The 120th Tuesday Taste! The Big Breakfast Sandwich Ranking

 

Oh, it's too late

I got hit by the closing door

And as I watch myself reflect

On the wrong, side of...

My, you've changed

You turned a corner I'll never go

I admit I feel a bit deceived

You're expecting I'd, follow

 

Another Tuesday... another Taste... and we've got a big one this week. A review grand slam if you would (ooo catchy, somebody should use that term on a menu or something). For the 120th edition of these weekly reviews (a purely arbitrary anniversary, agreed) I thought it would be fun to tackle one of the most popular "on the go" sandwiches in the fast food market.

Ah yes, the humble breakfast sandwich. Not quite a snack, not quite a feast either... filling both a meal middle ground and a peckish appetite when done right. Over the span of the past couple months I sought out and sampled as many fast food breakfast sandwiches as I could... the key stipulation being that to qualify for the ranking they needed to have at least two locations (otherwise I'd be faced with the endless task of trying nearly every damn restaurant and diner in a city of over four million people... I do have jobs and a life outside of this, you know). 

There's naturally a strong possibility I still missed a place or several, so please feel free to let me know. This ranking business is an imperfect science (if it can even be called a science), but nevertheless hopefully it can illuminate the key aspects of what makes a good breakfast sandwich and what doesn't.

 

 

On that subject: what exactly makes a "breakfast" sandwich? Does it have to be on a bagel or English Muffin? Is egg a necessity without argument? Would a cheeseburger with a fried egg on top somehow qualify? Where is the line, damnit? It's an easy debate to have. So, to keep things direct and simple for my purposes here... you're on a breakfast menu? You're in. 

Each sandwich is graded on a scale of zero to ten, mostly for my own organization and personal amusement. All right enough yolk jokes, lets get cracking.

 

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#0. Coffee Time

 

 

Upon stepping inside the closest remaining Coffee Time to my house, an unbearable weight of dimming sadness rushed through every sense within my very soul. Transported backwards into a place out of time, it's own contained colourless universe devoid of light and movement. Suddenly I was that hopeless creature doomed for all eternity, pushing a boulder up a slippery hill beneath the starless sky. Heads without faces gazed upon me and stared through my being, a stranger to the concept of existence.

I didn't belong here, I could not belong here. A grip of distrust was coiling around my soul. Without hesitation I averted my glimpse of the abyss and went straight for the door, never again to return.

SCORE: inc/10   

 

#22: Subway (Sausage and Egg)

You know that feeling when you go into something with the lowest possible expectations... yet the result still ends up much lower than you could've conceivably imagined? That's Subway! Truly the most commonly available culinary blight of our times. 

I'll give the absolute tiniest amount of credit for the freedom to choose your toppings and sauces here. Not that it's all that impressive since they are a freaking sub shop and their toppings are consistently trash anyhow... but whatever. I'm trying to be fair and this is honestly the only positive to be found within seven hundred yards of this... thing. 

This likely is the worst food item I've ever reviewed. Maybe the worst thing I've ever ordered in my adult life, period. You know it's bad when you're eating it on a crowded bus and you'd still rather spit it out than actually swallow the sewage. Hey no regrets: better to be publicly disgusting for a brief forgotten moment than to be horribly ill in private for several agonizing hours. 

I didn't know it was possible to make a sausage patty genuinely bad, never mind totally inedible... but Subway found a way damnit! Truly a marvel of modern chemical engineering. Imagine it sitting out in open air for days, refrozen, refrigerated, then half heated up to order. That my friends is how you give sausage the flavour of burnt rubber with the texture of a urinal cake. This was akin to eating a desiccant! Both my mouth and my spirit were dried out. Believe me when I say it was one of the most awful things I've ever tasted. 

Combined with completely flavourless eggs and the most whatever ciabatta bun that ever ciabattaed... I ended up throwing most of this into the garbage at first opportunity. Just f**king dreadful... an insult to the very existence of appetites. 

For extra measure/torture I tried their "potato rings" and boy they sure were ring-like...

 

       

Appealing, right? It's like if Mr. Potato Head ate something spoiled (like this sandwich) and Subway scooped the end results straight from the toilet. They tasted so unnaturally sour I had to spit those out too, by the way. 

Congratulations, Subway! Among fast food chains you have cemented your legacy: the absolute best at being so irredeemably the worst. It's not even close: nothing I've ever eaten here has risen to even a "meh" level. Never ever, in any circumstance, order their breakfast sandwich. Or anything off their menu in general, really... but especially this. You're better off starving to death, it'll be less revolting. I have gazed upon the gorgon, my friends... I never knew it could get this stone cold ugly...  

SCORE: 0.0001/10 

 

#21. Country Style 

Going into this project I thought for sure Country Style would claim that bottom spot without opposition. Microwaved eggs and bacon, stale chewy bagel, watery eggs... how could it get worse than this? Clearly somebody held Subway's beer. 

While better by comparison (much like how eating plastic is better for you than eating glass) that doesn't change how terrible this sandwich is. It only wins the silver medal of awful rather than the gold by being dreadful only via its exceptional rubbery blandness rather than actively harmful to the tongue. At least the minimal amount of taste here you get almost resembles actual food... almost...

SCORE: 0.5/10

 

 

#20. Burger King Chicken English Muffin

 

   

And here is where we have to ask: how is this a breakfast sandwich exactly? Because it happens to be on BK's breakfast menu? That's really the only case for it... I sure as hell don't think "first meal of the day" when I see this thing. That English Muffin is doing a helluva lot of strenuous lifting here.

However you want to define it, this sandwich stinks at any time of the day. Burger King's chicken is always so stale and tasting singularly of overly ground pepper... while slathering this thing in too much mayo and a slice of processed cheese just adds to the sensation of this not being real food. Boring and fake tasting, barely qualifying as a breakfast item, while the English Muffin itself is pretty flat without any real flavour as well. No thank you.

SCORE: 1.2/10

 

 

#19. Tim Horton's Bagel B.E.L.T.

 

 

Don't let appearances fool you, friends. For a sandwich with so much supposedly going on (everything bagel, tomato slice, bacon, lettuce and egg) this is so lacking any flavour it's downright impressive. That is, if you're impressed by things that are objectively uninspired and lame. 

Beyond some faint sweetness from the tomato, nothing in here has any zip or zing. Nothing at all! Quite possibly the limpest, most flaccid bacon I've ever encountered... no crispiness, no hint of salt, no grease... it might as well not even be there (you certainly don't notice it). Terrible! How do you screw up freaking bacon so badly? 

The egg is equal in nothingness. I took a huge bite of only that to be sure and yeah, your taste buds would need a microscope (a tastoscope?) to find anything in here, even in its yellow "yolkier" center. I'm simply at a complete loss to how this is even possible. 

When the best part of your BELT sandwich is the semi-fresh lettuce and tomato... you're in bad shape. Just not a good sandwich... all texture without substance. The quality of Tim Horton's food has seemingly taken a steep decline (not that it was ever outstanding) and we've reached the point where I think I prefer McDonald's food over this. For real. And remember, I find McDonald's extremely unappealing. 

SCORE: 1.5/10   

 

 

#18. Starbucks Turkey Bacon and Egg White 

 

 

A notable leap in quality here. 

While I can applaud Starbucks for executing a healthier breakfast sandwich option, the result is undeniably quite underwhelming. Turkey bacon is fine (I guess) but it doesn't have the same greasy, crispy, guilty punch oozing out of the good stuff. Likewise, egg whites bring good texture but lack that precious fatty eggy flavour... while this whole wheat English Muffin is soft and definitely tasting like it's good for you (which is probably still isn't) but that wheaty taste is easily the most dominant flavour here. Not for me.    

Having a gouda cheese in here though is a smart touch, giving a small dose of much needed zing (frankly the sandwich needs much more of it). Overall this one is inoffensive but quite boring, its only utility being if you're on a diet and trying to cut out certain fats. 

SCORE: 2.5/10

 

 

#17. Sunset Grill 

 

 

Don Henley reference? Anyone?

To be totally honest I tried this one almost four years ago in the early days of the TT, all I remember about it being how greasy spoon it tasted... plus that the edges of the egg were quite filmy. If you like that kind of thing, then you'd probably find this sandwich acceptable. Me? Not so much. I love a good greasy old school breakfast diner (RIP Coach House) but this is overkill. You can't taste much of anything else, plus the bun-to-everything-else ratio is absurdly askew. A heavy hitter but not in a good way. 

SCORE: 2.8/10

 

 

#16. Tim Horton's Sausage Breakfast Sandwich

 

 

Full disclosure: my real intention was to try Tim's Farmer's Breakfast Sandwich, which is basically the same thing except there's a hash brown inside of it. Naturally they messed up my order and gave me the Farmer's breakfast wrap instead... and seeing how horrible that BELT sandwich was I had no intention of spending any more actual money on anything Tim Horton's. At least I used up that gift certificate I'd had sitting around for months.

As such, this ranking is based on the last Tim's sausage and egg biscuit I had a few years ago... which wasn't all that good either. Chalky dry biscuit, flavourless eggs (a familiar trend) and too much processed cheese for my liking. I gave a much more detailed description of it here. 

Entirely possible this sandwich is even worse now in 2025 than it was back then... but frankly I'm not at all interested in finding out. This isn't exactly a flattering placement on the list, regardless. 

SCORE: 3/10 

 

 

#15. McDonald's Bacon Egg McMuffin

 

 

The OG of fast food breakfast sandwiches, the one that technically started it all. 

I did like how the English Muffin had some toasted crunch and you definitely get a hearty portion of a more flaky egg on here... but there simply isn't a whole lot of interesting flavour for the most part and that bacon is pretty darn anemic (seriously, how are so many of these places making bacon... BACON... so damn uninteresting?). This one is really crying out for something juicy or a sauce or something. Tastes like the early 1970s.

SCORE: 3.2/10

 

 

#14. Burger King's Sausage and Egg Crossian'wich

 

 

Controversy? Burger King is getting the sliiiiightest edge over the McMuffin here only because I the soft butteriness of the crossiant was considerably more interesting, even if it was so damn processed tasting. The cheese was also a bit more melted on here. Egg-wise, McDonald's is superior (BK here was unseasoned, with generic texture and extremely bland). 

Neither sandwich was all that good to be honest, so anybody taking issue with this just remember: I didn't like either of them! 

SCORE: 3.3/10

 

 

#13. Starbucks Sausage and Egg English Muffin

 

 

I must say I got pretty nervous when I saw this (and the egg white turkey bacon one) were both pre-made and placed to order inside a giant microwave oven-like contraption to re-heat them. Apparently it's a ventless oven (according to somebody on the internet) but neverless the entire thing struck me as a fancier, more high-tech microwave. Hey, if a microwave in a restaurant kitchen can be known as Chef Mike (shoutout to Kitchen Nightmares), what would this particular thing be called? "Hmmm yes, Chef de Cuisine Mikael is in tonight..."

Anyhow, the ventless oven does a solid job reheating this sandwich in one piece... the coverage of heat is impressively thorough. While a bit steamy hot, there's isn't much soggy moisture or resulting extra chewiness that a conventional microwave often inflicts upon leftover foods. 

As a breakfast sandwich... not bad at all. The sausage patty has some genuine greasy juiciness, plenty of eggy flavour in here and the cheese does have a tiny bit of cheddary presence. Soft pillowy English muffin as well... still a bit chewy but not oppressively so.

Definitely could be better. Like most entries in this lower-middle part of the list, you really want some kind of sauce on here. While tasty enough, it still feels like something is really lacking here. Still, we're finally getting close to the point where I could envision myself ordering one of these again.   

SCORE: 4.5/10                   

 

 

#12. McDonald's Sausage and Egg McGriddle

 

 

I still find it adorable how the logo is grilled/carved into the top. It's so tacky it's quite charming.

The biggest surprise of this entire project: my guilty pleasure affinity for the McGriddle. Artificial as it may be, that maple syrupy taste in the griddle bun itself just works way better than it has any right to... and there's a good balance among the other three players (American cheese, sausage patty, egg). Sweet, eggy, cheesy and greasy... is it actually a good sandwich? Hell no. But you can be my secret lover, meeting in a sleazy (SLEep-EAZY) motel on the edge of town. Mayor Quimby approved. 

SCORE: 5.3/10  

 

#11. Wendy's Breakfast Baconator

 

 

I survived Wendy's Breakfast Baconator and all I got was this lousy pacemaker. 

The big problem here is the bacon, which is not a good sign when the name of your sandwich is literally about "baconating" whatever is foolishly in its path. Don't get me wrong, the bacon here is far better than the sorry insult to pork we saw in Tim Horton's... but it's also just very okay-ish. The egg also seems very much like an afterthought among all the heavy bacon and sausage in here, which isn't ideal for a breakfast sandwich. I want that bright eggy flavour, damnit! 

Overall... it's more interesting as an expanded upon gimmick than as a sandwich. Wendy's usually is a tiny bit better than this type of mediocre offering.

SCORE: 5.5/10   

     

#10. Hero Burger Ultimate Brunch Sandwich

 

 

Here we have an unfortunate and critical mistake: this thing was supposed to have bacon on it, the lady behind the counter even asked if I wanted bacon (I said yes) and yet: no bacon! A shame because... yeah this sandwich really could've used bacon! As is, you have some solidly fried over medium egg, plenty of cheddar cheese, a good helping of sriracha and a fairly modest spread of guacamole.   

Quite a few interesting aspects to this one. The eggs are very good and fluffy, the cheddar is legit cheddar (none of that processed junk) and gives the sandwich some terrific sharpness, while the bun (which has an everything bagel-like dusting you can't see in this photo) is a very soft and squishy sweet potato bun. The guacamole is better on paper than on the tongue, as it gives oiliness but none of that hearty limey zing you really want from a good guac. 

A fine entry on the list, but I can't help but think this sandwich is just missing one thing to make it significantly better... whatever could that be? Guess we'll never know, apparently. Gotta call the coin where it lands.

SCORE: 6/10

 

 

#9. Wendy's Sausage and Egg Biscuit Sandwich

 

 

The exact same formula as the Tim Horton's one, only better in every conceivable way. Thicker, juicier sausage patty with a more grilled flavour? Check. Fresher, softer, more buttery biscuit? Check. Eggs that taste like eggs? Well... definitely a minor improvement at least. 

Seeing as this particular Wendy's (Leslie and Lakeshore) operates as one of those duel locations with a Tim Horton's... one may raise an eyebrow as to whether these two are transferring/sharing ingredients, thus making my comparisons here entirely pointless and invalid. Hey, as far as I can tell they operate completely separated kitchens (unless there's some kind of slimy gross passageway behind the washrooms) and besides: the sausage patty here is square, like Wendy's burgers. Square! Case closed.

SCORE: 6.2/10

 

 

#8. Hero Burger Chipotle Fried Chicken Breast Sandwich

 

 

The second sandwich on this list to feature fried chicken and by several miles the far superior one. It's a simple sandwich: chicken tenders, fried egg and a mango chipotle sauce. 

Eggs and fried chicken are an odd pairing: they occupy a very similar flavour lane and as such the smaller amount of egg here feels more like a texture buffer than a co-headliner of the sandwich. On their own, still a pretty good nicely seasoned fried egg. Meanwhile, the chicken strips bring some good crunch, saltiness and juiciness... overall solid and tasty tenders. 

Frankly, the real star of the sandwich is that mango chipotle sauce on here. Some legit smokey spice that pairs terrifically with either the fried chicken or the eggs... while the sweet hint of mango really only appears at the beginning before the smokey heat takes over (and the heat is indeed real). 

 

 

This probably works better as a chicken sandwich than a breakfast one, but still a quality entry nonetheless. Hero Burger... who knew? 

SCORE: 6.5/10

 

 

#7. A&W Bacon and Egger 

 

 

If you've followed my reviews you knew ol' A and Dubs was going to make an appearance high on this list. Trying this immediately after that wretched Tim's Bagel BELT was like a light from heaven shining into my mouth. "Praise the lord, I can taste again!"

The airy hollowness of this sesame bun really makes the cheese, bacon and egg the central stars of this sandwich, a task to which they are up to. You really taste that cheddar on here, while the bacon (hooray it tastes like good bacon!) has both crumbly crispiness and a salty maple hint in the aftertaste. Great touch.

Considering the fairly hollow nature of this bun, it's a somewhat one dimensional sandwich in flavour and texture compared to the higher spots on the list. Honestly, on most bites it goes more like a cheese and bacon sandwich with a bit of egg in there. Hey, that's not a bad thing. 

SCORE: 6.7/10

 

 

#6. What-A-Bagel

 

 

Now this is what a bagel B.E.L.T should look like, damnit. 

While this does fall into the "not as exciting as it looks" category, this is still a very satisfying bagel sandwich (and a large one at that). The egg is very soft (making this entire sammy extremely messy) and there's an overall high degree of freshness to all these ingredients. Crisp, crunchy lettuce, vivid tomato... even the turkey bacon (yeah I know) does it's job of adding some meaty saltiness. The bagel itself has a distinct oniony flavour throughout and while I'd have preferred it had been slightly more toasted, it's entirely fine and doughy fresh here in this form. 

An extremely simple and straightforward sandwich in composition and taste, indeed. Won't blow your morning socks off, no... just a completely solid and tasty breakfast bagel sandwich. Heck, considering the lack of greasiness, lower fat turkey bacon and vegetable presence... this is also probably one of the healthiest options on this entire list as well.

Also: free samples! (their cream cheese has a pleasant lightness to it)

 

 

SCORE: 7/10

 

 

#5. A&W Sausage and Egger English Muffin

 

A&W gettin' it right once again. Using legitimately fresh English Muffins (the floury smell and taste is unmistakable) well fried eggs and a heck of a lot of melted cheddar cheese... here you have it. I kept eating this thing without realizing it... they've got a hold on me!

I do wish the sausage patty had a bit more to it... the texture is a bit spongey and you don't get a lot of grilled greasy pork flavour in there. It's fine I suppose. Beyond that though? This simple little sandwich is bright with flavour: the aftertaste of that airy english muffin lingers nicely, the eggs pop on the tongue (and are plentiful on every bite) and again that distinct sharpness of the cheddar is a nice little gooey touch.

Would this be better with some spice, or some kind of sauce? Of course. All of these sandwiches would be! Nevertheless, a tasty little sandwich that really hits the right spot for me. Always has and still does.               

SCORE: 7.3/10          

 

#4. Bagels On Fire

 

The strongest bagel entry of the list and for good reason: those sweet, gummy honey baked bagels are uniquely delicious and make a fine companion for the breakfast-y goodness within. 

It's a small and dense sandwich: excellent balance between the lightly fried eggs, precisely thinly sliced fresh cold cut ham and hearty cheddar cheese. A light dab of mayo and black pepper help boost the overall flavours and give a bit more depth to it all... but really the bagel is the star of the show here and is absolutely delicious.Very good breakfast elements on a wicked bread.

SCORE: 8/10

 

 

#3. Egg Club

 

 

I really, really wish that cheese was more melted (this legitimately costs them any chance at the silver medal) but there's nothing else to quibble about on this one. 

A damn delicious sandwich: those folded eggs have the perfect consistently of a milky light eggy omlette, the bacon is on point and much like Bagels on Fire... the bread is the absolute superstar. That Japanese milk bread is so soft and vibrant with a slightly sweet and cream-like flavour... I could eat that fresh on it's own any time of the day. Definitely a place worthy of a revisit. 

SCORE: 8.2/10

 

 

#2. Gold Standard 

 

 

The undisputed winner of "this tastes way better than it looks, and it still looks pretty good". 

Choosing between these top two on the list was a seriously tough call... in my heart it's pretty close to a tie for first because I enjoyed both these breakfast sandwiches immensely. 

Gold Standard has a lot going on in this sammy: cheesy fluffy scrambled eggs (that hold together brilliantly), slices of pickle, some hot sauce and a helping of incredibly wonderful bacon (this here is how you do it!). My longtime friend and occasional food trying associate (who ran the kitchen of a bacon restaurant in the past) joined me on this one and indeed was eager to know which butcher GS gets their bacon from. 

She's extremely correct. This bacon was perfect in its combination of saltiness, fattiness, crispiness and endless tenderness. All the "ness'! The way it lingered in the mouth too... by far the best of any sandwich on this list. The little pickles are a nice little quirky touch as well, whereas the hot sauce was mostly invisible until the final few bites. Then? Pow! An intense chili pepper like heat that did not hesitate in taking no prisoners. They sell bottles of the stuff and I'd be very interested: you don't need much of it at all to land a punch, clearly. 

Combined with a fresh, soft and lightly toasted English muffin... this is a nearly perfect breakfast sandwich. No major flaws. My only complaint is wishing it were a bit larger: I probably could've eaten two of these. Wanting me coming back for more? I see your wicked ways, Gold Standard... I'm wise to this racket. Bit annoying both locations are on the other side of town from me though... damnit. 

SCORE: 9.4/10

 

 

#1. Bad Egg

 

 

Apparently they're known as Bold Bites Co. now or something? Lame. I can't make lazy egg related puns on that! Booooo!

If eggs are truly the most crucial component of a breakfast sandwich, then Bag Egg combining hard boiled with scrambled and pulling it off on a sandwich surely wins the delicious day. The mix of textures: squishy with fluffy, a lightly sweet mayo sauce, fresh thick bread slices toasted just to the right point... just an absolute winner here, folks. 

Nevertheless, if I was going to award them the top slot I wanted to be absolutely sure. That's right... it's a double down! (not a KFC one, thankfully)

 

 

This is their Cluck N' Good egg drop: fried chicken, lettuce, tomato, Bad Egg sauce and eggs of course. While those sliced hard boiled eggs are gone, you've still got the eggs folded over scrambled-style that fills this entire sandwich. I also hadn't noticed on my first visit that they also use egg bread (the only place on this list to do so I believe) which gives the sammy a layer of extra richness (and oiliness).    

I'd say the second visit was worth it: Bad Egg holds up as still being pretty damn awesome. As a breakfast sandwich these things are heavy and filling enough that yeah, you can probably skip lunch too. Simply an eggceptional entry worthy of the top slot on this breakfast sandwich podium. 

SCORE: 9.6/10  

 

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So what have we learned here? That eggs and bacon (or sausage) in sandwich form are damn delicious, also that most major fast food chains are terrible at making them. Hopefully this list has inspired you to go check out some of these genuinely excellent ones here (and to likewise never ever try any of the downright repugnant entries). As long as you don't "break fast" in rushing out the door! Ha! Ha? Ugh. Sorry.

 

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Rap City

Wrote my annual report on a bad (yet intriguing for the future) Toronto Raptors season. Could they actually be... good next year? Read my thoughts here to find out.  

 

Tuesday Tune

I still hold out hope, fading and bleak now as it is, that these three one day get back together and record another album. JPJ turns eighty next year, boys... running out of time here! 

 

 

That's it for this week! Hope you enjoyed this deep dive into breakfast sandwiches here in Toronto. We'll be back with something simpler (and much shorter!) next time but until then... stay safe, stay warm and most of all don't spill that mustard.