Rise of the giant gourmet sandwich takes a big bite of street food market

When it comes to sandwiches, it turns out size really does matter.

- Chloe Mac Donnell

From east London to Edinburgh, supersized sarnies with a girth of at least four inches are trending, with some towering structures costing as much as £12.

At the Dusty Knuckle in Dalston, east London, wedges of roasted beetroot are smothered in a harissa dressing, topped with a herby salad, sprinkled with almonds and shoved between two pillowy soft slabs of focaccia.

At Mondo Sando in Camberwell, south London, its chewy white baguettes feature layers of salami and capicola squeezed between mozzarella and hot peppers, while one of the most popular sandwiches at Alby's in Southside, Edinburgh, features chunks of battered chicken thighs covered in crispy onions and wedged between doorstep slices.

A forthcoming cookbook from The Bear's Matty Matheson - in real life a Canadian chef - includes recipes for precipitous pork sandos and French dip rolls.

Edd Watkinson, who runs the Big Deal's Bodega in Norwich, selling giant sarnies featuring everything from peaches to samosas, says the key to the gargantuan trend is "providing customers with a sandwich that's so far removed from a sandwich they'd make themselves at home".