11 BLTs That Are Worth a Road Trip

The BLT is a classic American sandwich, and with good reason. Pieces of crunchy bacon, crisp lettuce, and fresh tomato sandwiched between two slices of bread (and an optional spread of mayonnaise) make the BLT a mouthwateringly tasty meal. Read on for 11 of America's best BLTs—from St. Louis to Dallas to Charleston to New Orleans—that are most certainly worthy of a road trip.

1. THE HEART STOPPING BLT // CROWN CANDY KITCHEN // ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI

Opened in 1913 by two best friends, Crown Candy Kitchen has been serving hungry customers in the St. Louis area for over a century. Although the restaurant’s soda fountain and homemade candy are appealing, the real draw is the restaurant’s BLT. Served at both lunch and dinner, the Heart Stopping BLT ($8.99) comes with thick-sliced bacon, iceberg lettuce, tomato slices, and Miracle Whip on white toast. It was featured on an episode of Travel Channel’s Best Sandwich in America in 2012, and as the preparing process showed, the Heart Stopping BLT is massive—the restaurant has been known to go through 200 pounds of bacon a day. Three quarters of a pound of kettle-fried Oscar Mayer bacon make the sandwich a perfect choice for serious bacon aficionados.

2. THE FRIED EGG BLT // BUTTERMILK KITCHEN // ATLANTA

Chef Suzanne Vizethann’s Buttermilk Kitchen focuses on locally sourced, natural, and sustainable ingredients. Called one of the six best BLTs in Atlanta, her Fried Egg BLT ($13) has bacon, organic spinach, house pickled green and red tomatoes, a fried cage-free egg, and lemon mayo on ciabatta. The sandwich is available on the breakfast menu, but thankfully, breakfast is served all day from Tuesday to Sunday, so you won’t miss the opportunity to try it, even if you aren't an early riser.

3. THE BLT // MAPLE AND MOTOR // DALLAS

According to The Dallas Observer, Maple and Motor’s BLT ($6.50) is one of the seven best BLTs in Dallas. Fried Wright Brand bacon, lettuce, tomato, and mayo on grilled Texas Toast combine to make this sandwich a down-to-earth delight. The bacon juts out of the sandwich, giving you a crunch with every bite, and you can add an over-easy egg if you'd like even more richness.

4. THE B.E.L.T. AND B.L.A.T. // FRIEDMANS // NEW YORK CITY

With four locations in Manhattan, Friedmans offers two updated takes on the classic BLT. Their breakfast menu features the B.E.L.T. (bacon, eggs, lettuce, tomato), while the B.L.A.T. (bacon, lettuce, avocado, tomato) is on the lunch and brunch menus. The B.E.L.T. has eggs over easy and herbed mayonnaise on toasted sourdough, and the B.L.A.T. adds avocado with an herbed aioli spread to the standard BLT. Perfect for a hearty brunch, Friedmans’ BLTs ($11-13) are extra rich, creamy, and filling.

5. THE MIDWEST BLT // EATS! AMERICAN GRILL // TAMPA, FLORIDA

Rusty Gillespie via Flickr // CC BY-NC 2.0

With locations in Tampa and Riverview, Florida, Eats! American Grill serves a Midwest BLT ($8.99 or $10, depending on location), which includes applewood-peppered bacon, lettuce, two fried green tomatoes, and spicy sauce on thick slices of grilled Texas Toast. An episode of Food Network’s show Heat Seekers featured The Midwest BLT in all its spicy glory—if you want your sandwich extra spicy, just ask them to add their Famous Heat Sauce.

6. THE BACON OF THE MONTH BLT // TED’S BUTCHERBLOCK // CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA

Ted’s Butcherblock is a locally owned butcher shop and café that opened in Charleston in 2005. The Bacon of the Month BLT ($8.50) offers artisanal bacon with mixed greens, tomato, and garlic herb aioli on a ciabatta roll. Travel + Leisure called it one of America’s best sandwiches, and The Daily Meal deemed it America’s best BLT. The changing bacon means that the taste is never quite the same from month to month, but you can expect high quality, flavorful pork no matter which month you visit.

7. THE BLT BURGER // MIKEY’S BURGER // NEW YORK CITY

CBS New York called the BLT Burger ($7.50) at Mikey’s Burger in Manhattan’s Lower East Side one of New York's eight best BLTs. The sandwich comes with Chinese-style bacon, lettuce, a slice of tomato, and Kewpie mayo on a hamburger bun—and the Asian twist really makes this variation much more flavorful. Made from pork belly or shoulder, Chinese bacon is usually cured with soy sauce, spices, and brown sugar. And Kewpie mayo, which is popular in Japan, is a mouthwateringly savory mayo made with rice vinegar.

8. B.A.B.L.T. // FOZZIE’S SANDWICH EMPORIUM // ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI

According to St. Louis Magazine, the B.A.B.L.T. at Fozzie’s Sandwich Emporium is the best BLT in St. Louis. For $7.95, you can sink your teeth into half a pound of fried bacon, romaine lettuce, and tomato on sourdough bread. The sandwich’s secret weapon, though, is the spread, a roasted garlic mayo that adds a savory depth of flavor to the sandwich.

9. THE BREWHOUSE BLT // CRESCENT CITY BREWHOUSE // NEW ORLEANS

Located in New Orleans’ French Quarter, Crescent City Brewhouse features live music and beer in addition to great food. Offered at lunch and dinner for $13.95, the Brewhouse BLT contains smoked bacon, fried basil leaves, vine ripened tomatoes, mozzarella, and mayo on a brioche. The sandwich is paired with a side salad of romaine hearts and balsamic vinaigrette. Eater New Orleans gave a shout-out to the Brewhouse BLT, and multiple reviews from diners say that it was the best sandwich they’ve ever had.

10. THE LAMB BACON BLT // SAFFRON RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE // MINNEAPOLIS

Started in 2007 by two brothers, Saffron Restaurant and Lounge serves Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food with a modern twist. An appetizer on the dinner menu, the Lamb Bacon BLT ($9) features lamb belly bacon, arugula, saffron-tomato jam, and tarragon aioli on vanilla egg challah bread. Men’s Journal deemed the Lamb Bacon BLT one of the 50 best sandwiches in America. The bacon is cured in-house, and the challah is coated in lamb fat before being grilled, making the bread extra rich and flavorful.

11. THE HULLABALOO B.L.T. // HULLABALOO // WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA

Hullabaloo in West Palm Beach, Florida, is executive chef Fritz Cassel’s gastro pub. Offered on the lunch menu, the Hullabaloo B.L.T. ($11) contains smoked pork belly, arugula, heirloom tomato, and red pepper aioli on challah. Cassel cures the pork belly with salt, cinnamon, sugar, toasted star anise, and toasted allspice before smoking it with cherry wood and hickory and braising it. The pork belly is thickly sliced, the heirloom tomato fried, and the bread lightly toasted and brushed with butter. As Cassel told My Palm Beach Post, “I’m 100 percent positive that this is the best BLT in West Palm Beach, if not South Florida.”