Food & Drink
Sandwich History Quiz
Earl of Sandwich, banh mi, Reuben — the global story of stuff between bread
Earl of Sandwich, banh mi, Reuben — the global story of stuff between bread
The world's biggest sandwich franchise — Subway — has more locations than McDonald's globally, with stores in over 100 countries. But the sandwich story starts long before 1965: from Hillel's lamb-in-matzo at Passover to the 4th Earl of Sandwich, the New Orleans po' boy, the Vietnamese banh mi, and the Danish smørrebrød, this quiz covers 50 questions spanning the full global history of food between bread.
Each round presents 10 randomized questions from a pool of 50, with four multiple-choice options and instant feedback after every answer. Your final score comes with a performance tier and shareable results.
You'll explore the origin story of the Earl of Sandwich, contested histories of the Reuben and the Cuban, iconic American regional sandwiches from the Philly cheesesteak to the Italian beef, global varieties from Vietnamese banh mi and Turkish doner kebab to Argentinian choripan and Danish smørrebrød, and the rise of Subway, Jersey Mike's, and the fast-food sandwich empire.
The modern sandwich is named after John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich (1718–1792), who reportedly asked for meat served between slices of bread so he could eat without leaving the card table. The earliest written account comes from French writer Pierre-Jean Grosley's 1770 travel diary. However, meat wrapped in bread is far older — Rabbi Hillel the Elder created a similar preparation for Passover centuries before.
A classic Reuben sandwich contains corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing on grilled rye bread. Its origin is disputed between Reuben Kulakofsky, a grocer in Omaha who supposedly created it around 1925 for a poker game, and Arnold Reuben of Reuben's Delicatessen in Manhattan, who may have created an earlier version around 1914.
They are the same sandwich — the Cuban sandwich (also called Cubano) features ham, roast pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard on pressed Cuban bread. The Tampa, Florida version uniquely adds Genoa salami, reflecting the city's Italian immigrant community. Miami's version omits the salami. Both cities claim to have originated it.
Last updated: April 2026