National Monte Cristo Day: The Origins of This Delicious Sandwich

Happy National Monte Cristo Day! 

For over 100 years, the Monte Cristo has existed although the exact date of its invention is unknown. The sandwich holiday was established in 2015, by the Bennigan’s restaurant chain, to honor their own Monte Cristo sandwich, which is made with honey wheat bread, ham, roasted turkey, Swiss and American cheeses before it's batter-dipped, gently fried, and dusted with powdered sugar. It's also served with red raspberry preserves, if you wish to dip it. 

A Monte Cristo sandwich is essentially ham, turkey and Swiss cheese between two pieces of French toast, though there are plenty of variations across the country. For example, the cheese might be different, the sandwich might be grilled or fried, it may contain spicy mustard, it might be served with maple syrup, and so on.  

I've long been fond of the Monte Cristo, although I prefer it as a savory variation. I don't want it covered by powdered sugar or syrup. What makes it special to me is the French toast bread, a great vehicle for the ham, turkey and cheese, but which also would make an excellent vehicle for plenty of other fillings as well. I enjoyed such variations as pastrami and cheese, chicken cutlets, and cheeseburger, each of which was elevated by the use of French toast. We need more sandwiches with French Toast as the bread! 

No one seems to know the exact origins of the Monte Cristo though it's believed to be a variation of the French croque-monsieur, which is a grilled ham and cheese sandwich, with numerous variations, that was likely invented in the late nineteenth century. Literally translated, "croque monsieur" basically means "mister crunch." The sandwich became famous when it appeared at a French cafe, Le Bel Âge, owned by Michel Lunarca, in Paris around 1910. 

However, the croque-monsieur received almost no publicity in U.S. newspapers until about 1928, years after the Monte Cristo was created. The earliest reference I found to the croque-monsieur was in the Boston Evening Transcript (MA), April 11, 1908. There was an article about a lunch at a Paris restaurant, and one of the offerings was a croque-monsieur, for 50 cents, and the article noted, "We have no idea what croque monsieur or Orloff  veal might be,..."

The next reference was from The Reading Eagle (PA), August 29, 1915, which discussed local women contributing recipes to a cookbook intended to help Belgian war sufferers. One contributor provided a recipe for croque-monsieur. And then there no other newspaper references until 1928.

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Although most sources allege the Monte Cristo was created during the 1920s, it seems more probable it was created during the 1910s, and maybe the later half of that decade. The earliest reference I found to this sandwich was in the San Francisco Chronicle (CA), February 18, 1920, which printed a restaurant advertisement for Tait’s Downtown. The large ad detailed a Special After-Theater Supper, and listed numerous dishes of which you could choose two. Under Sandwiches, there was a mention of the Monte Cristo, although no explanation was given.

It also seems probable that the Monte Cristo originated in California, as all of the mentions of the sandwich during the 1920s and early 1930s indicated it was available in California, and there weren't any references to it being available elsewhere. A Hawaiian newspaper in 1929 provided a recipe for the Monte Cristo, but didn't indicate that any Hawaiian restaurants offered the sandwich. It's curious that no one has ever stepped forward to claim credit for inventing the sandwich. 

The Los Angeles Times (CA), May 24, 1924 and Sacramento Union (CA), June 6, 1924, both printed the same recipe for the Monte Cristo Sandwich, the first newspapers to do so. The sandwiches contained only American full cream choice and slices of boiled ham, and not any turkey. The sandwiches though were dipped in egg and fried. 

The San Francisco Chronicle (CA), May 11, 1927, published a restaurant ad which offered a Monte Cristo Sandwich for 50 cents, the same price as their Chicken Sandwich. 

A reader submitted a recipe for the Monte Cristo sandwich to the San Francisco Examiner (CA), May 23, 1927. This recipe was different from the previous one, using pimento cheese with boiled ham. In addition, it called for a tablespoon of cocktail sauce. It too was dipped in beaten egg and fried. 

The San Francisco Examiner (CA), May 27, 1927, provided another recipe, and also stated that the Monte Cristo was a “tearoom specialty.” This is the first recipe to use Swiss cheese with the boiled ham, although still no turkey. 

The San Antonio Light (TX), October 18, 1928, Omaha Morning Bee-News (NE), October 19, 1928, and El Paso Times (TX), October 20, 1928, all briefly mentioned, “Snapshots of Hollywood collected at random: Seena Owen and Mae Sunday gossiping over a Monte Cristo sandwich at the Montmartre café.”

The Los Angeles Evening Citizen News (CA), February 8, 1929, printed another recipe, called for a specific bread, the Langendorf Royal bread, a famous bread brand at that time. This recipe called for cream cheese, mashed with a little cream. It also asked for a slice of chicken or ham. Then, it's mentioned that it should be served with jelly or relish, the first time this addition is noted. 

The Los Angeles Times (CA), August 9, 1929,  provided a recipe almost exactly as they previously did on May 24, 1924, except this time they mentioned garnishing it with pickle slices. 

The Honolulu Star-Bulletin (HI), August 29, 1929, was the first non-California newspaper to provide a Monte Cristo recipe, but this was simply a copy of the one above from the Los Angeles Times.  

The San Jose Evening News (CA), May 5, 1930, had an advertisement for a Coffee Shop with a partial menu, including a Monte Cristo Sandwich for 50 cents. 

It wasn't until 1934, that it seems likely the Monte Cristo started being available outside of California. The Tulsa Tribune (OK), December 3, 1934, printed a recipe for the sandwich, provided by Chef Harry Micas. It was noted to be "an unusual sandwich," good for lunch or a midnight feast. First, the bread was covered in egg with milk or cream, and then fried. After that, the bread was topped with boiled ham, chicken meat and a slice of cheese. Finally, it was toasted under a broiler, and served with spiced apricot. This may be the first recipe calling for both ham and chicken (but not turkey). It's also the first that calls for milk or cream added to the egg before coating the bread. 

The Des Moines Tribune (IA), December 22, 1934, in an ad for Harvest Bread, provided a recipe from Herman, the Health Chef. The recipe called for Swiss cheese and slices of Baked Virginia ham, but no poultry. The sandwich was also to be dipped in beaten egg, "similar to the method of making French toast." Curiously, the sandwich was served with tomato sauce, which is definitely a rarity for this sandwich. 

The Los Angeles Times (CA), January 29, 1935, offered a recipe calling for Tillamook cheese and boiled ham. No poultry was included. 

The San Diego Union (CA), March 19, 1936, published a recipe which called for boiled ham, sliced chicken and Kraft's American cheese. It also called for Nuco, "for spreading," although I'm unable to determine what that was. It also called for Snowdrift, "for deep frying," and that was a vegetable shortening commonly used for frying. 

A brief mention in the Los Angeles Times (CA), June 7, 1936, noted, “Peter Lorre favors the Monte Cristo sandwich as an article of diet,..” Peter Lorre was a famous actor, having appeared in some classics such as Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon.

The Oakland Tribune (CA), September 20, 1936, discussed an upcoming Tribune Homemakers Forum, where Chef “Joe” Beyl of the Athens Club, would "present three of his most popular recipes for the late-supper menus: Lobster Thermidore, Monte Cristo Sandwich and Tomato Stuffed with Tuna.” 

The Sexton Cook Book for the Sexton Market (1937) by John Sexton & Co., printed a recipe, by Frank Hurliman, for the Monte Cristo Sandwich. It only called for ham and cheese, with the addition of tomato, which was maybe the first such addition.  

The Modesto Bee (CA), February 2, 1937, had its own recipe, and called for three slices of bread, making it more like a club sandwich. It called for boiled ham and cheese, as well as chicken, lamb, pork or turkey. The sandwich was then dipped in a blend of egg, salt, pepper, and milk before it was fried. This may be the first mention of the use of turkey for this sandwich.   

The Highland Park News-Herald (CA), March 26, 1937, also had a recipe calling for three slices of bread, but it only called for cheese and Hormel's spiced luncheon meat. It was also served with Iris Currant jelly.  

The Los Angeles Times (CA), November 25, 1937, also called for three slices of bread, with a layer of ham, topped with mustard, and a layer of turkey with mayonnaise. Curiously, the recipe didn't call for any cheese. 

There was an interesting article in a London newspaper, dealing with a Monte Cristo sandwich served at the Warner's Bros film studio. The Daily Mirror (London), May 3, 1938, had a Hollywood page where the writer mentioned, “I often go to lunch at Warners,…because there is something on the menu there which I have never met anywhere else. It is called a Monte Cristo sandwich and it is no doubt very fattening and indigestible. But I keep on ordering it because I can never quite figure out how it’s made. It seems to be thin bread fried in a cheesy batter with thin slices of chicken and ham between. It is served on lettuce with a pickled peach and it is better and more elusive than it sounds.”

In a follow-up, The Daily Mirror (London), July 6, 1938, noted that Miss Gail Patrick, a famous actress who married the manager of the Brown Derby restaurant, had written down many of their best recipes. She provided the writer with their recipe for a Monte Cristo sandwich, which called for three slices of bread, ham, chicken and cheese. The sandwich pieces were set upon crisp lettuce, and a pickled peach was placed into the middle of the plate.  

The Modesto Bee (CA), December 17, 1938, ran an ad for the Schurra’s restaurant, which stated, “Try Our Monte Cristo Sandwich. Something New and Different.”

The Standard Star (NY), September 29, 1939, provided advice for visitors to Holloywood, including, “Food: One of the first things you have when in California is a Monte Cristo sandwich. It is delicious and substantial, I might add. It is a club sandwich affair which has sliced chicken, a layer of melted cheese and then one of ham. The concoction is then dipped in an egg batter and fried in a deep fat. The results are very tasty.”

The St. Joseph Gazette (MO), February 12, 1941, published an ad for a hotel, which offered “Ladies’ Lunches” and their special that day was “Hot Monte Cristo Sandwich, vegetable, potatoes, salad, dessert, beverage” for 45 cents. 

The Nevada State Journal (NV), September 17, 1942, ran an ad for a club which served supper snacks from 10:30pm to closing, including a Monte Cristo Sandwich for 75 cents. 

The Oregon Daily Journal (OR), January 18, 1948, published an ad for the Pago Pago restaurant, which had late evening specialties, including “The Monte Cristo Sandwich.”

The Minneapolis Star (MN), November 17, 1948, mentioned that local chef, Dale Kirkpatrick, named the Monte Cristo as his favorite. His recipe then called for only two slices of bread, with ham, cheese, and chicken or turkey. It was served with sweet pickle relish and potato chips.  

Monte Cristo sandwiches in Australia! Maybe the first newspaper mention of this sandwich in Australia was in The Mercury (Tasmania, Australia), June 2, 1949, which had this brief recipe, calling only for ham and cheese.  

The Galveston Daily News (TX), October 9, 1949, ran a restaurant ad, which offered a Monte Cristo Sandwich, Olives, Sliced Tomato, and Potato Chips, for $1.

Over the next decades, the Monte Cristo's popularity would continue to grow, although currently, the sandwich has decreased in popularity and much fewer restaurants offer it on their menus. It's time for the sandwich to make a come-back, was well as for other sandwiches to use French Toast as their bread.

As I've shown, the Monte Cristo likely originated in California during the 1910s, and it seems to have taken about 15 years for the sandwich to be created in restaurants in other states. However, recipes to make the Monte Cristo were presented in a number of newspapers across the country for home cooks to try. We also see that the nature of the sandwich varied over the years, and continues to come in a number of variations. We may never know exactly who invented the sandwich, but we owe that person a debt for creating such a delicious sandwich.