Double-Meat Sandwich Ads Target of Illinois Class Action Against Blimpie

A putative class action has been filed in a Madison County, Illinois, court alleging that a fast food chain has fraudulently advertised its Super Stacked™ sub sandwiches “as containing ‘double portions of meat’” compared with its standard sandwiches, when they do not have double the meat. Williams v. Kahala Corp., No. 10-L-166 (Ill. Cir. Ct., Madison Cty., filed February 12, 2010). According to the complaint, while defendant charges a premium for its Super Stacked™ sandwiches, they “do not have double the protein” because “they do not have double the meat.” The plaintiffs allege that a 12-inch BLIMPIE Best™ sandwich has 50 grams of protein, while its Super Stacked™ counterpart “contains only 73 grams of protein.” They also allege that some Super Stacked™ sandwiches have no “regular” counterpart with which consumers can compare.

Seeking to certify a class of all persons who purchased a Super Stacked™ sandwich from Blimpie restaurants in Illinois, the plaintiffs allege violations of the state’s Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. To remain in state court, the plaintiffs seek less than $75,000 in damages for each plaintiff and also seek a permanent injunction to stop defendant “from advertising that its Super Stacked sandwiches contain double portions of meat without, in fact, including double portions of meat in such sandwiches.”