Welcome back. Did you read the last review on 1st April? Did you think M&S doing a hot cross bun sandwich was an April fools joke?
I gotcha! M&S did sell a hot cross bun sandwich. Oh, you knew that? But you thought I’d be reviewing loads of other Easter themed sandwiches?
I gotcha! There were no other Easter sandwiches. Oh, you knew that? And you came back on 2nd April to see if I’d done something as clever as last year’s April Fools Day post where I spelt out APRIL FOOL’S DAY in confectionary and none of you noticed?
I gotcha! I peaked with that post and couldn’t think of anything as good. Or did you not even realise it was April Fool’s day and figured I’d started something and not finished it as usual?
I gotcha! I think. I don’t really know. The main thing is I amused myself for a bit.
The coronation sandwich reviews, however, are for real. Before we even start, I don’t care about your views on the monarchy or the coronation. Whether you are a bitter Scot or a mad Brexiteer, it simply doesn’t matter. I have an excuse to eat and write about some sandwiches and get that sweet ad revenue up a bit.
I am applying the same rules to my coronation chicken sandwich reviews as the Christmas sandwich reviews – I publish on working weekdays only, up until the event, and with yesterday being a bank holiday that means I only have to find 4 sandwiches. Whilst I think I might struggle to find 4 coronation sandwiches, under the Christmas Sandwich Review rules, I can’t review what I don’t find so I might not even have to do 4 reviews. You were spoilt with the World Cup of Christmas sandwiches. I’ve never put that much effort in before, but this an easy assignment I cannot fail to complete! Let’s get the ball rolling with our first review.
I’m in the office today. We usually go in on Mondays but the bank holiday has shifted everything, and I couldn’t fail to find a pre-packaged coronation chicken sandwich in that London, right? RIGHT?
Of course I found one. I had a tip off that Pret were doing a coronation chicken sandwich and it turned out to be a good tip. In fact, Pret have got right into the spirit of things by making it their special. It’s like they wanted to be featured on the blog. I remember when I used to think Pret was something special, back when I was a student and thought their sandwiches were fancy, but now they are everywhere, even shitty little high streets, so there is nothing special about them. I’ve starting feeling the same about BrewDog pubs. Every tube station has one nearby now. The beer is good but at this point they are just an expensive Wetherspoons for hipsters (me). Having said that, I went to the Wetherspoons in Epsom on Sunday and got a pint of real ale for £2.59! Unbelievable. So I got another one.
Anyway, you’re here for a sandwich review.
Seeded bloomer bread filled with British chicken in apricot & turmeric coronation sauce, mango chutney, sliced cucumber, coriander, pickled and crispy onions, spinach and a dab of mayo.
I grabbed this in Liverpool Street station on my way into the office this morning and didn’t really notice the ingredients. I did notice that the shop was called Pret A Manger. Have Pret rebranded back to that? Does it matter? No, but the list of ingredients does. If you know me, you may know what’s coming. When I finally bit into it…
I fucking hate cucumber. “Oh but it doesn’t taste of anything” you’ll say like everyone else who finds out about this but I say NO! It tastes disgusting and it infects everything it touches, even after you pick it out. Nevertheless, I have a duty to review coronation chicken sandwiches, so I picked it out and carried on. Luckily for Pret, the coronation chicken flavours overpowered the cucumber, and I ended up quite enjoying this. The crispy onions added a nice crunch, the pickled onions added a nice tang, the coronation chicken sauce was spot on and worked well with the mango chutney. There was probably slightly too much spinach and there was definitely too much cucumber i.e., more than zero cucumber, but overall Pret have made a great coronation chicken sandwich. What was nearly a disaster has put the short week off to a great start.
Come back tomorrow to see if I can find another coronation chicken sandwich.
Christmas Sandwich Reviews 