When it comes to Christmas, there is one element of the big day that everyone looks forward to: the dinner. It is something so special, so delicious, so indulgent - and so filling - that most people only tend to enjoy it, in all its glory, once a year. But why only treat yourself to this great dish once a year, when you can enjoy it time and again, in preparation, in a smaller sandwich form throughout the month of December?
And just because it is a sarnie, that doesn't mean it won't stuff you to the brim or that you have to forgo all the deliciously naughty trimmings. From sage and onion stuffing and cranberry slaw to pigs in blankets and lashings of gravy, anything goes when it comes to enjoying a Christmas sarnie. And we're not just talking about the M&S, Pret or Tesco specials.
We're talking freshly made sarnies, buns and hoagies from Cardiff's independent bakeries, cafes and sandwich shops - and thankfully, here in the city centre, we have a pretty delicious selection of creative Christmas sandwiches to choose from.
Read more: Trying Christmas dinners from supermarket cafes - M&S, Tesco, Asda and Morrisons
Now, I know what you're thinking; there's only so much one can do with turkey, stuffing, sausages, gravy, cranberry sauce etc... but it's how it's made and served that makes it stand out.
From Bombers to Pettigrew Bakery, we tried six sarnies from different shops in Cardiff whose festive goodies have us salivating at the thought. But which one took the top spot, in our humble opinion? Read on to find out...
Bombers - joint winner
The sandwich: Roast turkey Christmas hoagie special
The Verdict: I arrived at Bombers on a cold Tuesday morning just before midday, a tad later than I'd anticipated, and was met with a 10-person strong queue - which is always an incredible sign of a sandwich worth waiting for - most of whom had ordered the xmas special. And boy, it was utterly worth the wait. Available in a soft white or brown hoagie roll or as a bunny chow (a hollowed out loaf of bread - 'xmas dinner in an edible bowl'), this sandwich is simply epic in every delicious way.
I opted for a brown roll (my attempt at adding some extra nutritional value to this sarnie) which was beautifully pillowy and soft and one which had been packed to the max - so much so that my feeble two-hand grip couldn't pick it up without getting it all over me... I finished it wth a knife and fork. It was overflowing (in the possible best way) with most Christmas dinner elements; tender and moist pieces of turkey, fluffy and flavoursome sage and onion stuffing, two crispy, salty, petite pigs in blankets, crisped-up golden roast potatoes (which could have been a bit thicker, in my estimations), zesty cranberry sauce and soft, fall-apart broccoli with a generous portion of smooth and subtle gravy. It. Was. Heaven.
The filling was so delicious that the bread wasn't actually needed but gave it an added bonus. At only £6.50, this is an utterly delicious bargain. Kudos, Bombers. Kudos.
Score: 9.5/10
Price: £6.50
Where: 41 Charles Street
The Sage Deli
The sandwich: Sausages, stuffing and turkey all in a sub
The Verdict: This sub had one of the herbiest stuffings I have tried in a Christmas sarnie. On its own, it was delightful and - like Bombers - was in a smashed, fluffy form. With the rest of the festive elements - pigs in blankets (the bacon of which was slightly charcoaled, aka overdone... although not ruining it on a whole, it was noticeable), sweet and zesty cranberry sauce and shredded turkey in a gorgeous crusty-on-the-outside-soft-on-the-inside roll - it was just lush.
While the turkey was a smidge dry, it was balanced with a drizzling of light gravy that coated - but did not drown - the roll, and didn't spoil the lunch. I'd definitely return for a second helping.
For a slightly smaller portion (in comparison to that of Bombers' ginormous one), it was a fun and festive way to kick off Christmas without needing to nurse a large food baby post-lunch.
Score: 8/10
Price: £7.50
Where: Central Market
New York Deli
The sandwich : Enormous Christmas hoagie filled with festive elements - and a few special additions.
The Verdict : This sandwich is an absolute whopper. It took three of us to finish it off and was bigger than my hand when carrying it. Its sheer quantity is impressive. Offering both a vegan and meat-filled option, this year NYD are offering a hoagie and a bagel for their Christmas special. I went with a hoagie and the soft and squidgy bread was yummy and oh so filling. Being possibly the least Christmassy sandwich of the pack due to its ingredients, it was still a pretty festive find.
With a rather unique combo of sliced deli turkey, crispy bacon, New York Deli stuffing (typically Christmassy), cheddar cheese, English mustard and cranberry slaw, it was packed. Nay, overflowing. You didn't know how to pick it up or where to even begin - my advice, get a knife and fork and tackle it that way.
Now, let me explain my favourite parts. The turkey - of which there was a lot - was thin, moist and flavoursome (which can be difficult with this white meat), the slaw had a nice spicey zing to it thanks to it being beautifully paired with the red cabbage, however the sweet cranberry element seemed to be lost - and it was missed.
The bacon was a bit too crumbly for my liking but gave the hoagie a good crunch and salty snippet. The stuffing was yummy but my preferred texture is that of the sandwiches before - fluffy, smashed and bitty. Whereas this one was solid, chunky and had a thick meaty-bread-like texture although its flavour was tasty and gave a burst of herbiness on each bite - if tasted solo.
My least favourite part of this hoagie, personally, was the amount of English mustard smothered on and in the mix. I am not a fan of mustard in the best of times but I thought that with it being in amongst this sandwich, which has so many other elements, it would be manageable.
While it created a nice warmth in the sandwich, it was overpowering. It muted the other flavours in that bite and was a tad too spicey for my delicate pallate. The cheese was mild and wasn't particularly noticeable either so could have gone without.
All in all, it was an enjoyable sandwich though not mindblowing. It filled me up big time. Had some good flavours but was overpowered by the mustard.
Score: 6.5/10
Price: £9.50
Where: 4-6 Duke Street Arcade
Fresh
The sandwich : Festive baguette with a 'gravy dunker' tub
The Verdict: We arrived at Fresh the Baguette Bar, which has been named one of the best places to eat in the world on TripAdvisor, in good time - around 11.45am to ensure a quick queue - and swiftly ordered their Christmas special, which consisted of roast turkey, butter, pork, sage and onion stuffing and a chipolata sausage - we held the cranberry sauce thinking the gravy dunker tub (an extra £1.25) would be enough to stop it being dry.
The turkey in this one-off Christmas sandwich was delightful. It was not too dry, nice thick slices and tender. The baguette was crunchy on the outside and wonderfully soft on the inside - and had a thick dollop of butter spread across which, personally, wasn't needed. The stuffing, much like the NYD one, was thick and herby and had a lovely taste of the pork, sage and onion. The chipolata sausages were okay but not mindblowing - not like the pigs in blankets from previous sarnies. But a fantastic detail of this lunch order was the turkey gravy. It was thick. It was buttery. It was not too salty. It was what the sandwich needed to level up from dry and slightly beige (albeit our own fault for forgoing the cranberry), to flavoursome and delicious.
A confession: In hindsight, we should have welcomed the cranberry sauce with open arms as it would have added the zinginess and sauciness the sandwich needed to have that ultimate festive feel. That being said, it was a good sandwich that won't leave you disappointed or hungry - something Fresh does well.
Score: 7/10
Price: £7.50
Where: 32 Royal Arcade
Pettigrew Bakery
The sandwich : Sourdough baguette with roast turkey
The Verdict: If you want a turkey sandwich that is light, refreshing whilst being Christmassy, Pettigrew Bakery has you covered. Enveloped in a sourdough baguette - my favourite bread offering of the bunch - it was crunchy, full of tangy flavour and creates a nice contrasting texture to the soft ingredients within - the sandwich was stuffed with roast turkey, veggie stuffing, cranberry sauce and seasonal salad leaves.
The turkey was thickly sliced, rich and although a tad dry, it paired nicely with the sweet and bold cranberry sauce - which was one of two standout components for me. The second was the greenery within the sandwich - mustard leaves and celery leaves. This burst of freshness surprised me because it's not what you expect to taste in a Christmas dinner but it was a really lovely zing of fresh flavour in amongst the hearty stuffing and turkey. The stuffing was rich, herby and came rushing in as a delightful aftertaste.
To make it even better, it could have been warm and have the classic xmas addition of pigs in blankets and a smidge of gravy but they weren't obviously absent.
For what you get in this sandwich (ounces of flavour) at a mere £5.50, I will be back for round two in the coming weeks.
Score: 8.5/10
Price: £5.50
Where: 37 Castle Arcade
Baguettey Junction - joint winner
The sandwich : warm christmas baguette
The Verdict: My first words when I tasted this baguette was 'wow'. The flavours, the softness of the bread, the warmth of it (wrapped in kitchen foil to retain the heat) - the only one of this selection to be served hot - it was surprising in the best way. Consisting of roast turkey, onion and sage stuffing, cranberry sauce and gravy, all components complemented each other well. The bread was crunchy and warm and was well packaged with thinkly sliced tender turkey, a generous layering of cranberry sauce (which gathered at either end of the baguette - delicious), soft sage and onion stuffing which had a crispy outside making the textures within the sandwich lush.
As opposed to last year, the gravy was neatly packed into the sandwich (not a seperate tub in which to dunk) and, rather impressively, didn't overflow with it - it was the right level of gravy and gave the sandwich the right amount of moistness. What would have made this the absolute top Christmas sandwich, would have been the addition of pigs in blankets. Everything is made better with a pig in a blanket.
Score: 9.5/10
Price: £5.50
Where: 37 Castle Arcade
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