Chicken remains the most popular thing for restaurants to roll in a wrap or put between two slices of bread, according to Technomic’s MenuMonitor for the third quarter of 2011. The survey of menus from 750 chain and 150 independent restaurants found more mentions of that protein in sandwiches than any other, followed by turkey.

“Grilled chicken” was the most common way menus referred to chicken. Other popular chicken varieties were breaded or crispy, Thai, teriyaki, barbecue, char-grilled and honey mustard. Bacon and avocado were popular accompaniments.

Smoked turkey is the most popular turkey sandwich, followed by roasted turkey. It’s frequently paired with bacon or cheese.

Vegetables outranked roast beef for the third most popular sandwich centerpiece. Generic “veggie” or “vegetable” is the most common way restaurants label those sandwiches on menus. Other popular vegetable sandwiches are eggplant Parmesan, grilled portobello mushroom, hummus, Mediterranean veggie, roasted vegetable, and tomato and mozzarella.

Technomic does not include hamburgers in the sandwich category.

Contact Bret Thorn at bret.thorn@penton.com.
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