Inktrap’s Top 10 Sandwich Days of 2019
Beginning almost by accident back in the summer of 2018, the Inktrap team began to unite one lunchtime a week to create a sandwich together.
Here at Inktrap, we almost always eat lunch together, but once a week we all eat the same thing. We band together and create a sort of buffet, where we can build our own sandwiches from the ingredients of a recipe (found or imagined) and eat them together. When 2019 began, we decided to expand this habit of Sandwich Day into a little competition, with the one to decide the flavour — the Earl of Sandwich — being randomly selected each week. Once the sandwich had been chosen, assembled and eaten, each team member would give it a rating (based on whatever they decided they wanted the rating to be based on) which was then averaged out to an overall score.
Think Nonsense Sandwich Contest!
When compiling our spreadsheet of the scores for the sandwiches — yes, we have a spreadsheet, no joke — we thought it might be a nice idea to share Inktrap’s Top 10 Favourite Sandwiches with you all (you can try them at home if you so desire!)
So, without further ado, let the Top 10 begin…
10th Place
The Earl: Rachel
Date of Eating: 18th July
Fava Bean and a Nice Radish
The sandwich coming in 10th was a creation from Rachel (that’s me!) and was aptly named Fava Bean and a Nice Radish. With a base of soft inside but crispy outside rye sourdough and a filling of garlic and coriander fava bean dip as well as caramelised onion relish, this sandwich went down quite well! The more optional fillings were, of course, radish as well as avocado, tomato and spinach.
This one may have been a little bit of a cheat as there were only four out of nine team members present and so it could have been easier to please the crowd. Or not! Maybe it really was just a good sandwich.
Overall Score: 3.88 out of 5
9th Place
The Earl: Jon
Date of Eating: 1st March
Justin Trudeau
Not the person. No cannibals here, haha… *Sweats nervously…*
It could have gone either way, but what a success it was! Coming in 9th is the Justin Trudeau, a Canadian-themed sandwich from Jon. With ham, cheese, tomatoes and mixed salad with a sauce combo of mustard and maple syrup held between slices of simple brown bread, this sandwich was a delicious surprise. The Canadians know how to do it right with that maple and ham combo!
Overall Score: 3.90 out of 5
8th Place
The Earl: Sam
Date of Eating: 13th December
Teriyaki Cob
A very recent addition here for 8th place! The Teriyaki Cob from Sam is still fresh in my memory, and what a wonderful memory it is… Where was I? Ah, yes, the Cob! For those who may not know what on Earth I’m talking about, a cob can also be known by many other names — a roll, bun, bap, bin lid, teacake, oggie, lardy cake, bread cake, butty, muffin, barm or batch. Within the cob was chicken (or mushrooms for those who don’t eat meat) with teriyaki sauce, Monterey Jack cheese, red onion, iceberg lettuce, mayonnaise and crispy onions.
Halfway through the year, we upgraded our Sandwich Day experience, from cold sandwiches to cold or hot sandwiches. We bought a George Foreman Grill and this one is the first on our list that was made with it! The mushrooms and chicken were heated, though the sandwich itself was not grilled.
Overall Score: 3.93 out of 5
7th Place
The Earl: Liz
Date of Eating: 15th August
Chip Sandwich
I have two notes on this one:
- As a Northerner, I am incredibly offended that Liz decided to call this a Chip Sandwich and not a Chip Butty as it should be called.
- Sandwich 8, 7 and 6 actually all came in with the same score — I’ve listed them in order of date, with the most recent sandwich mentioned first.
So, for those unfortunate souls out there in the world that have never tried one, let me explain a chip sandwich for you. You begin with two slices of that pure white bread you loved as a kid (and now feel guilty eating as a grown-up), spread a liberal amount of butter on there and create a jigsaw-style crust-to-crust layer of chips (the chunky fish and chip shop style) and then add in your selection of sauce. We had ketchup, gravy and curry sauce.
I thought this one was amazing, but did it divide the opinions of the Northerners and Southerners in the studio, with this one being the first-ever sandwich to receive a full 5 — that score coming from Chris (raised in Leeds) in contrast to the mere 2.5 it received from James (raised on the South Coast of the UK).
Overall Score: (also) 3.93 out of 5
6th Place
The Earl: Rachel
Date of Eating: 2nd August
The Chronicles of Naania
This punnily named sandwich was another creation from Rachel. The Chronicles of Naania was an Indian-inspired sandwich using a naan bread in place of a wrap (though the naans weren’t the best and ended up snapping, becoming more of a classic sandwich).
We filled our naans with some fluffy microwave pilau rice, falafel, jalfrezi curry sauce and a homemade, raita-inspired yoghurt sauce topped with cucumber. The yoghurt sauce was comprised of yoghurt, parsley, lemon juice and honey. The Indian flavours went down a treat here in the studio with pretty high scores across the board!
Overall Score: (also also) 3.93 out of 5.
5th Place
The Earl: Liz
Date of Eating: 12th July
Beigel and Brie
Simple, delicious, and a Brick Lane classic. As the Inktrap studio is based just around the corner from the world-famous 24-hour beigel shop on Brick Lane, it seemed a crime to not utilise the bagels for at least one Sandwich Day.
Liz was the Earl who decided to use them as the base for her sandwich, filling the fresh, soft bagels with the iconic combo of brie and cranberry sauce, adding in some smoked ham and spinach too. Big enthusiasm for this combo in the studio, with no score dropping below 3.5.
Overall Score: 4.07 out of 5
4th Place
The Earl: Sam
Date of Eating: 3rd May
Burritos
Burrito = sandwich? An age-old debate that we’ve had many a time here at Intkrap. Is a sandwich really a sandwich without two pieces of bread? I think that’s a debate for another article.
Sam was the first Earl to bring out the big guns and make a hot sandwich — even before we got the George Foreman grill. Utilising the microwave we have here, he decided to make a burrito from microwaved rice, mixed beans and jackfruit chilli sauce. There were additional toppings for those who so desired, including chicken pieces, jalapeños, sour cream, guacamole and cheese.
A mind-blowing experience, opening everyone up to the idea of more hot sandwiches, this one really went down well! My stomach is rumbling just remembering it…
Overall Score: 4.20 out of 5
3rd Place ⭐️
The Earl: Chris
Date of Eating: 18th October
Chicken Avocado Sandwich
Another sandwich hot off the George Foreman grill was this simple, but oh so yummy sandwich from Chris.
Chris was inspired by his favourite combination for this sandwich — chicken and bacon — and decided to make thing even more exciting by adding in some cheese, avocado, tomatoes and mayo between slices of seeded wholemeal. Once toasted, this combination was a pure dream, and the whole studio agreed, which is why this sandwich, and it’s creator Chris, have the position of 3rd place!
Overall Score: 4.25 out of 5
2nd Place 🎖
The Earl: Adam
Date of Eating: 20th September
Toastie
Toastie. Simple. (Though Americans may know it as a grilled cheese.)
The Earl coming in second place is Adam with a simple, but delicious toasted sandwich that all in the studio enjoyed! Ham, cheddar, mozzarella, spinach and large Jubilee tomatoes between two slices of soft, white bread. The trick we used here to a deliciously tasting and looking toastie is some butter on the outside before you pop it into the grill! Golden brown outside and perfectly crispy, yasss!
It seems that keeping things simple can get great results! This classic toastie didn’t quite hit the perfect 5 out of 5, but it isn’t too far away, with a decent high score.
Overall Score: 4.30 out of 5
1st Place 🏆
The Earl: Adam
Date of Eating: 13th September
Meatless Marinara
One week before his Toastie — the sandwich in second place — Adam blew our minds with this American classic with a veggie twist which has come in at first place! Combining veggie meatballs with marinara sauce, heating and placing them inside a soft ciabatta roll and then sprinkling with cheese (as well as some lettuce and olives if you so desire) really got the taste buds going. We loved this sandwich, with no one rating it lower than 4 and two people giving it a full 5 out of 5!
(Side note: As a vegan who used to work in Subway, this sandwich 100% satisfied my craving for their Meatball Marinara… It always smelled so gooooood).
So there we are — the Inktrap favourite sandwich, the big winner, the number 1! Truly a memorable and mouth-watering lunchtime treat, the Meatless Marinara from Adam! Well done Adam!
Overall Score: 4.44 out of 5
And so, the battle for 2020 begins…
We’ve had a lot of ups and downs with 2019’s sandwiches, but oh so much fun, and so Sandwich Day will continue on. We’ll be making even more delicious (and not-so-delicious) sandwiches this year. Feel free to steal our recipes or share with us your favourite sandwich of 2019. Check out Inktrap on Instagram for sandwich photos and more!
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