Having moved to Cincinnati from Columbus two years ago, I’ve yet to find a sufficient local alternative to Fox in the Snow’s nearly perfect egg sandwich. While Cincinnati’s food scene has much to offer and I’ve enjoyed exploring it, I’ve been on the hunt for a delicious, well-balanced breakfast sandwich that doesn’t necessitate a three-and-a-half-hour round-trip drive. Thus, a tour of seven local spots felt like a good place to start. I tried to select a mix of popular and lesser-known shops that offered various bread options and sandwiches where meat wasn’t necessarily the star of the show (as I am a vegetarian and firm believer that breakfast sandwiches are a vehicle to let the ever-underrated egg shine). While I don’t believe I’ve found the perfect breakfast sandwich in the Queen City just yet, my hope is this tour leads you to deliciousness nonetheless. Buen provecho!

The Madison Place The Kaplan: Tomato slice, over-medium egg and avocado slices served on a Blue Oven Bakery English muffin, $7.50 Perhaps I should just write an ode to the Blue Oven Bakery English muffin instead of reviewing The Kaplan at The Madison Place because that was what originally drew me to choosing this sandwich in the first place. For those who have not yet experienced the true pleasure of eating a Blue Oven Bakery English muffin, run (don’t walk) to Findlay Market and get yourself one as soon as possible. Bring it home, stick it in the toaster, smear some good butter and strawberry jam on top or, better yet, butter, a drizzle of honey and a sprinkle of Maldon salt…so good. But I digress — back to the sandwich. It’s simple: avocado, tomato and an egg on a toasted Blue Oven Bakery English muffin. While the simplicity of this sandwich combined with the Blue Oven Bakery English muffin originally enticed me to try it, the sandwich just needed more. A good breakfast sandwich often needs some kind of delicious sauce to tie all the individual components together or to provide a complement to the other flavors you are getting. Hot sauce and ketchup can provide good acid to balance a simple egg and cheese. Mayo or aioli can serve as a creamy fatty base. Every once in a while, you get a sandwich that has some kind of spicy chutney or sweet jam that acts as a special surprise you didn’t know you wanted or needed, but after you have it, you are in love. Unfortunately, there was no such surprise in The Kaplan. No butter, no aioli, no spicy mayo-ketchup, no cheese, no delicious fatty spread to bind the sandwich together. Overall, it was just too dry and the egg cooked over medium hard didn’t allow for any delicious runny yolk to save it. The avocado was perfectly ripe and there was a thin slice of tomato that covered the full sandwich and you could taste it in every bite (though not the summer tomato that I dream about every other month of the year and want in every egg sandwich I eat in August and September). There was also some kind of seasoning I could see sprinkled on the egg but could not taste. The spot itself was cute — Jack Johnson was playing in the background and the servers were friendly. I’d happily meet a friend for coffee here or do some work for a change in scenery, but, sadly, I don’t think I’d come back for the egg sandwich. Photo: facebook.com/themadisonplacecoffeeshop
Eckerlin Meats Egg and Cheese On A Roll, $4 Eckerlin’s egg and cheese is the only sandwich I had tried prior to this tour, as I often take out of town guests to Eckerlin Meats so they can try goetta. In addition to a full deli, Eckerlin offers their breakfast sandwiches until 2 p.m. on Sundays and 3 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, which is a big plus. You order at the counter and then pick up your food from a window in the hallway, with seating available in the back in addition to Findlay Market’s outdoor tables. The sandwich itself is nothing special or fancy – almost giving Wonder Bread grilled cheese cut on the diagonal vibes. But at $4 a pop, Eckerlin delivers on delicious simplicity. Served on a slightly sweet North College Hill Bakery white roll with a slice of American cheese, Eckerlin’s egg sandwich comes with zero fixings. I prefer mine with ketchup and hot sauce for a little acid, but other than that, I have no complaints. The egg is cooked over medium, (a rarity for non-homemade sandwiches), allowing for its namesake ingredient to shine through with jammy yolk goodness rather than serving as a mere backdrop to toppings. On the smaller side, you could easily order this sandwich and still save some room for other tasty treats at Findlay. Fast, cheap, simple – Eckerlin’s egg and cheese hits every time. For meat eaters, you can order it with goetta, bacon, sausage, beef bacon or smoked mett for an additional $1.50-$2.50. I suggest ordering the goetta well done so you have a bit more textural diversity from the soft bun. Also, pro-tip, grab yourself a bag of NCH bakery’s cinnamon swirl bread while you’re there for toast or French toast when you get home. Photo: eckerlinmeats.com
The Bagelry Bacon Avocado: Fresh cracked scrambled egg, bacon, sliced avocado and sriracha sauce on your choice of bagel with added strawberry jelly and pepper jack cheese, $7.25 plus $1.50 for jelly and cheese Before diving into the details, it’s worth noting the oddity of reviewing a bacon avocado sandwich without the bacon (I’m vegetarian) – but the pepper jack and strawberry jam optional add-on was too intriguing not to try! I opted for a plain bagel so the sandwich ingredients could shine through, but the mere presence of a bagel in any breakfast sandwich is almost always going to dominate the entire eating experience and this was no exception. While I was not transported back to NYC, I’m not complaining either. The Bagelry makes a solid bagel for the Midwest. From the first bite, the chewiness slows you down, giving you more time to taste the different ingredients — the creaminess of the avocado, the spice of the sriracha and the sweet surprise of the strawberry jam. Unfortunately, the cheese was more subtle than I’d like and there simply wasn’t enough jam or cheese to go around. Who doesn’t want more cheese and strawberry jam on their egg sandwich!? Especially when you are paying an extra $1.50 for it… The egg was not scrambled as advertised, but the folded egg was cooked well and did the job just fine. My partner had bacon on his order and while the extra saltiness was appreciated, the bacon appeared to overwhelm, rather than complement the other ingredients. Personally, I prefer a breakfast sandwich where the bread is an element, not the defining feature, but then again, I’m ordering at the BAGELry, so I guess that’s really on me. If you are in the market for a bagel sandwich, the bacon avocado at the Bagelry is a fine choice. The bacon is optional, the pepper jack and jam are not – just ask for a little extra. Photo: OTR Bagelry
Brown Bear Bakery 116 E. 13th St., Over-the-Rhine Brown Bear Bakery first started in 2012 and has become increasingly popular every year. It grew from just a table with some pastries to a full retail bakery, featuring a variety of desserts. Lines can be long, sometimes out the door, but getting to try popular items like the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Twist or the Coffee Cake is worth any wait. Online ordering starts at 9 a.m. each day they are open. Photo: Hailey Bollinger
Young Buck Deli Biscuit Sandwich: Nana’s All-Butter Biscuits, molasses and black pepper bacon or sage breakfast sausage, pimento cheese and sunny side up egg, $13 Let me start by saying this is not a first-date sandwich. I repeat, this is not a first-date sandwich. You are going to make such a mess eating this thing that you will need the security of a committed long-term relationship if you are seen just one bite in. And all this mayhem starts with the pop. One of the most satisfying parts of eating an egg sandwich is the pop of the yolk. And my friends, Young Buck Deli’s biscuit sandwich with its perfectly cooked sunny side up egg has that pop. While the runny yolk makes a mess, it’s also what makes it a real egg sandwich. Next up, we have the pimento cheese. Sometimes pimento cheese can be bland or one note, but this one is flavorful and given their generous portioning, oozes everywhere. And what, might you ask, holds together this oozy yolky mess of goodness? Why Nana’s delicious, flaky, all-butter biscuit of course! Well, “holds together” is a bit of a stretch given that the biscuit is also falling apart, but damn is it good. I’ve never had a Nana, but now I wish I did so she could make me these biscuits all the time. And, to top it off, you can choose between the deli’s black pepper bacon or sage biscuit sausage (or go without for a vegetarian version). I had neither and must say the sandwich was still quite good. My partner ordered the bacon, which was reportedly cooked well done, adding a nice salty crispiness to the dish without overtaking the whole flavor profile. All in all, while I personally prefer a slightly less messy, more contained sandwich-eating experience, when it comes to flavor and texture, Young Buck Deli’s biscuit sandwich won’t let you down. Just be sure to pack some extra napkins. Photo: facebook.com/Young-Buck-Delicatessen
Cackleberry Mobile pop-up Squeezed into a bite-sized vintage trailer, husband-and-wife duo Nate and China Kautz serve eggy breakfast sandwiches as Cincinnati-based pop-up Cackleberry (a term for a hen’s egg). The petite menu blends Queen City staples with Filipino-fusion ingredients to offer options like the Lolo, with longanisa sausage and atchara pickled slaw, and a goetta sandwich called the Porter with muenster cheese and mustard aioli. The food truck parks in various locations on weekends and operates until all sandwiches are sold out. Photo: Provided by Cackleberry
Photo: Andrea Lacasse, Unsplash