As you may have noticed from Christmases past, I absolutely LOVE Christmas food. Turkey is the best of all the meats, but when you mix with with stuffing and exciting bits then it is epic! These items also work very well in sandwiches so I made it my mission when I was back in England for a few days to try as many as possible.

I did not take this mission on lightly. I recruited others to assist. I’m still wondering why I asked my sister on one of the days because she doesn’t like “adventurous” food! But Mum was a willing participant and we do good sharing!

Here are our findings!!

Greggs

Given that Greggs is so iconic, I am sorely disappointed with their Christmas offerings.

I started with the Christmas Bake. Although the pastry was good, the gooey molten mess on the inside was bland. Just no.

My Verdict: 1/10

Mum’s Verdict: 6/10 (she liked the bland goo!)

Sister’s Verdict: She decline to even try it because she didn’t like how it smelt at a distance, let alone putting it close enough to her face to eat!

Next up was their sandwich. All I could taste was the syrupy sweet cranberry sauce. I think alllllllll the sugar went in. All of it. No wonder there is no sugar donuts. The bread was good, as you would expect, and the turkey and bacon were too – there just wasn’t enough. It had a good chunk in the middle but it didn’t go to the sides at all. The green leafy bits were pointless.

My Verdict: 5/10

Mum’s Verdict: 3/10, and I quote “yuck”

Sister’s Verdict: 4/10, “and that’s being generous. It was so sweet it made my face scrunch up like I was having a seizure or something”

Pret A Manger

As one of the best sandwich chains I know, my mind was blown about how wrong they could get it.

We started with their sandwich. It looked like it would be quit good. It had turkey, stuffing and spinach. Nothing wrong with any of those things. I couldn’t tell you about it though as one bite was more than enough. The heavily laden with a very tart cranberry sauce which glued itself to the inside of my mouth, and the whole cranberries popped like peas and made me nauseous. That said, as the filling was all in the middle of the sandwich you didn’t get much more anyway.

My Verdict: 1/10

Mum’s Verdict: 6/10, “It was ok”.

Sister’s Verdict: 2/10, “whoever made that sandwich needs to go back to cooking school”

Next up was their Christmas baguette. I was even more disappointed. It was the same cranberry sauce that ruined the first sandwich. This was also piled high (but not inside) with an excessive amount of rocket leaves. The inside bits had been food processed into a chunky slop. The clincher for me though was that the baguette itself was soggy. How did they even manage that? I have never had one like it from them before.

My Verdict: 0.5/10

Mum’s Verdict: 2/10, “It was really revolting”

Sister’s Verdict: 3/10, “Crispy onion like it was in the harvester”

Sainsbury’s

Meh. Super try. Reconsituted and thinly sliced turkey.

My Verdict: 0.5/10

AND THE WINNER IS………….

Marks & Spencer’s “Turkey Feast on soft malted brown bread”

This was the first of the Christmas sandwiches we tried which I think is probably why the other’s got such low marks. I mean, when you start with the best then you’re going to be super disappointed with other offerings.

The sandwiches are generously filled with turkey, bacon and stuffing. There is a good little spread of mayonnaise in there, and the cranberry sauce is not overly sugary or tart, nor is there so much that’s all you can taste. Everything just works really well.

My Verdict: 10/10 and a Christmas Star to Marks & Spencer!!

Mum’s Verdict: 9/10, and a “very tasty”

P.S. I wouldn’t bother with their ready to eat pigs in blankets again though. They appear to have changed the sausage recipe and they are super dry. I did like the cranberry and orange dunking sauce though!

Final Word

As you can see, I didn’t get to try all the sandwiches that I had wanted to. It was a good effort for a week’s visit, but I need to put my back into it properly next year!