If your sandwiches keep falling apart – or just taste a bit underwhelming – you’re not alone. At a time when shop-bought sandwiches seem to be getting smaller (and more expensive), the standard for a really good homemade one feels higher than ever.
That’s where Owen Han comes in. The viral content creator – dubbed the internet’s ‘King of Sandwiches’ – has built a massive following by obsessing over what makes a sandwich actually worth eating. And according to him, most people are making the exact same mistake.
The no.1 mistake? The ‘hinge’
It might sound minor, but Owen says this is where most subs go wrong: the way the bread is cut.
‘That’s a big pet peeve,’ he says. ‘Ingredients are falling out or all smushed to one side.’
He’s referring to the hinge – the partial cut that leaves one side of the roll attached. It may look neater, but once you take a bite, everything shifts. Fillings slide around, stack unevenly and, before long, your sandwich is falling apart.
His fix? Simply cut your sub all the way through.
It creates a better base, keeps everything evenly distributed and makes every bite actually taste like the sandwich you built.
It’s also one of the reasons he partnered with US sandwich specialist Schlotzsky’s Deli on its new Stacked Subs.
‘What Schlotzsky’s is doing is they cut all the way through,’ he says. ‘It gives you the perfect foundation to just pile layer after layer – and it just sits great.’
It all starts with the bread
Before anything else, Owen says the bread is the one thing that matters most.
‘The foundation of any good sandwich is the bread.’
Too soft, and it collapses. Too tough, and it overwhelms everything inside. The goal is structure and softness – a roll that can hold its own without getting in the way.
Don’t be shy with the filling
If you’ve ever taken a bite and thought, Why is this mostly bread? – you’ll already know the issue.
‘I like my sandwiches to be pretty meat-heavy,’ Owen says.
His rule of thumb: the thicker the bread, the more generous the filling should be. A good sub should feel stacked, not skimpy.
The secret weapon: sauce
If your sandwiches feel flat, this is probably why.
‘A sauce can make or break the sub,’ says Owen.
Whether it’s a zesty mayo, something spicy or a simple oil-and-vinegar combo, sauce adds flavour and brings everything together. Owen’s move: spread it on both sides of the bread so every bite hits.
Build it the right way (so it doesn’t get soggy)
A great sandwich isn’t just about the ingredients you use – it’s how you stack them. ‘You want [the wet ingredients] on the top, so the bottom doesn’t sog out.’
Translation: meat and cheese go first, lettuce and tomato go last. Anything oily or dressed stays up top to protect the bread from turning into a soggy mess.
Packing sandwiches for a picnic or beach day? Take it one step further: bring sauces on the side and add them right before eating.
Don’t forget the one thing most people skip
There’s one upgrade most people overlook – and it makes a huge difference.
‘Balance of fat to acid – that’s very underrated,’ says Owen. Think pickled onions, pepperoncini or even just a juicy tomato. That pop of acidity cuts through the richness and keeps your sandwich from feeling heavy.
His go-to sub order
Want a failsafe combo? Owen usually gravitates towards a turkey BLT with avocado and a spicy mayo – but when it comes to the new Stacked Subs, he had a surprise favourite.
‘I thought I was going to go with the turkey BLT with avocado,’ he says. ‘But after trying the Italian, it has this zesty, homemade mayonnaise that gives it that kick I talked about – I think that might be my favourite.’
And yes, he’ll try anything once
For someone with strong sandwich rules, Owen isn’t afraid to get weird. One of the wildest combos he’s tested? ‘It sounds ridiculous… but it actually worked.’
The sandwich in question: vanilla pudding and chimichurri.
Would he recommend it? Debatable. But it proves his bigger point – once you nail the fundamentals, you can bend the rules a little.
Still, if you take away just one thing, make it this: skip the hinge.
Susan (she/her) is the Senior Food Editor at Good Housekeeping, where she leads wine, spirits, and drinks coverage and helps shape food content across platforms. In the Kitchen & Cooking Lab, she develops and rigorously tests recipes, drawing on experience that spans Food & Wine, Food Network, three meal kit companies, a Brooklyn wine shop, and Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California. A graduate of Brown University, she has also collaborated on over a dozen cookbooks and cocktail books.
