Best thing since sliced bread: Melbourne’s best sandwich shops

Move over poke bowls and frozen yoghurt. Sandwiches are back in a big way and these five Melbourne shops and delis are putting a fancy twist on an old favourite.

Melbourne has cycled through many food obsessions, from frozen yoghurt and poke bowls to birria tacos and vodka pasta.

It may seem odd to add a stalwart food item as classic as sandwiches to the list, but Melbourne has certainly seen a ‘sanga’ renaissance take hold in the last few years.

Gone are the days when the only sandwiches you could find were boring old chicken, egg or grilled cheese (though jazzed up versions can be found).

Nowadays, sandwiches are being stocked with all manner of fillings, from slow-cooked beef brisket and truffle-roasted portobello mushrooms to spicy crumbed octopus and vegan pastrami.

So popular have they become, queues at some of these fine establishments have been known to start forming as early as 11am, with those foolhardy enough to arrive after midday being met with the saddest sign of them all - “item sold out”.

Sometimes an unexciting option on café menus, sandwiches are now stars of their own show.

Speciality sandwich destinations have been popping up across Melbourne, and though many offer some very nice sides, there’s only one real reason you’re going.
You’re going for the sandwiches.

And such is the adherence to different dietary requirements, no matter whether you’re vegan, vegetarian, FODMAP-intolerant or coeliac, these places have just the sandwich you’ve been looking for.

HECTOR’S DELI

Bagel and schnitzel sandwiches from Hector’s.

A sandwich shop with a cult following, Hector’s churns out a reliable stable of simple sandwiches rendered in the most exquisite fashion. Take your pick between hot and fresh sandwiches – it’s impossible to go wrong. A classic ham, cheese and tomato is elevated into a holy trinity of mortadella, provolone and mozzarella blanketed in Hector’s secret ‘hectic’ sauce. ‘Beef & pickles’ is a reliable bestseller, while the crumbed mushroom served on a steamed potato bun will tempt even the most avowed meat eaters. Hector’s has since expanded from its humble eight-seater shopfront in Richmond into South Melbourne and Fitzroy.

Address: 1/94 Buckingham St, Richmond

Hector’s Deli website

NICO’S SANDWICH DELI

Nico's Sandwich Deli.

Nico’s didn’t have the most auspicious beginnings. Its flagship CBD store was only open for a day in March 2020 before shuttering, but its Fitzroy pop-up later that year inspired a devoted following – leading to the reopening of the CBD store and a Brunswick East storefront. The panko-crumbed chicken thigh coated in nori and koji chimichurri is a crowd favourite – opt for the vegan schnitzel for a meatless equivalent alongside all the same trimmings. The simple sandwich names belie the inclusion of novel ingredients – ‘Nico’s salad’ is enlivened by sesame silken tofu dressing, while the meatball sub features bone marrow.

Address: 100 Kerr St, Fitzroy

Nico’s Sandwich Deli website

HUGO’S DELI

Hugo's Deli.

It’s hard to get a look in at Hugo’s Deli once lunchtime hits and the punters are typically there for one of two things: the doorstopper fried chicken sanga wedged by fluffy shokupan or the Reuben, featuring Uncle Smallgoods’ pastrami layered with sauerkraut, American cheese, pickles and the secret Hugo sauce. But the staff favourite (internally dubbed ‘most underrated sandwich’) at Hugo’s is its tuna melt. Beloved for all the reasons tuna melts are popular – melting, oozy cheese coupled with the sheer savouriness of tinned fish – Hugo’s

version is further enhanced by the inclusion of yuzu and shichimi.

Address: 119 Swan St, Richmond

Hugo’s Deli website

LE BAJO MILKBAR

The egg sando from Le Bajo. Picture: Tony Gough

Hugo’s Deli may spotlight many Japanese ingredients, but North Melbourne car garage-turned-community milk bar Le Bajo exclusively makes Japanese sandos, toast and pastries. Born out of a collaboration between Indonesian restaurateur Jason Gunawan and musubi café 279 chef Kantaro Okada, Le Bajo Milkbar cranks out around 50 shokupan loaves a day, many of which feature in their own sandwiches. Spicy, battered fried octopus drizzled in a spicy mayo burst out of meticulously demarcated rectangles of shokupan, while the fruit sando sees fresh fruit and whipped cream crammed between slices of the fluffy Japanese milk bread.

Address: 8-14 Howard St, North Melbourne

Le Bajo Milkbar website

SMITH & DELI

A mouth-watering roll from Smith & Deli.

The Mench, from Smith & Deli. Picture: Sarah Matray

Smith & Deli pioneered cutting-edge vegan sandwiches and continues to go from strength to strength in its new Cambridge Street home. The former iteration of the vegan deli was known for its distinct lack of seating, but space is aplenty in Shannon Martinez’s new vegan dining hall, also home to Smith & Daughters. Martinez has made a name for herself crafting plant-based iterations that recreate the taste of meat, so be sure to try the ‘Foghorn Legless’ (chicken schnitzel), Rubenstein (pastrami) or the Little Havana (ham, turkey and pickles). Those who can’t ingest FODMAPS or gluten are also well-catered for here.

Address: 107 Cambridge St, Collingwood

Smith & Deli website