Along the Northern Line corridor in Southwest London is a neighborhood called Balham. Historically, Balham has a reputation of being a bit “stabby” but recent gentrification has caused a slight shift towards bougie as the Clapham crowd has crept south. This has resulted in a quieter downtown with that gives off a bougie vibe like Clapham without Clapham’s overt need to appeal to mid-20s college graduates pining for bottomless mimosa’s at brunch. Amongst the trendy shops downtown is a breakfast spot called Milk

When I arrived at Milk on a warm early October morning, the line was out the door despite Milk doing a wonderful job of making use of their space with tables filling the inside and lining the sidewalk outside. Once we got in and were seated, one look at the menu was all it took to decide on ordering their famous Convict Breakfast Sandwich.

The Sandwich

Overall: 8.7/10

The Good

This was one of the most unique sandwiches that I have had in a while. The star of the show, in my opinion, was the hangover sauce, which gave a flavorful tomato kick and was unlike any sauce I’ve had on a sandwich. To add to the flavor, the sausage was well seasoned and had a distinctly herby flavor, making the sausage one of the more unique patties I’ve had on a breakfast sandwich. The sandwich also had a rare ingredient for British breakfast sandwiches: a healthy dose of cheese. Top this off with a hash brown layer and some well done eggs and this was definitely one of the better breakfast sandwiches I’ve had in a while.

The Bad

The one piece that I can complain about here is the bread. While the rest of the ingredients were top notch, the bread left something to be desired. Additionally, while cheese did make an appearance, I would have liked to see a bit more of a star roll as opposed to being overpowered by the hangover sauce and sausage. Add in a little more cheese and give the bread a bit of a makeover and the Convict Sandwich would be truly elite.