Frills, famous fans and a Finnish twist. Mark Jones continues our investigative journey into the world of the Club Sandwich

Before we proceed with our sacred quest for the perfect Club Sandwich, there is an issue we cannot sidestep any longer: frilly toothpicks.

The frilly paper-clad toothpick/cocktail stick arguably belongs to a darker, sadder era. Surely they should be consigned, like cocktail umbrellas and candles in Chianti bottles, to some museum of dining history?

But we at The Club are less sure. To us, a CS not skewered by a frilly toothpick is not a proper CS at all. The sight of those gooey, tomatoey juices seeping on to the pristine white of the toothpick-protector is an essential part of the ritual. But we are open to persuasion.

Back to the quest. We took to Twitter to see how the CS was capturing social media, and found that @hughsaan, Hugh Harris – who also happens to be the guitarist in Brit rock band The Kooks – had some thoughts to share: “Not to open up a debate, but the best Club Sandwich is definitely at The Gore hotel, Kensington.”

Sorry, Hugh, but open up a debate is just what we do want to do. So why London’s The Gore? He responds: “It’s subtle but the bread is sort of just past toast, but not burnt. Bacon evenly distributed. Strong tomato presence. Magic.” Seems like a fair assessment to us.

In other news, we’ve been to Finland. Nordic cuisine is the dominant food trend, so we went to the hottest chef in one of the coldest places: Sasu Laukonnen of the Chef & Sommelier restaurant in Helsinki.

“I have made quite a few Club Sandwiches in my time,” he tells us. “Here is a Finnish take on it.”

Finnish Club Sandwich
(Serves two)

2 pieces reissumies bread (Finnish rye bread)

Butter

50g sharp Emmental cheese, grated

2 tbsp sharp mustard

6 tbsp mayonnaise

1 chicken breast, pan-fried until moist and sliced

4 slices country-style smoked ham

4 lettuce leaves, washed

1-2 tomatoes, sliced

1 pickled cucumber, sliced

2 pieces spring onion, sliced

Parsley and dill leaves

Toast both slices of bread and butter while still warm. Mix the Emmental with mustard and mayonnaise, and spread on to the bread. Fill the breads with the sliced chicken breast and the remaining ingredients. Skewer both halves and cut each half into two. Serve with potato crisps.

Have you come across a better Club Sandwich on your travels? We want to know about it!

Have an opinion on The Club that you’d like to share? Let us know

This article has been tagged Food + Drink, Opinion