The month of August has a lot going for it. It’s still summer, the weather is great, and many towns in New England have lots of fun stuff going on. But at Bentley’s Roast Beef, we have another reason to love the month of August: it’s National Sandwich Month! That’s right, all month, we’re celebrating what many people consider to be the perfect food. Two pieces of bread filled with meat, cheese, veggies, and whatever else you think makes the best sandwich. Sandwiches take many forms ranging from wraps to subs, and we have it all at Bentley’s! So if you’re looking for great sandwiches and subs in Nashua, NH, you’ve come to the right place.

In honor of National Sandwich Month, let’s take a bite out of some food history!

The Ancient World and the Middle Ages

While the sandwich as we know it today most likely has its origins in 18th-century Europe (we’ll come back to that), people used bread to hold food long before that. Throughout the Mediterranean, Middle East, Africa, and Asia, flatbreads are a traditional staple of local cuisines. In all these cultures, flatbreads have always been convenient food-delivery systems, eaten either as wraps or open-faced sandwiches. There is even a reference to this method of eating in the Aeneid, which tells the story of the origins of ancient Rome. According to the story, a harpy told Aeneas and the Trojans that they wouldn’t find their home until they were so hungry they ate their tables. When they arrive on Italian shores, the Trojans eat a meal served on flatbreads. When they finished, they were still hungry, so they ate the flatbreads. Realizing they’d “eaten their tables,” they knew they had found their new home.

The practice of using bread as plates persisted into Medieval Europe. Thick slabs of stale bread called “trenchers” often functioned as plates. After the meal was over, the food-soaked stale bread was again edible. Wealthy people would feed it to their dogs or give it to the poor. Less fortunate people would eat the trencher themselves.

Lord Sandwich’s Innovation

Now we come to the origin of the modern sandwich. In the 18th century, meat between two slices of bread was the preferred food of late-night gamblers. We get the name “sandwich” from the man we credit with bringing the food into polite society. John Montagu was the 4th Earl of Sandwich and was famously fond of gambling. To avoid getting grease on his cards, the Earl asked for salt beef between two slices of toasted bread. Other aristocrats also enjoyed this food and referred to it as a “sandwich” after the Earl.

We have the best sandwiches and subs in Nashua, NH, at Bentley’s Roast Beef! Come visit us or order online!