Shanghai’s newest food trend isn’t exactly new. The sandwich is seemingly everywhere these days, and the market is getting bullish. By Jarrett Wrisley.

“What do you want to order for lunch?” my officemate asks, as I leaf through a growing stack of paper menus, special offers, and promotions. Shanghai, once a sandwich wasteland, has, in typical Shanghai fashion, changed almost overnight.

Four years ago finding a decent sandwich was simple: you went to the Portman, sat down at Element Fresh, and ordered one. You could head to Blue Frog, Malone’s or perhaps Always Café – but the pickings were slim and the neighborhood’s foreign residents dictated the food available. No longer.

People like the idea of trends and one of the questions that journalists always get asked is, “So, what’s the next big thing in the Shanghai food scene?” I’ve had assignments where editors simply asked for pieces about said trends – and I’ve sat and scratched my head and tried to come up with something, anything, that might be characterized as a movement in local food. But in the last few months it’s become increasingly obvious: these are salad days for the Shanghai sandwich.

“There’s certainly been a huge increase in sandwich availability since I arrived here in 2002,” says blogger Dan Washburn of Shanghaiist.com, who’s been heckled by online commentators for spending too much time covering the handheld lunch. “There seems to be a small sandwich shop popping up all the time these days – but it seems to me that people might be trying to cash in on what is only a perceived desire for sandwiches.”

He’s right about one thing, for sure – there is definitely a movement to cash in. “Everybody wants to expand fast, and get a share of the market,” says Kelley Lee, whose iiiit! chain of sandwich shops has added two more links this year. Element Fresh has opened locations in Pudong, Xujiahui, and two smaller locations, according to brand director Jim Fu. Wagas also recently made the trip east, opening in Pudong. Moon River Diner has entered the fray with their deli at Tong Le Fang, and David Laris’ Slice now has three locations. And there are countless more on the way, like Korean chain Paris Baguette, which recently entered the market and has plans to open twenty stores here.

But this growth isn’t merely relegated to brand names. Others, frustrated with the homogeneity of the sandwich biz, have decided to open independent stores. New York City Deli, which is probably this writer’s favorite sandwich shop of the moment (full disclosure: this changes by the month) serves meaty handheld meals, potato salad and coleslaw in the American tradition. And if you’re in Pudong, stop by Panino, an Italian panini shop that serves delicious, toasty sandwiches straight out of the press in the shadow of the Pearl Tower.

“When I got to Shanghai three years ago, all the sandwiches were Anglo-Saxon,” says Panino owner Emanuele Vender. “In Italy, we also have a great sandwich culture, and our idea is something light and fresh with a few top quality ingredients – and it’s great for the working community.” Panino is expanding to Puxi soon.

But why so much so fast? According to chef David Laris, China is the perfect place for a sandwich shop. “It really makes sense to come to a city like Shanghai, and a country like China, where people are used to eating on the go – we think people here will embrace sandwich culture, and that’s why we got into it in the first place.” Another iiiit! partner, chef Eduardo Vargas, mirrors Laris’ sentiment. “The sandwich business is a good business; it’s casual and it’s something that people can eat everyday,” he explains. “But the key here is location. People don’t go out of their way for a sandwich, they eat it for convenience.”

The word convenience is on the tip of every owner’s tongue, and this is probably the overriding factor in our recent fad. As this town emerges as a mile-a-minute business destination, people are spending less time at lunch picking through countless dishes, sipping tea, and enjoying themselves. You might instead be stuck behind your computer, gobbling up a reuben, and washing down with a can of Coke, as I just did. But it’s only a fad until it catches on with the locals, and according to Lee of iiiit!, it has. “The local market is really willing to try our products. Now, at least 30-35 percent of our clientèle are local. There’s been a great turnaround here – and that’s what you need for sustainability.”

So it seems that not only are people cashing in, but the demand is real, both from expats and locals. There’s no better soundbite for our city and the sandwich shops it’s spawning than Shanghainese Nicky Wu. Nicky, a soft-spoken entrepreneur, runs a tiny shop called Sandwich House on Guangyuan Lu, just behind Xujiahui. “I always wanted to do something on my own,” he explains, in the space where he also takes orders and builds very respectable sandwiches. “And it just seemed like right now is the right time in Shanghai to strike out and do something new, so I just went for it. After all, business people don’t have time to eat these days – they order a sandwich instead.”

Element Fresh, www.elementfresh.com.
iiiit!, www.iiiit.com.
Moon River Diner, http://moonriverdiner.com.cn.
New York City Deli, 103 Fujian Nan Lu, near Jinling Lu, 63262835
Panino, 30, 1/F, Super Brand Mall, 168 Lujiazui, 5407 8077.
Sandwich House, 166 Guangyuan Lu, near Tianping Lu,62807900.
Slice delis, www.slice-deli.com.