Whether you're working from home or in the office, there's no reason to have a lacklustre lunch with so many great sandwich options in London. Here's our pick of the best sarnies out there right now. Most of them are also available on delivery, so even if you can't leave your desk you can have a brilliant butty.
Egg salad roll at Sons + Daughters
King’s Cross
They may have switched to rolls to bring down prices, but the sandwich offering from this Coal Drops Yard site is still among the best in London. The egg salad option uses Burford Brown eggs for that unmistakable golden-hued yolk and adds to that miso mayo, salad cress and - the piece de resistance - truffle crisps.
Follow them on Instagram: @sonsanddaughtersldn
The weekly special at Chatsworth Bakehouse
120a Anerley Rd, London SE19 2AN
Harder than getting hold of Glastonbury tickets, is how several fans have described the weekly scrum to attain one of Chatsworth Bakehouse's weekly limited edition sandwich specials. If you've missed out on the weekly pre-order prepare to join an epic queue at the weekend.
Follow them on Instagram: @chatsworthbakehouse
The Classic at Banh
592 Kingsland Rd, London E8 4AH
Right by Dalston Junction and run by a gang of Vietnamese friends, this banh mi cafe has slowly built up a stellar reputation for its baguettes. The bread is baked in store every day and whether you're after the classic stuffed with pork in every form - char siu, ham hock, belly pork and pork pate - or one of their delicious vegan alternatives - you're going to go home happy.
Follow them on Instagram: @banhslondon.bakery
Monthly specials at The Shoap
406 St John St, London EC1V 4ND
Where to start with the sandwich options at this Scottish spot at Angel? For breakfast, there are morning rolls with haggis or black pudding and they serve up a series of monthly special sarnies that are going to make you want to keep coming back. At the time of writing those were a Caledonian take on a Cubano or the Balmoral made with pulled Scottish chicken, Ayrshire bacon and haggis.
Follow them on Instagram: @auldhag_
Chicken fillet roll at Emerald Eats
Broadway Market, London E8 4PH
It's easy to spot the Emerald Eats stall at Broadway Market - it's the one with the epic queues. Folk are here either because they're homesick Irish expats wanting the best comfort food or they've seen this place on TikTok (or Saturday Kitchen) and are keen to try the famous fillet roll stuffed with breaded chicken (plain or spicy), coleslaw and loads of salad.
Follow them on Instagram: @emerald_eats_
The Sam's Special at Sam's Sandwiches
9 Shepherd's Bush Market, London W12 8DE
If your day hasn't been split into pre and post-Sam's then you need to hightail it here right away. This Algerian kitchen shack is serving up some of the best (and biggest) sandwiches in town. If you're making the pilgrimage this is the one to go for - featuring merguez, kofte, egg, salad and chips.
Follow them on Instagram: @sam_sandwiches1
Chicken on foccacia at Toklas
Temple - 9 Surrey St, London WC2R 2ND
Aldwych and Temple aren't exactly heaving with top places to get a great sarnie, so kudos to Toklas Bakery for filling a much-needed gap. They start with foccacia where the dough has been fermented for up to a day and a half before baking, then they add in roast chicken, crispy skin, Italian wild rocket and roasted garlic aioli.
Follow them on Instagram: @toklas_bakery
Honey Truffle Parm at Black Pig
Borough Market
As the name suggests, porky sarnies are the real winners here. One of their best sellers, this is made using low roast free range pork shoulder, honey truffle mayo, fennel and apple slaw with 30-month aged Parmesan on toasted ciabatta. Oh, and you can buy that mayo to take home with you too.
Follow them on Instagram: @theblackpig_ldn
The OG Marmite Cheesy at Rogue Sarnies
Cambridge Heath - 460b Hackney Rd, London E2 9EG
Two ex-Galvin La Chapelle chefs are behind this Hackney space which comprises a restaurant (Rogues) and a wood-fired street stall that's garnered quite the reputation for its sandwiches in a short time. Our tip - definitely use the pre-order service. All the bread is made in-house and this one is stuffed with three cheeses - Camembert, mozzarella and pecorino together with a secret Marmite glaze.
Follow them on Instagram: @rogue_sarnies
Coronation chicken at Paul Rothe & Sons
Marylebone - 35 Marylebone Ln, London W1U 2NN
Sandwiches a speciality says the sign on this 123-year-old Marylebone stalwart and they’re not wrong. This Insta-worthy deli serves up no-nonsense sandwiches on white, brown or wholemeal - with the occasional foray into rye. The coronation chicken on white is our sarnie of choice here. It’s 100% one of those places that we all need to use it or we’ll lose it.
Follow them on Instagram: @paulrotheandson
The Vegan Dom 2.0 at Dom’s Subs
262 Hackney Road and 8 Ludgate Circus
A superb veggie option from the superlative sandwich purveyors. This features roasted aubergines, a salad of green beans, bean sprouts, fresh mint and Thai basil along with salted black beans and a spicy prik tum vinegar dressing with vegan mayo. The icing on the cake? The sticky roasted cashews on top.
Follow them on Instagram: @impeccablesandwiches.
Steak sarnie at The Beefsteaks
Bermondsey - Ropewalk, London SE1 2HQ and Islington - Chapel Market, London N1 9EN
Keeping it simple but great is the name of the game at this market favourite. The Beefsteaks’ wonderful steak sarnies feature grass-fed, British bavette with watercress, onion marmalade and your choice of sauce.
Follow them on Instagram: @thebeefsteaks
Ermerguez at Mondo Sando
Peckham - 26 Camberwell Grove, London SE5 8RE
Following a series of supperclubs and pop-ups, Mondo Sando now run a very respected residency in South London's Grove House Tavern. The menu changes all the time and right now the one to have is this meaty beauty made using Flock & Herd lamb & beef merguez, sumac fries, lamb fat onions, Algérienne sauce, pink turnips & sweet pickles and - their word - shrettuce.
Follow them on Instagram: @mondo.sandwiches
Michael’s chicken sandwich at Crunch
Spitalfields - 16 Horner Square, London E1 6EW
This sandwich slinger has been creating waves since it first popped up in Shoreditch in the summer of ‘22 and they now have a permanent pitch in Spitalfields. They set out their pitch as creative brioche sandwiches and they’ve even managed a vegan version. But it’s this chicken option we really rate with a southern fried chicken cutlet, shredded lettuce, pickle and homemade alioli.
Follow them on Instagram: @crunch.london
Chicken caesar sandwich at Finks
Highbury & Hackney
Does the fact that most of the sandwiches at Finks’ are made using Dusty Knuckle bread make them among the best? Undoubtedly. The menu changes regularly at this small group of neighbourhood cafes but there’s usually a chicken option on there and right now it’s this chicken caesar with bacon on Dusty’s potato sourdough. Veggie and vegan options are always top-tier too.
Follow them on Instagram: @finks.london
The classic at Viet Populaire
Centrepoint - Arcade Food Hall, 103-105 New Oxford St, London WC1A 1DB
While the breakfast and tofu iterations of banh mi are also worth ordering at chef Luke Farrell’s sandwich spot at Arcade Food Hall, it’s the classic that really brings it all together. Served warm the baguette is stuffed with pâté, butter mayo, head cheese and roast pork along with herbs grown specially for Luke at a farm in Kent.
Follow them on Instagram: @vietpopulaire
Weekly sandwich specials at 40 Maltby Street
40 Maltby St, London SE1 3PA
The takeaway sandwich menu at 40 Maltby Street changes every week and usually includes a veggie option too. To give you an idea of what to expect, recent jaw-dropping specials have included grilled leeks, romesco and boiled egg and a roast pork sandwich with fennel and anchovy green sauce.
Follow them on Instagram: @40maltbystreet
Salt beef bagel - Beigel Bake
155 Brick Lane, London E1 6SB
A London classic if ever there was one, the salt beef bagel from Beigel Bake on Brick Lane comes with an almost obscene amount of pickles stuffed in it and a slathering of extremely strong mustard.
Follow them on Instagram: @beigel_bake.
The Porky Pig at Bread & Truffle
London Fields, Monument and Canary Wharf plus delivery in Battersea
Launched during the lockdown this London sandwich firm has a pretty simple premise - take Italian street food and bring it to the London masses. It's all about stuffed foccacia sarnies - a Hot Dinners reader described it as 'one of the best sandwiches I've ever had'. The Porky Pig features truffle cacio and pepe cream with Tuscan sausage, Pecorino cheese, red chicory and truffle oil.
Follow them on Instagram: @breadandtruffle.
Steak sando at Chunky Buddha
Arch 8, Deptford Market Yard, London SE8 4BX and Shoreditch High Street
Chef Lee Chau Le used to work at Zuma and built up a loyal following for his stalls serving up what he describes as Asian comfort pub food. He also sells amazing-looking baos and fried rice, but this steak sandwich is the one to go for. I mean, just look at it. He now has a permanent spot, the Chunky Buddy Arch in Deptford.
Follow them on Instagram: @chunkybuddhagroupp.
The Fairfax - Eggslut
Notting Hill, Fitzrovia, Stratford and Victoria Market Halls.
If soft eggs, cheese and a warm bun is what it takes to get you revved up of a morning, then Eggslut’s the Fairfax is what you need. The brioche bun is stuffed with free-range soft scrambled eggs, chives, caramelized onions, lots of melty cheddar cheese and sriracha mayo for added kick.
Follow them on Instagram: @eggslutuk
Lobster roll at Hideaway
100 Mount St, Mayfair, London W1K 2TG
Ollie Dabbous' Mayfair cafe is always busy, doing a roaring trade with those who like their breakfasts bouji and sandwiches well made. The lobster roll is one of the most popular on the menu and - if you're feeling very extra - can come with Cornish salted Baerii caviar on top.
Follow them on Instagram: @hideaway_london.
Cheese toastie at Kappacasein
Borough Market and Spa Terminus
One of London’s original street food heroes, Kappacasein have been serving up cheese toasties at Borough Market for years. This, their hero sarnie, packs a combo of Montgomery cheddar, Ogleshield, London raclette and Comte together with onions and leeks in between sourdough and then presses it down until it’s a thin, hotter than Hades, sliver of toastie heaven.
Follow them on Instagram: @kappacasein.
Smoky Aubergine Banh Mi - Keu Deli
Shoreditch, Soho, Liverpool Street
All the banh mi offerings at Keu are pretty strong, but for a veggie take, their Smoky Aubergine Banh Mi edges ahead - stuffed with grilled aubergine, mushrooms, scallion oil and organic tofu, it’s got everything a plant-forward sandwich lover could ask for.
Follow them on Instagram: @keudelilondon.
Ham eggs ‘n’ chips at Max’s Sandwich Shop
19 Crouch Hill, Finsbury Park, London N4 4AP
Not since John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich came up with an innovative snack to keep any time he spent away from the gaming tables to a minimum, has one man made such a contribution to London’s sandwich game. Everything on the menu at Max Halley’s legendary Crouch Hill restaurant is worth getting, but the shining star is his Ham egg ‘n’ chips - a winning mix of slow-cooked ham hock with shoestring fries and a fried egg served up with piccalilli malt vinegar and mustard mayo. Max has also gone into business with the Hippodrome casino on Leicester Square.
Follow them on Instagram: @lunchluncheon.
Corned beef hash sando at Panadera
83 Kentish Town Road, London NW1 8NY
There are many, many reasons to head to Filipino bakery Panadero, not least their extensive sando menu. This epic sarnie features homemade corned beef inside a crispy croquette, topped with butterhead lettuce, crispy onions along with garlic aioli and ketchup with calamansi.
Follow them on Instagram: @panaderabakery_.
Smoked eel sandwich at Quo Vadis
26-29 Dean St, London W1D 3LL
It’s not often we apply this word to a dish, but chef Jeremy Lee’s toasted eel sandwich at Quo Vadis in Soho is every bit as iconic as the building it’s served in. Fat layers of smoked eel sit between toasted sourdough, with horseradish and mustard providing additional levels of flavour.
Follow them on Instagram: @quovadissoho.
Egg salad sandwich at the Secret Sandwich Shop
103 Talbot Road, London W11 2AT
More of an open secret, this Notting Hill delivery service turned bricks and mortar operation takes its inspiration from Japan’s Wanpaku sandwich. this is made with white Tokyo bread and is stuffed with egg and watercress and slicked with dijon and kewpie mayo.
Follow them on Instagram: @secretsandwichshop.
Wagyu sando at Taka
109 Marylebone High St, London W1U 4RX
This luxury sando at Taka’s Marylebone base is a bestseller for a reason. It’s made using Kagoshima A5 wagyu inside slices of Happy Sky’s Shokupan Bread with a slick of Tonkatsu sauce to give it a kick. But that quality doesn't come cheap...
Follow them on Instagram: @takarestaurants.
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