Fact: Few things are better than a really good sandwich. In that regard, Americans today have choices unmatched since the fourth Earl of Sandwich first had his servants stick some meat between slices of bread more than two hundred years ago (or so the story goes…). We’ve got fancy artisanal breads (gluten-free if you want it), high-end cheeses, exotic toppings and, for better or worse, all the meats. As the timeline below from market research firm Datassential shows, the last decade has been a golden age of sorts for sandwich lovers.
Related: This Is the Most Popular Sandwich in America
Not all of the innovations are necessarily worth celebrating — more than a few of these milestones will induce cringes more than cravings — but there’s little question that our lunchtime options (and breakfasts now, too) have undergone a revolution.
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