Noun
subway tile (plural subway tiles)
A style of white glazed ceramic tile, as used on the walls of the New York City subway stations in the early twentieth century, especially the 3" × 6" size then used.
They used to tease me at the 'Oprah' show, 'Are you really going to do another white Shaker kitchen, with white subway tile and stainless steel appliances?' And my answer is, 'I can vary it a bit, but I'm never going to err from classic materials.' Nate Berkus