anymore because they don't seem to care about offering a few healthy alternatives.

And, beware of even the Turkey Market Fresh Sandwich. It has almost 800 calories and nearly 2000 mg of sodium. For the nutritional info go to www.arbys.com

Michelle

It sounds like Arby phased them out because not enough customers wanted them. That reminds me of another story.

I was reading a book by Camryn Manheim (the full-figured lawyer from The Practice). She was writing about Lane Bryant, a plus-sized store. She asked why, even though they carried sizes 14 to 28, their models always featured tall women who wore 14s or 16s.

According to the store, they did get request for larger models in their ads. However, they tried them out in test markets and found that it didn't work so well. Basically they tried advertising circulars in the paper. When they used models on the larger end of the spectrum, sales dropped. When they used models on the lower end of the spectrum, sales increased.

Anyway. Not much of a point other than to note the similarities.

Recently I went to LaneBryant.com and filled out a survey so that I could recieve 15% off my next purchase. The survey was whether the models they choose are appropriate models for Lane Bryant. They had about 5 models and only one of them was what I considered plus size. But at least they are asking our opinion!

I don't know that this matters, but I went to the Lane Bryant website this week. Looks like they are taking direction from the MTV beach party crowd. Several anorexic looking models on the beach, all with that squinty-eyed, supoosed to be sexy look on their faces. My hubby looked at the site and said, "Oh, this is the fat girls' shop....they look hungry."

Call them and complain! If all of us call, maybe something will be done.

Here is their toll-free number: 1-800-ARBYS-64 or (1-800-272-9764)

I was aggrivated too that they stopped selling the light sandwiches. I now get the Arby-Q for 8 points or the Junior Roast Beef for 6 points and a plain baked potato for 4 points.