A sandwich is any dish wherein two or more pieces of bread serve as a container or wrapper for another food type.
The sandwich is named after John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, who is said to have asked his servant to bring him meat stuffed between two slices of bread so that he would be less inconvenienced while out hunting, playing cards, and just generally being a rich gentleman on the go. Apparently, his friends took notice and asked for ‘the same as Sandwich.’ And so, the name stuck.
The first written record of the word “sandwich” appeared in Edward Gibbons (1737-1794), English author, scholar, and historian, journal on November 24, 1762.
Sandwiches, valued their portability are a popular type of lunch food, taken to work, school, or picnics to be eaten as part of a packed lunch.
People in the United States eat an estimated 300 million sandwiches every day — on average, about one a day for every American.
The British eat around 11.5 billion sandwiches a year. That is about 31,000,000 daily.
In restaurants, sandwiches are menued more frequently than any other type of entrée.
In fact, if hamburgers are included, sandwiches account for nearly half of all limited-service restaurant sales.
60% of sandwiches sold globally are actually hamburgers.
Among the many varieties of sandwich popular in the United States are the BLT, cheese sandwich, Club sandwich, Dagwood, French dip, hamburger, Monte Cristo, Muffuletta, pastrami on rye, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, cheesesteak, pilgrim, Po’ boy, Reuben, sloppy joe, and submarine.
The most popular sandwich in America (if you don’t count hamburger) is the turkey sandwich, followed by the ham sandwich.
New York-based restaurant Serendipity 3 has earned a Guinness World Records title after crafting the most expensive sandwich ever. The confidently named “Quintessential Grilled Cheese” is sold for an eye-watering $214 (£132). The exclusive and extravagant ingredients used include two pieces of French Pullman champagne bread which is made with Dom Perignon champagne and 24 karat edible gold flakes, white truffle butter and the very rare Caciocavallo Podolico cheese. The sandwich is then served on a Baccarat Crystal plate with South African Lobster Tomato Bisque as a dipping sauce.
The most expensive sandwich ever sold went for $28,000 on ebay – it was a grilled toast that seemed to have an image of Virgin Mary on it. The original owner, Diane Duyser of Miami, USA, was just about to tuck into her sandwich when she noticed it contained an image of the Virgin Mary. She sealed it, kept it for 10 years as a lucky charm, then went onto sell it to Goldenpalace.com, a Canadian online casino.
The largest sandwich weighed 2,467.5 kg (5,440 lb) and was made by Wild Woody’s Chill and Grill, Roseville, Michigan, USA on 17 March 2005. The sandwich contained 68 kg (150 lb) mustard, 468.1 kg (1,032 lb) corned beef, 117.9 kg (260 lb) cheese, 240.4 kg (530 lb) lettuce and 1,618.4 kg (3,568 lb) bread. The sandwich measured 0.44 m (17.5 in) thick and was 3.6 m (12 ft) long and 3.6 m (12 ft wide).
In 2008, an attempt in Iran to beat the record for the world’s biggest sandwich failed when the impatient crowd ate it before it was measured.
The longest sandwich measured 735 m (2,411 ft 5 in) and was created by members of three teams in total. These teams were Groupe Notre Dame Hazmieh-Scouts de L’Independence (Lebanon), Municipality of Hazmieh (Lebanon) and Mini-B chain restaurants (Lebanon). The attempt took place in Hazmieh village, Beirut, Lebanon, on 22 May 2011. The sandwich started at Notre Dame des Soeurs Antonines School and ended on Elie Street, in Hazmieh, Beirut, Lebanon. The width of the sandwich was 12.5 cm and the overall estimated weight of the sandwich is 577.03 kg.
The most layers in a sandwich is 60 and was achieved by DiLusso Deli Company (USA) at Madison Square Park in New York, New York, USA on 22 October 2016.
The most people making sandwiches simultaneously is 2,586 and was achieved by TangoTab and Friends (USA), at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, Texas, USA, on 27 February 2016.
The record for eating corned beef sandwiches is 790-gram (20 eight-ounce) sandwiches in 10 minutes – it is held by Joey Chestnut, who also once ate a record 47 grilled cheese sandwiches in 10 minutes.
The most peanut butter and jelly sandwiches eaten in one minute is 6 by Patrick Bertoletti.
Hawaii used to be called ‘The Sandwich Islands’. They were also named after John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich in 1778.
The verb ‘to sandwich’ is 200 years old. It was first used in 1815 to mean ‘to have a light meal’.
The first reference of peanut butter paired with jelly on bread was rumored to be published in the United States by Julia Davis Chandler in 1901.
Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were originally considered a delicacy, only enjoyed by those of the upper class. By the late 1920s, this sandwich eventually moved down the class structure as the price of peanut butter declined.
The average American will have eaten 1,500 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches before high school graduation.
The earliest reference to a ‘bacon sandwich’ listed in the Oxford English Dictionary was by George Orwell in 1931.
The Wall Street Journal has described the sandwich as Britain’s “biggest contribution to gastronomy”.
On the night of February 1, 1976, Elvis Presley took his private jet from Graceland to Denver and back in one night because he was craving an 8,000 calorie sandwich made from a hollowed out loaf filled with an entire jar of peanut butter, one jar of jelly, and a pound of bacon. The event made the Fool’s Gold Loaf sandwich famous.
The sandwich is celebrated on November 3rd: the National Sandwich Day!