Pret a Manger is a solid option for anyone yearning for a tasty breakfast or lunch dish. Well, in my opinion anyway.
Granola, croissants, sandwiches, salads and smoothies are just some of the franchise’s products that stand out to me.
The menu items, however, do come with hefty price tags. It doesn’t take a genius to notice that.
Because of this, I often consider a visit to one of the branches a treat. No matter how much I want to place an order, I need to remind myself that stopping by regularly can’t be justified.
But when the franchise can be seen selling mystery bags on my Too Good To Go app, now that’s a different story.
It often features on the app offering a variety of breakfast, lunch and bakery bags.
No matter how hard I tried on a number of occasions, I was never successful in securing an order for a Pret a Manger bakery bag. There’s still time though, so I’m hopeful…
I did, however, manage to recently get my hands on a lunch bag from Aberdeen’s Bon Accord branch.
What I got my hands on…
Anyone that knows me will be well aware that I am a huge fan of soup – any flavour, chunky or smooth, I adore it. That’s excluding French onion. Controversial, I know.
There were two tubs of soup inside the bag. Given that it was fast-approaching suppertime, I thought I’d enjoy the best of both worlds and sample half of each.
Up first, the red Thai veg soup.
Filled with shiitake (edible mushrooms native to East Asia), peppers, red lentils, baby corn, soya edamame bean, bamboo shoots and red chilli, it was fiery on the nose and tongue.
Despite the heat, it didn’t overpower the fresh flavour of the vegetables. The bamboo shoots were a personal highlight, adding a nice crunchy element into the mix.
Up next was the Pret a Manger chicken laksa soup.
Inspired by the Malaysian classic, it was creamy with hints of coconut that lingered on the palate.
Among the ingredients were British chicken, rice noodles, red pepper and sliced red chilli.
The meat was succulent and juicy, while the soup as a whole was packed full of flavour. It was my favourite of the two soups and is definitely something I’ll be ordering again in the future (for a treat, of course).
The remaining dish was a packet of kale and cauli macaroni cheese. I saved this for my mum given that macaroni cheese is her favourite comfort food.
It comprised tubetti rigati pasta with a mature cheddar bechamel sauce with freshly prepared kale and cauliflower florets, finished with Italian matured cheese.
She said there was plentiful veg and the pasta itself had been coated in a thick layer of gooey, stringy cheese.
General prices of the items:
- Kale & Cauli Macaroni Cheese: £6.95
- Chicken Laksa Soup: £4.82
- Red Thai Veg Soup: £4.85
Total cost: £16.62
Total savings: £12.62
Was it worth it?
The contents of my mystery bag from Pret a Manger left not one, but two people very happy (and full).
The dishes were fresh, flavourful and sufficient in size, so if anyone were to question me if it was good value for money, I would say yes – without a shadow of a doubt.
If you love Pret a Manger but refuse to spend a hefty amount on the regular, then definitely try out a mystery bag from a branch near you.
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