Meet the chefs perfecting the art of sandos around London

Growing up in the Levant of Lebanon, for Wael Osman “food was a huge part of my culture”. It’s no wonder, then, that he was drawn to a career in the food industry, evening finding his place as marketing and PR manager of Which Wich.

So what’s the story behind Which Wich? Well, the sandwich spot originated in Dallas, Texas in 2003, finally arriving in the UK in 2018 when its first London location opened in Central St Giles. And it’s so much more than just a sarnie seller, explains Osman.

“We like to include a bit of theater into the whole process,” he says. Customers choose a bag denoting the kind of sandwich they’d like, before handing it over to the team who hang it on a zipline above them. That bag then passes through different stations as customers choose each sandwich element, and they can watch their ‘wich’ being built in real time.

“At its heart, Which Wich is about making sandwiches more fun, personal and interactive,” says Osman, “We give customers the freedom to create a wich around what they actually like, rather than simply choosing something from a fixed menu and hoping it works.”

In a nutshell: Ultra customisable sandwiches with a theatrical twist 

Order now on Uber Eats

For The Ladz co-founder Zeeshan Manzoor, opening a restaurant was always an inevitability. 

“I’ve always been passionate about hospitality,” he says, “I’ve always wondered what it is that makes people keep returning to a restaurant time after time. It’s not just the flavours or the quality of the food – it's the atmosphere and the experience too.”

With the help of business partner Jay Ayub, Manzoor opened The Ladz first outpost in Peterborough in 2018, taking that curiosity, and turning it into a reality. Now, the pair run locations serving flame grilled peri chicken – and some excellent pittas and wraps – all over London, Cardiff and Northampton,. But their attention to detail remains the same.

“From the beginning we wanted The Ladz to have its own identity, rather than simply following what everyone else was doing” Manzoor says, “We’re all about bold flavours – food that people genuinely enjoy and want to come back for.”

In a nutshell: Flame-grilled chicken, marinated meats and some damn good pittas

Order now on Uber Eats

Sanju Panday – chef at Italian sandwich shop Dal Fiorentino – grew up in the Punjab, otherwise known as the breadbasket of India. So it was only to be expected that he would end up spending his days baking bread – including the airy and light focaccia Dal Fiorentino's customers know and love. 

The menu isn’t all focaccia though, and many of the sandwiches Panday and team serve up each day use schiacciata, a traditional Tuscan flatbread that locals to the sandwich shop aren’t always familiar with.

“But in Tuscany, these kinds of sandwiches are a part of everyday food culture,” Panday explains, “The schiacciata really is at the heart of what we do; we make it fresh every day, and we’re very particular about the ingredients that go inside it.”

Think: only the freshest produce, much sourced directly from Italy or found locally – and always in season. “We have a lot of fun with the menu, creating unique filling combinations,” Panday adds, “But we like to let ingredients speak for themselves. We don’t overcomplicate things.”

In a nutshell: Freshly baked schiacciata stuffed with the best Italian ingredients

Order now on Uber Eats

Scoffed a late-night salt-beef bagel on Brick Lane after a night on the town? Chances are, you’ll have popped into Beigel Bake, open 24/7 and serving all kinds of nocturnal deliciousness. “I started out in finance before deciding to trade spreadsheets and calculators for baked goods and the slightly more enticing smell of freshly-baked beigels,” says director Elias Cohen, whose father Amnon opened the shop back in 1974.

“Beigel Bake has always been part of my life, though. Growing up, I’d come into the shop and help my dad, so I was exposed from quite a young age to the organised chaos that comes with running a place like this. Food has this incredible ability to galvanise people, and that’s something I’ve always loved.”

From overseeing production to speaking with customers and problem-solving, Elias is always up-front-and-centre in the bakery. “There are no fancy plates, no carefully curated playlists and definitely no need to book a table,” he says, ”It’s always been about good, honest food, great people and a door that, quite literally, never closes.”

In a nutshell: Iconic beigels, available 24/7 

Order now on Uber Eats

For Josh Kleiner, Sandwich Sandwich CMO, Sandwich Sandwich is a truly family affair. The brand started life in a “tiny shop” in Bristol back in 2012, where Kleiner’s dad Nick and his partner Anita “cooked, cleaned and served” everything. 

“Food has always meant much more to me than just eating; it’s family, memories, generosity. Food brings people together,” Nick, still CEO of the business, says, “I still get a buzz from seeing someone enjoy something we’ve made.”

Though the operation is much larger these days – there are seven locations around the UK, with more to come, both Nick and Josh remain clear about one thing: “I never want us to lose what made people fall in love with us in that tiny Bristol shop,” Nick explains. 

Order from Sandwich Sandwich on Uber Eats, and what will arrive is the “humble sandwich made exciting again” through big flavours, lots of colour and texture, and very generous filling helpings. 

“We’ll take a dish we love,” says Nick, “And we’ll ask: ‘how can we get that between two slices of bread?’”

In a nutshell: Flavour-packed sandwiches made with love

Order now on Uber Eats

From years spent building an American barbecue brand to six years spent turning Gerry’s Hot Subs into one of London’s most beloved sarnie spots, founder Andre Blais knows good food.

“Gerry’s was the next chapter for me,” explains Blais of his pivot to the brand he’s been building since 2020, “I’ve taken everything I’ve learned over the years of my career and put it into a simple business built around something I absolutely love: a great sandwich. I’ve always favoured straightforward, generous food that people genuinely want to eat.” 

The good news? Since opening the first Gerry’s location in Exmouth Market in 2024 , Blais has found a receptive customer base that seem to agree with him.

“Londoners really got behind the sandwiches,” says Andre. “We’re not chasing Instagram gimmicks: we want someone to order a Gerry’s, unwrap it and think, ‘That’s a proper sandwich.’” 

In a nutshell: Generously-filled subs inspired by old school American sandwich counters

Order now on Uber Eats

Since joining PAUL’s in 2006, assistant production manager Nazim Benouguef has found himself in just about every area of the business, including the bakery team. Fitting, really, since his childhood passion was making bread with his mother. 

“Food was always a big part of my life growing up,’ he says, “I learned a lot from my mum; it's where my love for food and baking started.” 

With more than 130 years of history, family-run company PAUL first arrived in the UK in 2000, where its first bakery opened in Covent Garden. It might be a global company these days – but the PAUL team still follows many of the traditional ways of working that originated all those years ago.

“We still follow the traditional French way of making our bread, viennoiserie and pastries, with products handmade by our bakers every day,” says Benouguef “But we try to balance the old with the new – and we’re always looking for ways to tap into emerging food trends, from chia seed bread to colourful matcha drinks.”

In a nutshell: Classic French baguettes and indulgent baked goods

Order now on Uber Eats

Mondo Sando kitchen manager Ewan Dance started his career 14 years ago working part-time in a local coffee shops “prepping sandwiches, making pastries – that kind of thing.” It was then, a bit of a full circle moment when he found himself back in the world of sandwiches, based in the kitchen of Mondo Sando’s Camberwell site. 

“No two days are the same there,” he says, “As well as being a seven-day service kitchen, the space doubles as our company bakery and central prep kitchen. You’ll either find me running service, baking our bread, bulk prepping for our three sites, locked into spreadsheets and rotas, or doing a little disco shift over at Cafe Mondo for our monthly pizza night. It keeps it fresh, and I love it!”

And what can customers expect when a Mondo Sando sarnie drops on their doorstep? Hoagie sub bread (“the unsung hero of the whole operation” says Dance) filled with incredibly inventive ingredient combos. 

“We like nostalgia – the kind of cartoon food you fantasised about when you were young,” Dance explains, “We like nabbing elements from the classic UK ‘caff’ scene too, as well as American diners, always putting our own little twist on them.” 

In a nutshell: Fluffy hoagies filled with the city’s most creative flavour combos

Order now on Uber Eats