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February 26, 2024, 7:31 AM ET
On one of my first days at The New York Times, I went to an orientation with more than a dozen other new hires. We had to do an icebreaker: Pick a Starburst out of a jar and then answer a question. My Starburst was pink, I believe, and so I had to answer the pink prompt, which had me respond with my favorite sandwich. Russ & Daughters’ Super Heebster came to mind, but I figured mentioning a $19 sandwich wasn’t a great way to win new friends. So I blurted out, “The spicy chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-A,” and considered the ice broken.
The HR representative leading the orientation chided me: “We don’t do that here. They hate gay people.” People started snapping their fingers in acclamation. I hadn’t been thinking about the fact that Chick-fil-A was transgressive in liberal circles for its chairman’s opposition to gay marriage. “Not the politics, the chicken,” I quickly said, but it was too late. I sat down, ashamed.
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link to (paywalled) source: I Was a Heretic at The New York Times
$19 for a decent sandwich at a restaurant is not all that crazy, especially for someone in NYC who *works for the "paper of record".
Heck even Panera's menu is mostly above $12 these days.
EDIT: I looked it up, and the exact same sandwich was $10.50 in 2010.
Also $19 is understandable for a "favorite sandwich" just not an "I eat this everyday" sandwich.
My favorite local sub is like $16 and I'll get it like once a week as a treat.