From the zinc counters of bistros to the windows of luxury hotels: in Paris, the ham and butter sandwich, a sandwich for broke and hurried workers, has transformed in recent years into a gourmet, even luxurious, object, both a fetish and a tourist trap.

Before being called "le parisien", the ham and butter sandwich was known in the French capital as casse-croûte.

"When I was a student in the 1970s, completely broke, even for a steak and fries, my lunch was a snack at the counter, with day-old bread and butter that was immediately spread and removed, and a slice of ham for show," recalls restaurateur Gilles Caussade.

Forty years later, he took over one of those Parisian zinc bars, the "Petit Vendôme", in the very chic center of Paris, and decided "not to change anything" about the decor, from the Formica to the wine on the string, right down to the famous wooden board for spreading snacks.

The boss assures that celebrities like Lady Gaga, Mark Zuckerberg, "bankers, students, luxury hotel guests and their doormen" come as much for the sandwich as for the "mixed experience", which costs 6.50 euros.

This sandwich, Time Out magazine named "the best sandwich in the world" in 2025. They had to scramble to cope with the influx, amplified by social media: buy bollards to manage the queue forming on the small Parisian sidewalk and install a dedicated payment terminal, which is working overtime for the approximately 400 sandwiches sold here from morning until midnight.

- Half baguette -

Gilles Caussade claims that his ham and butter sandwich is based on "five secrets that are no longer secrets".

"First, a half-baguette with two stumps, otherwise it's dry. Then, churned Normandy butter in a block, definitely not salted. With charcuterie, salt on salt doesn't make sense," he continues.

"High-quality products, 99% of which come from Auvergne. Then, made fresh, because a refrigerated sandwich can't have this taste: the bread gets soggy, the butter solidifies. And finally, generosity," adds the restaurateur originally from Aveyron.

For the trio of American women in chic beige raincoats, who waited fifteen minutes to order, the "Petit Vendôme" experience was "very nice".

"My daughter saw it on TikTok and we had to come. I understand that it's to Parisians what the hot dog is to New Yorkers," says tourist Lauren Davies.

- Sophistication -

Nothing can stop the worker's sandwich from going upmarket. Cédric Grolet, a star pastry chef on Instagram, nearly faced online backlash when he offered a truffle-flavored ham and butter sandwich in 2024.

Joris Theysset, pastry chef at the Ritz Paris palace, "fully accepts" offering the most expensive ham and butter sandwich in Paris, at 15 euros.

"A Parisian pastry is normally 60% bread and the rest is topping. We decided to do the opposite," the pastry chef explained to AFP.

In this luxurious version, you bite into a delicious puff pastry loaf, presented in a U shape and filled with "Prince de Paris" ham (a ham made by hand in the capital), Comté cheese shavings, all enhanced with a very lightly mustardy butter and accompanied by very fine gherkins.

"The idea is to transform a symbol of French and Parisian cuisine with all the expertise of the Ritz and very premium products, to remain true to our spirit of childhood memories, picnic sandwiches, and Parisian strolls," he told AFP.

From Coco Chanel's little black dress - who lived at the Ritz - to the ham and butter sandwich, the very French idea remains the same: sophistication can come from the simplest things.

"Since the 1970s, there was a whole period where, between the industrial sandwich and the poor quality of the bakery, it wasn't so bad anymore," acknowledges Alain Roussel, aka Alain Miam Miam, another Parisian prince of the ham and butter sandwich, a psychotherapist who converted to street food.

His stall at the Marché des Enfants Rouges, a popular Parisian eatery in the very bohemian Marais district, sells 300 to 400 made-to-order sandwiches every day, in a cobblestone loaf overflowing with fresh ingredients.

"With organic bread, high quality but at a controlled cost" and a price of 13.50 euros per unit, the retiree has found his recipe, in every sense of the word.