Start Your Morning Right
When you break a breakfast sandwich down to its bare essentials, it's pretty simple: bread, protein, eggs, and cheese. Some chains dress up their 'wiches with fancy cheeses or bun options, while others stick to the classics. Whether you run on Dunkin' or can't start a day without your egg McMuffin, there's bound to be a breakfast sandwich out there for you, and this guide will help you choose wisely.
1. Del Taco Breakfast Burrito
A breakfast burrito at Del Taco should be a no-brainer. Unfortunately, they don't manage to skip the landing. Both the red sauce and bacon make aggressive use of seasoning, resulting in a culinary car crash.
2. Subway Egg & Cheese
Subway's egg and cheese is a breakfast sandwich at its most basic—and it fails miserably. The problem is not the lack of protein or other ingredients, but rather that customers have to ask that their eggs be heated separately to avoid biting into them frozen! Given that a footlong that used to cost $5 now costs $15 (and isn't even that good), perhaps Subway should focus on what's really important.
3. Tim Hortons Bacon, Egg & Cheese Croissant
Canada's favorite breakfast chain hits the nail on the head with some items but misses the mark completely. The croissant in this sandwich is flatter than a sheet of paper and dry to boot. The rest of the sandwich is smushed, limp, and flavorless.
4. Dunkin' Donuts Wake-Up Wrap
What is this, a wrap for ants? This wrap is about the size of a street taco with a single strip of bacon, a measly egg, and unmelted American cheese. If you want a breakfast that will wake you up, Dunkin' has better options.
5. Sonic Sausage Breakfast Toaster
Credit where it's due, Sonic's sausage breakfast toaster looks delicious: the springy Texas toast cradling fresh-cracked eggs. However, looks can be deceiving. The egg and cheese in this sandwich are fine, while the toast is spongy and dry and the sausage artificially salty.
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6. Starbucks Double-Smoked Bacon, Cheddar & Egg Sandwich
When you go to Starbucks, you probably go for the drinks or pastries; we don't think anyone really goes for the food. This sandwich is a great reason why: the croissant defies reality, being dry and dense rather than light and flaky. If you do go to Starbucks for the food, please write in.
7. Wendy's Sausage, Egg & Cheese Croissant
Oh Wendy's...where did this sandwich go wrong. The bun is good and soft, a far cut above other croissants on this list, but everything else lacks substance. Not physical substance, of course, because this is a brick of a sandwich, but a flavorful substance. This is a sandwich that tastes like nothing.
8. Burger King Sausage Croissan'Wich
Some people consider BK one of the titans of breakfast sandwiches, but we'll have to humbly disagree. The sausage Croissan'Wich is impressive structurely with a plump croissant and impressive patty, the texture leaves much to be desired. Unlike many sandwiches on this list that are frozen and reheated, the Croissan'Wich tends to be overcooked and left sitting.
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9. Starbucks Bacon, Gouda & Egg Sandwich
The bacon, gouda & egg sandwich is Starbucks' most popular option, but that isn't saying much. The Seattle-based coffee chain attempts to dress up their classic BEC by using Gouda and a ciabatta bun, but no amount of class can hide the horrors of flash-freezing. The sandwiches reheat poorly, leading to a chewy and overpowing bun with minimal bacon.
10. A&W Sausage Egger
It feels cruel to judge a fast food breakfast sandwich by its looks, but, man, A&W's Sausage Egger just looks sad. The name is cute, and the price is good, but the taste leaves much to be desired. Not only does this sandwich suffer from an overpowering level of spice, but there's something...off about the sausage.
Now that we've covered the worst of the worst when it comes to breakfast sandwiches, let's get into the best of the best.
1. Tim Hortons Farmer's Wrap
The farmer's wrap is Tim Hortons' Holy Grail. What takes this meal to the next level is the inclusion of two simple things: a hashbrown inside the wrap, and a healthy squirt of chiptle mayo. There was a bit of a hullabaloo a few years ago when a change in folding technique led customers to believe they they were victims of shrinkflation, but the sandwich contents are the same.
2. White Castle Belgian Waffle Sausage Slider
Are we including this slider solely for novelty? Yes, partly, but the rest is earned. Not only are Belgian waffles a genius sandwich base, but the sweetness of the waffles mixed with the saltiness of the sausage makes for a match made in heaven.
3. McDonald's Egg McMuffin
The egg McMuffin is the platonic ideal of a breakfast sandwich. The flavor isn't the most exciting, nor is it the biggest sandwich on offer, but it has one thing going for it that competitor's lack: consistency. When you order a McMuffin, you know exactly what you're getting and it hits the same every time.
4. Wendy's Breakfast Baconater
Big, bold, and beautiful, Wendy's breakfast Baconater is everything you'd expect and more. If you're hungover, this sandwich stacked high with bacon, sausage, cheese, and egg will be calling your name. The thing that really makes this sandwich stand out is the use of Swiss cheese sauce.
5. Chick-Fil-A Chicken, Egg & Cheese Biscuit
If you expected Chick-fil-A to deviate from chicken for their breakfast sandwich, you thought wrong. Chick-fil-A has a great breakfast menu all around, but their basic biscuit is where it's at: creamy, melty, salty, and crunchy. Just don't think too much about the chicken and the egg sharing a bun.
6. Carl's Jr. Breakfast Burger
A breakfast burger may seem like overkill, but if you're already going there, you may as well go big. This burger plays to the chain's strengths with strong flavor that isn't too salty, a splash of ketchup (breakfast sacrilege!) and a couple of potato patties shoved in there. It may not be the best choice for everyday consumption, but it's a great indulgence.
7. McDonald's Sausage, Egg & Cheese McGriddle
The iconic egg McMuffin may be better-known, but the McGriddle is the OG Mickey D's breakfast item. The mapley brown sugar of the hot cakes provides the perfect base notes for the charred sausage and melty cheese. The stamped M logo is just the cherry on top.
8. Starbucks Egg, Pesto & Mozzarella Sandwich
We've been hard on Starbucks' breakfast items before, but we also recognize how hard it is to find beggie-friendly breakfast sandwich. However, that isn't the only reason why we're including this pesto & mozz sammie on this list. The kale and basil pesto plus a chedder and onion bun are so fresh and flavorful that even carnivores will be satisfied.
9. Taco Bell Breakfast Bacon Crunchwrap
Taco Bell's most popular menu item (aside from Baja Blast) is undoubtedly the Crunchwrap, so it's no surprise that the breakfast variation is one of their best options. With silky scrambled eggs, crumbly bacon, and a whole hashbrown patty in the middle, this is Southwest breakfast perfecion.
10. Panera Asiago Sausage & Egg Sandwich
Panera's breakfast offerings are among the most expensive on the list, but we promise they're worth it. The fluffy Asiago cheese bagel is an inspired choice for a base with cheesy saltiness but without density that will weigh you down. The chewy sausage and egg play wonderfully on this beautiful canvas.
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