Farm Spirit alumni Kei Ohdera and HJ Schaible butcher, roast, smoke, and brine all of the Oregon-raised meats used in this Alberta Street restaurant’s sandwiches, which are often paired with Oregon-grown produce and house-made condiments. The resulting sandwiches are truly mind-blowing: a tender and delicate pastrami serves as the foundation for the shop’s Reuben, while roasted pork coppa can be found in the restaurant’s loose interpretation of a Cubano. It is simply impossible to go wrong here, but Pasture’s “O.G.” — something sort of like a banh mi with house pastrami and Oregon hazelnut chile oil — never misses.

Following suit from its name, this sandwich shop splits its menu into meat options like blackened chicken salad and pork mojo and vegan options like roasted broccolini and lemongrass tofu. No matter which side of the menu diners gravitate toward, sandwiches are constructed on sturdy Dos Hermanos ciabatta hoagie bread and come with house-made chips. Don’t leave without a delectable vegan cookie for the road. For a morning sandwich fix, the shop serves its sourdough English muffin breakfast sandwiches until noon.

A consummate hole-in-the-wall, Taste Tickler has been serving its deli-style sandwiches to the Broadway crowd for decades now. Though it’s been passed down from owner to owner, the concept has stayed largely the same: traditional submarine sandwiches and bento dishes. Sandwiches here arrive topped with the usual fixings: mayonnaise, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions, and pepperoncini, along with Provolone and Parmesan. Ordering the eponymous Taste Tickler is a worthy choice, a sub sandwich with ham, salami, and pepperoni, and the usual toppings. However, another pro move is the restaurant’s take on a cheesesteak, which is something more like a bulgogi sub.

This westside sandwich shop comes from fine dining alumni of the Michael Mina restaurant group, but don’t expect anything too pretentious here. Turkey fans adore Break Bread’s variations on the classic, whether it’s the Chubby Puggy with bacon jam and garlic aioli, or the Jimmy Pesto with pesto aioli and roasted red peppers. Smoked ham sandwiches are also winners here, in particular the Corleone with honey-roasted almonds.

A bright and sunny sandwich shop decked out with plants and Mexican artwork, Güero is all about the tortas. The restaurant’s takes on the classic Mexican sandwich come on a crispy telera roll, served hot with a variety of offerings including roasted meats like achiote-marinated chicken or braised beef; they’re joined by vegetarian sandwiches, from the fried masa and potato pancake to the refried bean sandwich. Most come with some manner of slaw, avocado, peppers, and cotija cheese, though there’s variety there, as well. The ahogada is an especially messy treat and an iconic menu item: Carlton Farms pork, habanero slaw, and cilantro comes on a grilled bolillo roll. It’s served with a side of achiote sauce for either dipping or, more traditionally, drenching the whole thing.

Pastrami is the name of the game at Sammich, so much so that its companion food cart carried the same name as the flagship sandwich: the Pastrami Zombie. Chef and owner Melissa McMillan brines and smokes beef brisket in a process that takes nearly a week. The result: Beautifully tender, rich, and aromatic pastrami, stacked tall on rye bread with just a bit of slaw, mayo, and Swiss cheese. It’s such an immaculate sandwich that it’s easy to miss the other items on the menu, but after a few return visits it’s advisable to branch out to sandwiches like the Chicago Italian beef (a la The Bear) or the excellent burger, Da Burg. However, there’s no shame in sticking with the Zombie.

Snappy’s opened just before the pandemic truly struck the city. The restaurant, a tiny shop with bodega vibes squeezed between Kinboshi Ramen and Nong’s Khao Man Gai, focuses on nailing a few diner staples, like a turkey club, tuna melt, patty melt, and chicken salad. However, the real draw is its take on a hot beef and cheddar, a delightfully sloppy pile of au jus dipped and griddled roast beef, cheddar, horseradish cream, and both griddled and fried onions. All the necessary sides — including Utz crab chips — are also available. 

It’s hard to imagine a sandwich shop in Portland more well-known and celebrated than Lardo. What started as a food truck ended up with three locations in greater Portland and Las Vegas, and today it still brings in the long lines for its meaty, over-the-top sandwiches. Its flagship is the Korean pork shoulder, topped with kimchi, cilantro, and a generous portion of chile mayo on fluffy ciabatta. It’s audacious, especially if paired with some pork-and-pepper-covered dirty fries, and sums up what Lardo is all about. However, for those looking for something new, each month the restaurant partners with a different chef for its “Chefwich,” which raises money for a cause of the guest chef’s choosing. You can usually spot the latest Chefwich on Instagram.

This cozy little neighborhood spot has been a Buckman standby for more than a decade, customers stopping in to enjoy its sandwiches, burritos, and coffee. There’s no real bad move at Meat Cheese Bread, which goes far beyond its name with all kinds of hot and cold vegetarian sandwiches, often changing seasonally. Still, basics like a turkey with bacon, fontina, and lettuce on sourdough can always be found. Its breakfast burritos are also a major hit. 

In terms of sandwiches you literally could not find anywhere else, Papi Sal’s delivers in spades at White Owl Social Club, where the former food cart pops up. Philadelphia meets Puerto Rico whether it’s in a pernil-and-Provolone “jawn” with broccoli rabe, or the vegan cheese chopped “jawn” with oyster mushrooms and guava barbecue sauce. Keep an eye on the Papi Sal’s Instagram for secret menu items and specials, like the chipped prosciutto and sofrito mayo Old Italian.

This Southeast Division food cart has become a favorite among East Coast expats craving old-school Italian grinders, hoagie rolls stretched wide and stuffed with breaded chicken cutlets, pork-and-beef meatballs, or thinly sliced eggplant. The cart’s Italian cold cut sub, however, is a thing of beauty, layers of ham, pepperoni, salami, and coppa topped with a pile of house giardiniera, hot peppers, shredded lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and the customary oil and vinegar.

This Southeast Powell sandwich shop is all about the Philly cheesesteak, from the traditional with Cheez Whiz and onions to the “supremes” with added veggies and white American cheese. These hulking sandwiches come with a choice of added toppings and the big three cheeses (wiz, white American, or provolone), as well as others like cheddar and pepper jack. However you order it, the foundational meat on Steakadelphia sandwiches is juicy, thinly shaved, and plentiful — as it should be.

A bánh mì institution, Best Baguette drive-thru lines have been reliably filled for years now. The quick and cheap sandwich and boba shop offers a broad array of baguette sandwiches, each topped with mayo, slivered and pickled carrots and daikon, slices of jalapeno, and thick bunches of cilantro. It’s difficult to go wrong here, but newcomers should start with the Best Baguette Special, which comes with pate, ham, pork roll, and head cheese. Other standouts include the barbecue pork and grilled chicken. 

While places like Best Baguette may carry more name recognition, An Xuyên has quietly served some of the city’s best bánh mì to a faithful crowd for years now. The secret must be in the bread, baked daily in house. It manages to have a crispy, flaky crust, but stays perfectly soft the rest of the way through for ease of dining. Fillings range for the more traditional pate and Vietnamese ham to chipotle chicken, lemongrass pork, and vegetarian options including tofu or faux meat. All of them come with cucumbers, pickled carrot and daikon, cilantro, and jalapenos. Beyond the sandwiches, An Xuyên also carries savory and sweet bao, along with a plethora of baked goods from macarons to fluffy tea cakes.