My favorite sandwich. What’s yours?

My cousin Sandy Daza is the inspiration for this article. A couple of days ago, Sandy, a certified foodie, restaurateur and chef, asked his followers on his Instagram page @sandydaza77 what their favorite sandwiches are. The post got me thinking, “What is my favorite sandwich?” Personally, I love a good hamburger sandwich. Like fried chicken, it’s my go-to when I’m not in the mood to think about what to eat.

But since there are so many hamburgers to choose from, I’m narrowing down my favorites. Locally, I love the classic Tropical Hut hamburger. It’s freshly cooked when you order, and it comes with a dollop of mayonnaise and a slice of tomato and cucumber. The beef patty is juicy and seasoned right, served on a sesame seed bun. It’s even wrapped in aluminum foil the old-fashioned way to keep the burger warm. To complete the heavenly taste, a side dish of French fries with ketchup and mayonnaise to dip it into and a glass of Coke Zero and ice are a must. In the US, when I’m in the West Coast, my favorite burger is from In N Out; in the East Coast, it’s Shake Shack.

My second favorite sandwich is the banh-mi, a Vietnamese sandwich made of toasted French baguette bread with liver pate, pickled carrots, cucumber and radish with cilantro, hoisin sauce and slices of barbeque pork or chicken. For a complete healthy meal, I usually pair it with a tall glass of iced lemonade. Luckily, banh-mi sandwiches are readily available in most malls.

In third place, it’s a tie between chicken salad sandwich and egg salad sandwich. When I have a chicken salad sandwich at home (I use chicken meat from leftover roast chicken for more flavor), I serve it on toasted white bread with white onions, chopped celery and pickle relish. Chicken sandwiches taste even better when paired with boiled asparagus or a slice of apple for added crunch and sweetness. I also like eating it with potato chips on the side.

As for the egg salad sandwich, I got hooked on it when I went to Tokyo some years ago and Sandy recommended that I try the one sold at Family Mart. From then on, whenever I’m in Japan, I grab an egg sandwich for breakfast or merienda. I tried to copy it by separating the boiled egg white from the yolk, mashing it and using Japanese mayonnaise, but I just couldn’t replicate the taste. I’ve tried the egg sandwiches served in local Family Marts but they just don’t taste as good as the ones from Japan.

The hotdog sandwich is fourth on my list, though I actually prefer the corn dog. When I lived in the US many years ago, my favorite brand was Muscle Beach, whose stores only sold corn dogs and lemonade. For a while, Muscle Beach was in Manila but I’ve not seen it lately. But if I were to have a jumbo hotdog sandwich on a hotdog bun, I’d like everything on it: Onions, pickle relish, ketchup and mustard.

Last on my list is the grilled cheese sandwich. I like to use American cheddar cheese (singles are available in the grocery store) with white or sourdough bread. I make my grilled cheese sandwich using a pan, buttering the outside of the sandwich and melting the butter side down in the pan. When the cheese gets gooey, I flip it and wait for the other side to get toasted before serving. It’s even more delicious when paired with tomato soup.

And what about you, dear reader? What’s your favorite sandwich?