If you're craving a sandwich in the Spitalfields area, you should pay a visit to Crunch - a sandwich stall in Old Spitalfield Market that takes the humble sandwich to new levels.
Crunch was born out of a chance meeting outside a London nightclub - founders Alexandre Yonan, Michael Medovnikov and Joni Francisco discovered a shared obsession with sandwiches, and between them they developed an idea for next-level 'experimental brioche sandwiches' that took up residence at The Prince Arthur in Old Street. The word spread fast, and Crunch built a cult following that eventually led to a permanent site in nearby Spitalfields Market, where you'll find them slinging out toasted brioche sandwiches seven days a week.
Sandwiches have a reputation as being easy, casual DIY food, but Crunch brings serious expertise and quality ingredients to a humble medium - Francisco trained under Nuno Mendes at Chiltern Firehouse before bringing his experience to sandwich development at Crunch. Gourmet sandwiches on the menu include the signature fried chicken sandwich - a stack of crisp fried chicken, shredded lettuce, baby pickles and homemade dill aioli.
There are options for all occasions too. If you're in the mood for a messy cheeseburger, give the square cheeseburger a go, with it's crunchy golden brioche Angus beef patty, lettuce, Cheddar, baby pickles, crispy onions and secret burger sauce.
Indulging at Crunch means savoring gourmet sandwiches like the truffle patty melt, featuring truffle-injected Angus beef patties, red Leicester cheese, crispy onion marmalade, and black truffle mayonnaise. There are vegan and vegetarian options too, including a fried oyster mushroom and miso 'shroomwich' and the vegan veg-king roast with za'atar roasted aubergine, roasted red peppers, baby spinach, torched kerrymaid vegan cheese and home-made harissa hummus.
Along with the sandwiches, Crunch doesn't just do chips - instead you get 1000-layer potatoes; a terrine made with patience and love, where potatoes are hand-cut, fried, and layered into a unique chip.
To minimize food waste and embrace creativity, Crunch introduced pain perdu to their dessert menu section, transforming leftover brioche into a sweet treat.