The London Sandwich Bucket List

If you’ve come here expecting a list of our favourite sandwich buckets, then we can only apologise for the misleading advertising.

Instead, what follows – which isn’t likely to interest you at all – is a run-down of our favourite sandwich hawkers in the city, from late-night joints slinging bagels stuffed with salt beef, to bakeries serving thick wedges of foccacia that attempt to encompass entire meals within. Consider this your London sandwich bucket list, which any self-professed sliced-bread fan should aim to tick off.

PS: We feel duty-bound to tell you that a massive Christmas sandwich festival is coming to Peckham this November. Check out the Sarnie Party Christmas Special.
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Max’s Sandwich Shop | Crouch Hill

You’re expecting this, so we’re just putting it here, right at the top, so you can scroll right on past. But first, let’s take a moment to be thankful for this North London landmark that’s been elevating the humble sarnie since 2014. It’s so iconic, Comme des Garçons have designed a limited edition MSS jacket. The café’s list of influences includes Black Axe Mangal (now F.K.A.B.A.M), and ducks. Max’s is not really a sandwich shop, as evidenced by its general lack of lunchtime opening hours. This is not where you come to nurse a hangover. It’s where you come to make one, tucking into late-night editions of the literally award-winning Ham, Egg & Chips with inadvisable levels of noise and booze.

Details: 19 Crouch Hill, London, N4 4AP | Open Wed-Fri 5-9pm, Saturday 12-3pm, 5-9pm & Sunday: 12-4pm
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The Dusty Knuckle | Dalston & Harringay

The Dusty Knuckle’s springy, freshly baked focaccia is so good, they could honestly be putting sawdust in their sandwiches and people would still be lapping it up. But they don’t; they fill them with things like roasted beetroot, dill & whipped feta or glazed cauliflower with kimchi and fried egg instead.

Details: Abbot Street Car Park, E8 3DP | 429 Green Lanes, N4 1AH | Lunch served Tues-Sun, 11.30am-3pm
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Gerry’s Hot Subs | Clerkenwell

Gerry’s has tipped into cult sandwich shop status after a rave review from Mr. Jay Rayner. What is it about their old-school American subs that had him in raptures? Well, for starters, everything’s made in-house, from the freshly baked and toasted subs to the slow-cooked and BBQ’d fillings (as the same team behind Bodean’s, they know what they’re doing here). Open daily from noon, their retro Exmouth Market outfit slings classics like buffalo chicken, pulled pork & coleslaw, smoked beef pastrami, and probably the best Philly cheese steak in the city. And you can even grab & go from a teched-up hatch, 60s automat-style.

Details: 50 Exmouth Market, London EC1R 4QE | Open daily from noon (11am Sun)
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ACE Pizza Sandwiches | Hackney

One to file under ‘why the hell has nobody thought of this before?‘, ACE Pizza has recently started making sandwiches… out of folded-up pizza dough. The result is a basically a rugby ball-sized calzone, indecently stuffed with fresh fillings like aubergine parmigiana with a drizzle of pesto; mortadella and guindilla peppers framed by oozy burrata; and slow-cooked meatballs dribbling with spicy marinara sauce. They’re only served on Fridays, which is just as well – good luck getting any work done after one of these bad boys.

Details: Pembury Tavern, 90 Amhurst Road, E8 1JH | Served Fridays & Saturdays 12-4pm
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Crunch | Spitalfields 

Anyone who sampled the Shoreditch pub pop-up knew Crunch would go far. Now they’re in Spitalfields Market… which, while not far in the physical sense, shows their rapid ascension up London’s sandwich ranks as they now have a permanent stall of their own. Their sandwiches? Two thick slices of toasted brioche hold together by fillings like a truffle patty melt, a southern-fried chicken cutlet with homemade lettuce and aioli, and slow-cooked Gressingham duck leg with banana shallots, crispy onions and smoked apple sauce.

Details: Old Spitalfields Market, E1 6EW | Open daily, 11.30am-8pm
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Rogue Sarnies | Cambridge Heath

Sandwiches are everyone’s favourite thing to make at home, because they require absolutely zero cooking. But if you’ve got a fleet of professional chefs preparing yours, then of course you’re not going to be averse to a little meddling with fire. Rogues Sarnies – which comes to you from the team behind the excellent Rogues restaurant next door – see the likes of egg & coal-roasted potato salad; wood-fired chicken with Portuguese mustard; and piquant tabasco & mirin prawn cocktail folded into pockets of freshly-baked rolls, which are then flame-kissed all over in a wood-fired oven.

Details: 460 Hackney Road, London, E2 9EG | Pre-order here for collection Thurs-Sun
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Pophams Bakery | Islington, London Fields, Victoria Park

Being one of London’s best bakeries as well as fresh pasta joints, carbs are literally Popham’s bread and butter. Their sandwiches and photos like the above are the types to distract you from work (apologies) and render you completely useless (apologies…) until you do get your hands on a toastie like the one crammed with ham, Savoy cabbage, rösti, mustard bechamel and mature cheddar – an ungodly oozing of mature cheddar. Take home and ‘save for later’ options include cold sandwiches such a Salade Lyonnaise number that layers a fried egg, salad, Dijon mustard and their in-house cured bacon within homemade sourdough. 

Details: 197 Richmond Road, E8 3NJ | Open daily until 4pm
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The Untitled Sandwich Shop | London Bridge

The lads of the Bad Boy Pizza Society recently went on a trip to New York, and realised that decent slices weren’t the only thing they wanted to bring back here. They’re now slinging enormous sandwiches from a shack in Vinegar Yard, and boy are they good. The menu changes all the time, but meatball subs, chicken caesars and aubergine parmigiana have all been known to make an appearance…

Details: Vinegar Yard, 72-82 St Thomas St, London SE1 3QX | Open Tues 12-3pm, Wed-Sat 12-9pm, Sun 12-7pm
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Jawns | Hackney

Andrew Goss

Next time you’re jonesing for a sub in East London, head to Jawns. These relatively new kids on the block are currently in residence at Hackney’s cosy wine bar Binch, where they’re slinging magnificent beasts like the Lucha Libre above (pork carnitas, jalapeño salsa, refried beans & queso fresco) on homemade seeded rolls, every Friday & Saturday lunchtime. And if you’re tempted to stick around for a glass of wine afterwards, you absolutely should – Binch is a real gem.

Details: Binch, 51 Greenwood Road, London E8 1NT | Fridays & Saturdays, 11am-3pm
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Keu | Soho, Shoreditch & The City

There are a lot of great bánh mì to be found in London, but Keu might just do some of the best. Keep it classic(ish) with mortadella, chicken liver pâté and spiced pork belly, or strike out with one of their dozen different twists, which include Canton roast duck, mackerel stew, kimchi BBQ pork and smokey aubergine. Plus you can get a plug of Vietnamese ice drip coffee while you’re there.

Details: 9 Poland Street, W1F 8PY (open Mon-Sat 11am-9pm, Sun 11am-6.30pm) | 332 Old Street, EC1V 9DR (open Mon-Sat 11am-9pm, Sun 11am-8.30pm) | 168 London Wall, EC2M 5QD (open Mon-Fri, 8am-3pm)
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Paul Rothe & Son | Marylebone

Welcome to the Rothe family delicatessen, where the decor theme is ‘jam’. Honestly, this is probably where the expression jam-packed started. Anything that’s not jam is kept under glass in a kind of upmarket Subway-style, build-your-own-adventure counter. There’s bacon; there’s tuna; there’s a variety of things slathered in mayo. They’ve been doing it this way since 1900, and they’re still some of the best sandwiches in London.

Details: 35 Marylebone Lane, London W1U 2NN | Open weekdays 8.30am-4pm, Sat 11.30am-4pm
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Mondo Sando | Camberwell

Born out of lockdown, while the rest of us were eating cans of beans in our pants, Jack Macrae and Viggo Blegvad started up a sandwich delivery business. It was extremely popular. So now you can find the team hawking cult sarnies daily at Camberwell’s Grove House Tavern and at their very own Café Mondo down the road. No filling is off limits: past editions have included deep-fried lasagne; Merguez sausage & frites; vegan spring rolls; and roast beef with stilton and horseradish peas.

Details: Grove House Tavern: 26 Camberwell Grove, London SE5 8RE | Open weekdays 12-3pm & 6-9pm, Saturdays 1-9pm. Sundays are for roasts (1-5pm), and they’re pretty great too.
Cafe Mondo: 42 Peckham Road, London SE5 8PX | Open for lunch Wed-Sun, plus evenings Thurs-Sat
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Yagi Izakaya | Bermondsey

Chris Wright’s acclaimed Japanese outfit ticks pretty much every box on your comfort food list. Steaming bowls of udon? Yes. Oozing kimchi cheese croquettes? You bet. Chicken karate burger with spicy miso? Mochiron. And he’s also created the mother of all prawn toasts: prawns sandwiched between two slices of pillowy shokupan (milk bread), deep-fried, then topped with little orange jewels of cod roe. It’s outrageous. And since you’ll currently find him in residency at the Kernel taproom in Bermondsey, there’s plenty of great beer to wash it all down.

Details: 132 Spa Rd, London SE16 3AE | Wed 5-9.30pm, Thurs & Fri 12-9.30pm, Sat 12-8.30pm, Sun 12-7.30pm
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The Cheese Bar | Camden

The undisputed champion of the grilled cheese sandwich, Camden’s Cheese Bar started out as a street food truck specialising in these molten mothers before getting a bricks-and-mortar spot (and then a cheese conveyor belt restaurant, and then a barge. Who doesn’t love a gimmick). The upshot? You can now gorge on sourdough packed with goat’s cheese & honey; Bishop Stilton with beer fruit chutney and Ogleshield with smoked bacon… and have somewhere to wash your hands and face afterwards.

Details: Camden Stable Market, NW1 8AH | Open daily
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Beigel Bake | Brick Lane

Brick Lane‘s Beigel Bake has been open – pretty much continuously – since 1976. Open 24/7, they diligently turn out over 7,000 bagels a night, which are then wrapped around some of the finest salt beef, lox and gherkins in the city. Their best-sellers are creeping up towards the £10 mark, but most of the lesser-known menu items (filled with things like Nutella, or chopped herring) will still get you change from a fiver.

Details: 159 Brick Lane, London E1 6SB | Always open
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Chatsworth Bakehouse | Crystal Palace

Chatsworth founders Tom and Sian started out making loaves for themselves in lockdown. Soon, their neighbours wanted a slice of the action. And now, a couple of years later, they have half the neighbourhood – and plenty of visitors from further afield – queuing up outside their pair of dinky bakeries in Crystal Palace. It’s a teeny tiny operation but their sandwiches are in huge demand, so there’s a pretty tight system in place: on Monday you can check the week’s menu and put your order in, on Tuesday the team hit the markets to pick up the best ingredients, and then you can pick up your sarnie from Wednesday through to Friday. And with fillings like confit potato & roasted peppers; pistachio mortadella with sherry aioli; and tuna with smashed artichoke and balsamic pickled shallots… it’ll be worth the wait.

Details: 120a Anerley Road, SE19 2NA | Pick-up pre-ordered sandwiches Wed-Fri
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Dom’s Subs | Hackney & The City

You will submit to Dom’s Subs. Why? Spicy Thai ground chicken with pickled cucumbers and red chillies; the Cold Cuts, with four kinds of cold meats with provolone and vinegar peppers; and broccoli with confit garlic, roast aubergines and marinated artichokes. That’s why. DS comes to you from the gang behind Lanark Coffee, and their outlets are barely big enough to swing one of their outsized subs in. So it’s takeaway only – but they also run their own delivery system.

Details: 262 Hackney Road, London, E2 7SJ | 7 Cullum Street, EC3M 7JJ | 8 Ludgate Circus, EC4Y 1DE | Open weekdays 10am-4pm (12-4pm Cullum St, plus weekends 12-4pm in Hackney)
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The Black Pig | Borough

The best bread for sandwiches is a contentious and divisive topic, just topped narrowly by Brexit. Putting in a good argument for the ciabatta corner, though, is Borough Market‘s famed Black Pig stall, which specialises in deluxe muffaletta. That’s a sandwich invented by Sicilians who moved to New Orleans in the early 20th century. Here, you’ll find them stuffed with slow-roasted free-range pork shoulder and some combination of aioli; fennel & apple slaw and honey truffle mayo; and scorched over a Big Green Egg grill. It’s worth going for the added slap of S’ott olio, a fermented chilli sauce with confit garlic.

NOTE: The Black Pig team are also gearing up to open a sandwich test kitchen in West Norwood, Fri & Sat 12-3pm, from 8th November.

Details: 8 Southwark Street, London, SE1 1TL | Open Tues-Sun, 10am-5pm (4pm Sun)
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Secret Sandwich Shop | Notting Hill

The Secret Sandwich Shop has no desire to actually remain secret, or it would make its sandwiches a lot uglier. These dictionary-thick bricks are inspired by Japanese wanpaku sandwiches, which got popular around the era of the katsu sando boom, but have more of a Ploughman’s vibe to them. Texture is the key here, and you’ll find pillowy soft shokupan bread slapped either side of crunchy greens; something cheesy; and something meaty in most cases. The cult order is the 7th Avenue, a hefty combination of pastrami, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and crispy shallots, all lavished with Kewpie mayo.

Details: 103 Talbot Road, London W11 2AT | Open daily 8am-3pm
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Jolene | Newington Green, Holloway, Islington & Shoreditch

When you’re after one of the best sandwiches in London, but have things to do and places to go afterwards and can’t afford to spend the afternoon in a dough-induced stupor, you can count on the Jolene bakeries (sisters to Primeur & Westerns Laundry). The daily changing menu puts nice, well-sourced ingredients like provolone & beefy Sicilian tomato; carrot, hummus & pickled cabbage; or mortadella with mustard-spiked mayo between their freshly baked bread (made with totally organic and sustainably grown wheat flour). Manageable in size, and totally satisfying.

Details: Across London – see details here
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Deeney’s | Leyton, Walthamstow & Hackney

Deeney’s is here to prove that Scottish food is NOT just about deep-fried Mars bars. It’s also about, um, haggis sandwiches. Meet Hamish Macbeth, a Scotch toastie oozing with bacon & haggis (veggie options available); melted cheddar; caramelised onions and mustard. Like its namesake, there are plenty of other pretenders jostling for the throne, though: other toasties include the roast chicken & sriracha-laced Roberto the Bruce; alongside some perfectly executed breakfast baps.

Details: 360 Leyton High Road, London, E10 6QE – open weekdays 8am-4pm, weekends 9am – 4pm | William Morris Gallery Café, Lloyd Park E17 4PP – open Tues-Sun 10am-4.30pm | Broadway Market – Saturdays 9am-5pm

Have a lie down… then check out these excellent lunch spots in London