Emilia reviews the ‘best sandwiches in Melbourne’
Press PLAY below to hear Emilia’s full review
This week I tasted some New York-style sandwiches that do not mess around. Their tag line is “Gotta have Saul’s Sandwiches” and I vehemently agree. If you haven’t yet, you’ve got to try Saul’s. They’re often named on lists of the best sandwiches in Melbourne and I’ll tell you exactly why.
It was started by Leor Haimes & Elliot Koren who actually met in high school. They reconnected after school when they were both working as baristas and went on to open a cafe, Time & Place in Carnegie. They found they were selling sandwiches out of the cabinet more than anything else and they had lines out the door for them, so they let the customers drive where they went next. As COVID hit, they opened a hole-in-the-wall sandwich shop in Carnegie.
As they sold sandwiches out of the cabinet, they spent a year honing their sandwich craft, checking that they had the best ‘vessel’ for each sandwich, even down to the millimetre on how thick their pastrami was, back and forward until they got it exactly right.
All I can say is you can tell! You can tell the meticulous care they have for each sandwich. You will notice different sandwiches have different buns. That’s not by accident; they specifically tested how each sandwich ‘ate’ and found the best bread for the occasion. And it works, they got into the sandwich market just as the pandemic hit and, really, Melbourne had a sandwich comeuppance as we all looked for food we could eat in parks which still felt like a food experience.
Let’s talk food. They have an all day breaky menu as well as the classics. I got the tuna melt off the breaky menu and from the classics we had to try the eggplant cutlet, sesame hot glazed chicken and the smoked pastrami.
The sesame hot glazed chicken came a bun that’s almost like a burger bun, with American cheese, buttermilk ranch, pickle and lettuce. The thing about these sandwiches is everything is so well-balanced it doesn’t feel like you’re eating a fried chicken burger. It doesn’t leave you with dripping, greasy hands as the bun, along with all the elements are designed to work together. Completely delicious, easy choice!
From the breakfast menu I tried the hash brown and the tuna melt. The melt was tuna, capers, onion, American cheese, Saul’s sauce and I added the Calabrian chilli because I can’t help myself. I would say this is a divisive sandwich – if you’re a tuna, caper and onion fan, this is your sandwich; if you’re not a huge fan of any element of that, pick another. The hash brown absolutely killed it, crunchy on the outside, creamy potato on the inside – you may think there’s not much to say about hashies but there is too much. This one is a 9.5/10.
The eggplant cutlet was a fantastic option for the vegetarians, it can even be vegan-fied. It looked like a veal schnitzel in the way they hand crumb the eggplant- thinly sliced and crispy. It has roasted peppers, mozzarella, broccoli rabe and basil pesto in the sandwich. The basil is the first flavour you taste but it’s not over-bearing. All the elements in this sandwich felt very thoughtfully curated.
I’ve left my favourite to last — the smoked pastrami sandwich. Even if you’re not a huge pastrami sandwich lover I would still recommend trying this. This sandwich — like all the others — felt so perfectly balanced, you tasted each flavour without one taking over. There’s a kale and cabbage slaw which is perfectly peppery and creamy, cheddar, two types of pickles and Saul’s sauce — Just beautiful, like a piece of art.
Despite being a hole-in-the-wall shop, they don’t stop at sandwiches. They have sweets, coffees and a stocked drinks fridge. They do custard puffs that they’ve become known for — the custard is a nice consistency and tastes homemade. Pastry is good, not too crumbly. And cookies! The chocolate was soft inside even when the cookie was cold, flat but still moist and topped with salt — which I love.
Given they both started as baristas and cafe owners you know they have fabulous coffee too.
As it is very much a sandwich to go joint we took our sandwiches to the park next door.
Prices are definitely in fancy sandwich territory, keeping in mind that they are massive.
The breaky menu starts at $10.90 but all of the classics menu is $16.90. I hate to say it but they’re worth it, every last bite.
Saul’s Sandwiches
Emilia visited the Hawthorn location — 2/673 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn.
There are also stores in Balaclava, Carnegie, and Bentleigh East.