Is there a food more humble yet universally adored than the sandwich?

And while one person’s go-to hamburger snack might be another’s katsu sando or chivito, there’s hardly a country on the planet that doesn’t turn to some type of bread with something stuffed inside it to cure a craving.

Traveling the world’s sandwiches is, in a way, like traveling the world.

To help narrow your choices for the sandwich to plan your next trip around, here are 25 of the world’s best sandwiches:

Bocadillo de jamón Ibérico, Spain

There are ho-hum ham sandwiches and then there’s this simple handheld featuring some of the world’s finest jamón, luxurious Iberian ham from acorn-fed pigs. The thinly sliced meat is piled on crusty bread that’s brushed or drizzled with extra virgin olive oil. Fresh tomatoes and perhaps some cheese can be added, but the ham is undoubtedly the star of this show.

A culinary remnant of French colonialism, the baguette sandwich was reinterpreted to their own taste by the Vietnamese. Bánh mì are now sold from food carts on nearly every street corner in Ho Chi Minh City and across Vietnam and are widely loved well beyond the country’s borders.

The classic version is pork-based, starring chả lụa (Vietnamese-style pork roll), shredded pickled carrots, pickled daikon, cilantro leaves, mayonnaise and other ingredients. You can find variations with tofu and thinly sliced lemongrass chicken, too. The taste is crunchy, fresh, savory and utterly delicious.

Torta ahogada, Mexico

This “drowned” sandwich is the most popular street food in Guadalajara, the capital of Mexico’s Jalisco state. Chopped pork is tucked into crusty bread influenced by the French occupation in the 1860s, then drowned in a spicy red sauce that’s said to have become a tradition by accident when a sandwich fell into the sauce

Tramezzino, Italy

While originally from Turin, Venice has taken this popular lunchtime bar snack to the next level — properly stuffing English tea style-triangles of white bread with fillings that include everything from olives and tuna, soft boiled eggs and vegetables to piles of crispy prosciutto with truffle.

Bars all over Venice pull out platters of tramezzini at lunchtime. If you’re doing things right, you’re enjoying them canal-side with a glass of local wine.

Shawarma, Middle East

Shawarma’s name comes from the Arabic word for “turning” — a reference to how this favorite Middle Eastern sandwich’s meaty filling cooks on a vertical spit. In adaptations that spread to the Mediterranean and Europe, shawarma has been reinterpreted as gyro in Greece or doner kebab in Germany, via Turkey.

While there are many variations of this popular street food, its base is grilled spiced meat (usually chicken, lamb or beef) shaved from the rotisserie and tucked into a light sleeve of pita bread, topped with things such as tomatoes, onions and parsley and perhaps tahini sauce and hot sauce, too.

Pambazo, Mexico

Tortillas might first come to mind when it comes to Mexico. But one of the country’s most famous antojitos (street snacks or appetizers) is the pambazo, a favorite street food sandwich from Veracruz and Puebla said to have been inspired by the shape of a Mexican volcano

It’s a seriously filling thing featuring bread tinted red thanks to a soak in slightly spicy guajillo sauce. Open up wide for the potatoes and Mexican chorizo inside, topped with lettuce, cheese and cream.

Muffaletta, New Orleans, United States

Italian immigrants who settled into New Orleans’ Lower French Quarter in the late 19th and early 20th century are to thank for inventing this quintessential New Orleans sandwich made from round, sesame-covered loaves of Sicilian bread that can easily outsize your head.

Inside the muffaletta, layers of chopped olives, Genoa salami, ham and various cheeses (often with Swiss and provolone) mingle to mouthwatering effect.

Chivito, Uruguay

While this Uruguayan sandwich’s name translates to “little goat,” that ruminant’s meat is decidedly absent from this decadent assemblage of thinly sliced steak (called churrasco), ham, bacon, lettuce, mayonnaise and melted mozzarella.

iled high into a roll that’s similar to a hamburger bun or ciabatta, the chivito is customarily topped off with a fried egg – just to make sure you don’t leave hungry.

Pan bagnat, France

If you like a good salade Niçoise, chances are you’ll be a fan of the pan bagnat — a sandwich that similarly hails from Nice in the South of France and is made using crusty pain de campagne, a boulangerie favorite.

Sliced in half (but not completely through), the bread hinges open to reveal layers of raw vegetables, anchovies, olives, sliced hard boiled eggs, chunks of tuna and liberally applied olive oil, salt and pepper. Bon appétit, indeed.

Smørrebrød, Denmark

Beloved all over Scandinavia but particularly iconic for being one of Denmark’s national dishes, this open-faced sandwich translates to “buttered bread” — but smørrebrød is so much more.

With rye bread as the typical base, toppings include scores (perhaps hundreds) of combinations that range from curried or pickled herring and tiny pink shrimp to sliced boiled eggs and rare roast beef atop a layer of butter. In true Scandi style, smørrebrød goes big on aesthetics, too — the sandwiches are as pretty to look at as they are delicious to eat. Spatlo, South Africa

Particularly linked to the Gauteng province and Johannesburg, South Africa’s spatlo sandwich (often called kota, loosely translated as quarter) is made from a quarter loaf of bread that’s been hollowed out and stacked to the max with meat and much more.

Inside, find seasoned fries, cheese, bacon, polony (bologna), Russian-style sausage and perhaps a heaping of spicy atchar sauce (made from green mangoes) and a fried egg.

Montreal smoked meat sandwich, Canada

Carnivores say oui to this seriously stacked sandwich from Quebec made with smoked beef brisket layered between slices of light rye bread and drizzled with tangy yellow mustard.

The best briskets used in a true Montreal smoked meat sandwich are said to soak for up to two weeks in brine and savory aromatics such as coriander, peppercorn and garlic before being smoked and hand-sliced to go down in eternal sandwich glory.

Po’boy, New Orleans, United States

A classic belly buster that traces its roots to New Orleans, the po’boy (aka poor boy) is rumored to have been invented to feed the city’s streetcar drivers during a 1929 strike.

The history remains fuzzy, but the taste of this sandwich certainly is not.

Folks who sink their teeth into this mayonnaise-laden French bread stuffed with fried oysters (or perhaps fried shrimp or roast beef) and piled with lettuce, tomato and pickles is in for one beautifully delicious mess.

Fricassé, Tunisia

With a comforting deep fried yeast bun for an exterior and a savory mashup of tuna, potatoes and boiled egg inside, this North African sandwich delivers a filling feed in a deceptively small package.

unisia’s favorite picnic and street food sandwich, the fricassé, often gets livened up with additions such as sliced black olives, preserved lemon and harissa – the ubiquitous spicy condiment in this part of the world made from dried red chili peppers, garlic and a spice mix that usually includes caraway, cumin and coriander seed.

Cuban sandwich, Cuba/United States

Originally a luxury item in Cuba, according to Andy Huse, the author of a book on the Cuban sandwich, this Florida favorite is cause for constant debate in Miami and Tampa, where purists spar over its fundamental ingredients as well as its origin.

Whether you take yours with salami (à la Tampa) or not (à la Miami), this sandwich layered with boiled ham, roasted pork, pickles, mustard, Swiss cheese and butter and pressed between pieces of fluffy Cuban bread is a simple, hearty and most often affordable feed.

Cucumber sandwich, United Kingdom

On the dainty side of the sandwich spectrum, cucumber sandwiches are a traditional English afternoon tea staple, often spotted on the same tiered platters with scones and mini-pastries.

Extra soft white bread with the crusts removed gets layered with razor-thin English cucumbers (peeled, please, then lightly salted and drained), butter, a light dusting of fine pepper and perhaps a spray of fresh herbs such as dill. Cut the sandwich into neat triangles and pair with a pot of tea.

Chip butty, United Kingdom

The opposite of elegant, the chip butty means business – after all, this is a sandwich sheathed in buttered white bread and stuffed with fries (aka chips in its native Britain) that seem to carve out their own space in all that soft goodness.

Said to trace its roots all the way back to the 1860s and a seaside fish and chips shop in Lancashire, England, the chip butty can be doused with optional condiments ranging from ketchup and malt vinegar to mayonnaise.

Katsu sando, Japan

A deep-fried pork cutlet – pounded and breaded with panko and tucked into a fluffy Japanese white milk bread called shokupan – is the base for this cult-favorite, convenience store snack from Japan.

Considered yōshoku cuisine (Western-influenced), katsu sando is usually garnished with ribbons of cabbage and comes in chicken and egg salad (tamago) versions, too.

Reuben, United States

Ask people from Nebraska, and they’ll say the Reuben was invented there by a local grocer looking to feed a band of hungry poker players. In New York, the story goes that the sloppily sinful sandwich on rye bread was named for the founder of New York’s Reuben Restaurant.

What’s not disputable is the goodness crammed inside a Reuben – sliced corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and Russian or Thousand Island-style dressing. You’ll need napkins. Lots.

Croque monsieur/madame, France

An archetypal sandwich from France that originated as “un snack” in French cafes, this crunchy (croquant) marvel comes in female and male incarnations (madame et monsieur).

or the croque monsieur, slices of white bread are stuffed with thinly sliced ham and emmental or gruyere, often dipped into egg batter, buttered and pan fried. For the croque madame, the egg component is served fried atop the sandwich.

Philly cheesesteak, Philadelphia, United States

Mouthwateringly simple, the City of Brotherly Love’s most beloved sandwich is a delectable hot mess layered with ribeye steak sliced thin, oozing sheets of provolone and sauteed peppers and onions to your liking.

Purists insist the Philly cheesesteak is enveloped inside a hoagie bun. But if you’re whipping one up at home, any thick white bread is sure to be satisfying.

Broodje haring, Netherlands

Like a taste of the salty North Sea distilled into sandwich form, this classic Dutch sandwich is for serious seafood fans only.

Served cold, broodje haring features crunchy baguette-style bread filled with thin slices of chilled herring that’s been cured in salt and piled with diced onions. Depending on where you are in the Netherlands, it might have sliced gherkins, too. Look for it anywhere there’s a market at the stalls called vishandels.

Falafel pita, Middle East

You won’t miss meat in this vegetarian staple of Middle Eastern cuisine. The falafel pita is exactly what its name suggests. Crunchy fried balls of falafel – made from soaked, ground-up chickpeas mixed with herbs – are pushed into a warm and fluffy pita pocket and brightened up with lettuce, tomatoes, tangy tahini sauce and other additions that might include chili sauce and hummus.

You’ll find people lining up for this sandwich on the streets of Beirut, Amman and many other places across the Middle East and beyond.

Choripán, Argentina

Sausages splashed with mustard and chimichurri sauce are the savory makings of this classic Argentinean mouthful whose name is a mash-up of chorizo (sausage) and pan (bread).

Choripán’s origins are thought to trace back to the country’s cowboys called gauchos, known for their grilled meat asados. But today, the casual and filling sandwich is found beyond Buenos Aires and the Andes at food carts, futbol games and restaurants across South America. It’s best enjoyed hot off the grill.

Lobster roll, New England, United States

New Englanders hold their humble lobster roll dear – a summertime coastal treat piled with big chunks of steamed lobster meat that’s often mixed with lemon juice, mayonnaise and herbs and tucked into a roll resembling a hot dog bun.

You can find them at seafood restaurants across the United States. But a classic lobster shack on the stretch of coastline from Maine to Connecticut will make for a scenic backdrop that’s hard to beat.

CNN TRAVEL

Food banks are putting out the call: They need donations more than ever. Almost 1 in 5 households with children face food insecurity, and many of them turn to food banks for help. Food banks are usually grateful for any donations they can receive, but there are certain foods that should not be donated. If you’re planning to donate food, check our list of what you can’t donate to the food bank and which donations are really needed

Expired Food

Don’t ever donate baby food or formula that has expired. Other shelf-stable foods are labeled with “best by” dates or “use by” dates that don’t necessarily indicate when the food has spoiled. Check with your local food bank to determine their policy on accepting cans and packages labeled with outdated “best by” dates. And be reasonable—most people don’t want to eat canned green beans that should have been thrown out three years ago.

Dented Cans And Damaged Packages

Dented cans can become contaminated, particularly if the dent is on the seam of the can. Torn or open packages will go bad or at least become stale. Many food banks refuse to accept dented cans or open packages due to the potential for spoilage. Don’t donate anything that your own family wouldn’t eat.

Refrigerated Food

Food banks prefer to receive food donations that don’t require refrigeration and can last a long time on their shelves. Your food bank may not even have refrigerators or freezers on site. Stick with food that is sealed and shelf-stable.

Fresh Produce

Some food banks accept produce that doesn’t require refrigeration, but this typically comes from farmers or grocery stores with which they have established relationships. Ask someone at the organization before you bring in a pile of apples or potatoes, especially since those foods won’t last as long.

Glass Jars

Just imagine how frustrating it would be to lose donated food every time you drop it. Many food banks refuse to use glass jars because they break easily during storage and distribution. Stick with plastic jars and aluminum cans.

What Food Banks Really Need

Needs can vary by season and demand, so always ask your local food bank what they could use most. Food banks often request these items:

• Peanut butter and jelly
• Canned tuna, salmon, and other meats
• Canned beans and veggies like corn and tomatoes
• Pop-top soups and stews
• Packages of pasta and rice
• Breakfast cereal and oatmeal
• Pantry essentials like flour, sugar, salt, pepper, and garlic powder
• Coffee and tea
• Paper products

Source Southern Living magazine

Garlic, meat and even fasting can affect our body odour – and alter how appealing our scent is to others.

Each one of us has a unique scent profile, like a fingerprint. Everything from our personality type – such as extroversion, dominance and neuroticism – to our mood and health affects the way we smell.

“The past few decades have revealed that odour is shaped by our genes, hormones, health, and hygiene,” says Craig Roberts, professor of social psychology at University of Stirling in Scotland. “Whether we are male or female, young or old, gay or straight, dominant or subordinate, ovulating or pregnant, sick or well, happy or sad.”

Many of these factors are out of our control – but not all. A significant influence on the way we smell is the food we eat. Not only does this affect our overall aroma, but also how we are perceived, including how attractive we appear to others, according to a small but growing body of research.

Breath and sweat

On a biological level, food affects our body odour by two main routes, says Lina Begdache, an assistant professor of health and wellness studies at the State University of New York at Binghamton. Those are our guts and our skin.

First, the gut. As you digest your food, bacteria are at work metabolising it inside your gut. Some of those interactions between food chemicals and bacteria release gases – volatile molecules that make it out of your body the same way the food went in, says Begdache. This can result in bad breath, or halitosis, especially depending on what you eat (more about this later). Data suggests that about one-third of adults worldwide suffer from some form of halitosis, though there are other causes besides digestion.

Foods from the allium family, such as garlic and onions, can also affect the smell of our sweat and breath for the same reason as cruciferous vegetables: when they’re metabolised by the human body, they break down into stinky compounds like diallyl disulphide and allyl methyl sulphide, which are emitted by your body in slightly different timelines – right after ingestion and then, in the case of allyl methyl sulphide, with a peak 30 minutes later.

Surprisingly, though, studies suggest that while garlic definitely makes people’s breath smelly, it makes people’s armpit sweat more attractive. Scientists had 42 men wear armpit pads collecting their sweat for 12 hours, while some of them ate a little bit of garlic, some ate a lot of garlic and some took garlic supplements. Then, 82 women rated the scent collected from those pads according to subjective ratings of pleasantness, attractiveness, masculinity and intensity. The men with little garlic consumption didn’t illicit a huge reaction, but those eating a lot of garlic were perceived as very sexy. And those taking supplements were also more attractive.

“We replicated this study three times because we were really surprised,” says the scientist behind the experiment, Jan Havlíček, who studies human ethology and chemical communication at Charles University in Czech Republic. Since garlic has antioxidant, antimicrobial properties that improve people’s health, he speculates that’s what might be making these men’s scent more pleasant to women.

Other vegetables have a very unique effect on our smell. The asparagus plant produces a compound called the asparagusic acid and, when it’s digested by your body, it releases sulphur compounds too. It’s these chemicals, such as methanethiol and dimethyl sulphide, that make your sweat and your pee smell a certain way. Sulphur compounds are very volatile, so they easily disperse in the air. That’s why they’re so easy to smell from the toilet bowl. This smell usually lasts more than five hours.

Not everybody produces this smell, although studies about this keep coming up with different findings. In the 1950s, research seemed to suggest that fewer than 50% of people produce the tell-tale asparagus pee odour, while in 2010, researchers found more than 90% of test participants did. So it’s not clear cut. And not everybody can perceive the stink: the ability to smell one’s pungent asparagus-smelling pee seems to be down to genetics too.

However, when it comes to fruit and vegetables more widely, eating more of them can lead to a more attractive scent. A 2017 study in Australia found that men who had consumed more fruit and vegetables were significantly associated with smelling better – more fruity, floral and sweet. 

The study also notes, interestingly, when people have to rate people’s faces, slightly yellower skin rich in carotenoid – a molecule from carrots, pumpkins, tomatoes and papayas and others – is also found to be more attractive. But the same study suggests that people consuming diets with a little bit of fat, meat, egg, and tofu intake were also associated with more pleasant-smelling sweat. Carb-heavy diets produced the least sexy of scents. 

Meat and fish

Meat and fish can also produce a distinct body odour as animal proteins are broken down by the body into amino acids and fats, which are then excreted through sweat – where they interact with skin bacteria.

Fish and beans, for instance, can cause body odour because they’re filled with trimethylamine, a very strong-smelling compound. There’s even a health condition, called trimethylaminuria – also known as “fish odour syndrome” – which arises when the body can’t turn trimethylamine into a non-smelly compound, says Beeson. “This can lead to a strong body odour,” she says, but this condition is quite rare. For instance, a 2025 case report recounts a 10-month-old boy who developed trimethylaminuria and began smelling like rotting fish after eating fish including swordfish. The condition was transient, and through careful management he was eventually able to eat fish without the symptoms reoccurring.

Another study of adult men from 2006 by Havlíček’s team can offer insights about whether meat makes us more attractive. The scientists looked at 30 menwho were either eating a meat or non-meat diet for two weeks. Women rated their scent for their pleasantness, attractiveness, masculinity and intensity. The odour of the men on meat-free diets was on average rated as more attractive, more pleasant and less intense. 

“To our surprise, those who were eating meat smelled slightly worse than when they were not eating meat,” says Havlíček. 

This was not what he was expecting to find, because meat is considered an important part of the human diet throughout evolution. However, no early human was eating as much meat as is common in today’s complex, industrialised society. “It’s something which was not common during our evolution, to eat meat every day,” says Havlíček.

“We are mammals, and like all mammals, odour almost certainly has an important influence on social interaction,” says Roberts, who studies scent and social interactions.

“We are mammals, and like all mammals, odour almost certainly has an important influence on social interaction,” says Roberts, who studies scent and social interactions.

Scent is just one of a vast range of factors that influence how attractive people find us. It’s extremely challenging, “if not impossible”, to isolate the effects of smell from these other social cues, such as how people look, behave and talk, says Roberts. 

But still, even the science meticulously measuring these ethereal, subtle changes has been coming up with contrasting findings.

For instance, Havlíček also did an experiment where men rated women on their armpit sweat pad’s scent for their pleasantness, attractiveness, femininity and intensity, after some women ate as normal, and others fasted for 48 hours. While there wasn’t a huge divide between the groups, the fasting women did have more attractive sweat than the women who didn’t. “This was again something we didn’t expect,” says Havlíček.

But these results would need to be replicated to help paint a clearer picture. And, while your sweat may smell better, one 2018 study in Switzerland foundfound that fasting made people’s breath smell worse. 

If anything, the constant surprise arising from their study results has led researchers like Roberts and Havlíček to realise that there’s no one clear formula for how food affects our body odour and perception. There’s a lot of variability.

There are plenty of aromatic compounds, and in most of them we don’t know how they influence our body odour, but there is a high probability they do,” says Havlíček. 

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Source BBC