Mal Gill, former My Kitchen Rules contestant and owner of Lady Marmalade Café and Shady Palms Café in Brisbane has been selected as the best sandwich maker in the country, following his victory in the Great Australian Sandwich at Fine Food Australia.

Mal's originality and flair stole the show as he dished up a Berbere spiced shredded beef brisket wrap and San Fran Chicken triple decker toasted sandwich.

The Great Australian Sandwichship saw six contestants race against the clock to produce mouth-watering sangas across four various categories, including best wrap, best toasted sandwich, best lunch roll and best creative sandwich.

Contestants were judged on presentation, innovation, commercial viability, taste and the explanation of their entries to the judging panel.

The winners for the each category and their winning sandwiches were:

Best wrap: Mal Gill – Berbere spiced beef brisket wrap with beetroot hommus, methe, smashed sweet potato and bitter leaves.

Best toasted sandwich: Mal Gil – San Fran Chicken triple decker with maple bacon butter, fried egg, gooey cheese and green goddess dressing, served with pretzels and Shady Pickles.

Best lunch roll: Beck Saul from Lady Marmalade Café – Portuguese chicken, chorizo, smashed peas, feta, mint, almonds and Harissa mayo.

Best creative sandwich: Adam Pruckner from Code Black – Sautéed peas, pulled pork and fresh mint on multigrain toast with smokey aioli, a potato rosti and poached egg.

‘The high level of talent and creativity from the contestants is some of the best we have seen yet”, said Graeme McCormack, Executive Director of the Australasian Sandwich Association. ‘This is our third year running the competition and each year I’m amazing just how much contestants have raised the bar with their creative takes on the humble sandwich.”

The Great Australian Sandwichship is the only foodservice competition of its kind in Australia:  it seeks to highlight the work of Australia’s true lunch-time heroes – café workers and sandwich makers – and see who can create the best sandwich. 

The Great Australian Sandwichship is proudly sponsored by leading international food companies, including Tip Top Foodservice, Fonterra, Prontier and Heinz.