Marco Crisciotti CNN ranks the 25 best sandwiches worldwide, celebrating meaty, flavorful icons from every corner of the globe — with just two vegetarian exceptions.
If you really want to know a culture, eat its sandwich. That’s the unspoken message behind CNN Travel’s global roundup of the 25 best sandwiches on the planet. It’s not just a ranking. It’s an edible atlas, a journey across flavors, textures, and stories — from Mexico’s fiery pambazos to Vietnam’s crisp, tangy bánh mì. This isn’t a list for calorie-counters or minimalists. This is for people who understand that the sandwich is one of the most powerful forms of culinary storytelling ever invented.
Sandwich as identity
CNN introduces the list with a simple but striking idea: “there’s no food more humble and more universally loved than the sandwich.” And it’s true — whether eaten in a rush or savored in good company, the sandwich is portable, flexible, and deeply personal.
Across the globe, every region has taken bread and fillings and turned them into something unique, something reflective of local history, geography, and taste. These sandwiches don’t just satisfy hunger — they preserve memory.
Take Spain’s bocadillo de jamón ibérico, a masterclass in simplicity. Crunchy bread, extra virgin olive oil, and paper-thin slices of aged ham — each bite is a tribute to centuries of curing tradition. Or the torta ahogada from Mexico, literally “drowned” in a red chili sauce so intense, it borders on a dare. Its cousin, the pambazo, is just as bold: the bread itself is dipped in guajillo chili, giving it a distinct red hue before it’s filled with potatoes, spicy chorizo, lettuce, crema, and cheese.
On the other side of the world, the bánh mì offers a delicious lesson in fusion. Born from French colonialism and reimagined through Vietnamese ingenuity, this sandwich marries a crisp baguette with roasted pork, pickled vegetables, cilantro, and mayonnaise — a bite-sized symbol of global entanglement.
Flavors without borders
CNN’s list also takes us through the Middle East’s shawarma, where meat rotates on vertical spits, absorbing spices and flame, before being tucked into pillowy bread. Denmark brings us the smørrebrød, a minimalist yet elegant open-faced rye sandwich layered with cold cuts, fish, and pickles.
Tunisia enters the spotlight with fricassé: golden fried dough packed with tuna, olives, hard-boiled eggs, and harissa. Japan’s entry, the katsu sando, is an unexpected pleasure — breaded pork cutlet, crispy and juicy, nestled between slices of milk bread so soft it feels like cheating.
The United States shows up in full force. From Philadelphia, the cheesesteak melts thin-sliced ribeye and provolone into one of the messiest and most satisfying bites in America. In New Orleans, the po’boy overflows with fried oysters or shrimp, while the Reuben — with its pastrami, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing — delivers a full deli experience in one mouthful.
Further north, Canada chips in with its Montreal smoked meat, rich, fatty, and spice-rubbed. Argentina’s choripán, slathered in chimichurri, is a carnivore’s festival wrapped in a bun.
There’s also the lobster roll from New England, stuffed with cold lobster meat and just enough mayo to keep things interesting, all housed in a buttered split-top bun.
A list dominated by meat
One theme runs loud and clear through this global lineup: animal protein rules the sandwich world. From pork to beef, seafood to sausage, the most celebrated sandwiches on CNN’s list are built around meat as the star ingredient.
The bocadillo, torta ahogada, shawarma, cheesesteak, katsu sando, Reuben, choripán, and lobster roll — all of them center on meat that’s been smoked, grilled, cured, breaded, or fried. And when it’s not meat, it’s usually fish or shellfish.
In fact, only two entries could be called truly vegetarian. The falafel pita from the Middle East is made from ground chickpeas and herbs, fried to perfection and usually paired with tahini and fresh vegetables. The cucumber sandwich, a nod to British teatime, is light, clean, and cool — a rarity in a lineup otherwise ruled by bold, fatty flavors.
Even the chip butty, which is just fries inside a sandwich (yes, really), isn’t entirely innocent: it’s often dressed in Worcestershire sauce, which contains anchovies.
The full list of sandwich greatness
If you’re the type to plan travel around food, this may be your new bucket list. CNN’s picks include:
- Bocadillo de jamón ibérico (Spain)
- Torta ahogada (Mexico)
- Shawarma (Middle East)
- Pambazo (Mexico)
- Bánh mì (Vietnam)
- Muffaletta (New Orleans, USA)
- Chivito (Uruguay)
- Pan bagnat (France)
- Smørrebrød (Denmark)
- Spatlo (South Africa)
- Montreal smoked meat (Canada)
- Po’boy (New Orleans, USA)
- Fricassé (Tunisia)
- Cuban sandwich (Cuba/USA)
- Cucumber sandwich (UK)
- Chip butty (UK)
- Katsu sando (Japan)
- Reuben (USA)
- Croque monsieur/madame (France)
- Philly cheesesteak (Philadelphia, USA)
- Broodje haring (Netherlands)
- Falafel pita (Middle East)
- Choripán (Argentina)
- Lobster roll (New England, USA)
Together, these sandwiches form a kind of unofficial world cuisine canon. They represent not only what people love to eat, but how they choose to express identity, pride, and place — through something as simple as bread and filling.
