Pret a Manger fans race to buy 2 new colourful dessert-inspired drinks
Fans are rushing to get their hands on two brand new, unique drinks launched at Pret a Manger that come in fun colours and are inspired by desserts. It is the first time we have seen such a wacky but interesting flavoured drinks in the line-up from the high street coffee shop.
As temperatures warm up, many of us are swapping our hot cups of coffee for iced delights. Coffee giants are selling a range of matcha flavours and iced lattes with delicious, sweet flavours. Pret A Manger has created a unique twist on the classic iced latte - and launched a purple latte and a blue one.
Inspired by wellness flavours and social media trends, the new lattes are as delicious as they are Instagrammable - and they are available now for a limited time across UK shops. You can now order the Ube Brûlée and Spirulina Macaron lattes, both priced at £4.70.
The new Ube Brûlée Iced Latte features the subtly sweet, nutty flavour of purple yam blended with caramel syrup combined with Pret's signature organic espresso served with milk and over ice.
Meanwhile, the new Spirulina Macaron Iced Latte combines blue spirulina with sweet macaron syrup over Pret's organic espresso, milk and ice, giving a bold new twist in a striking blue hue.
This is not the first Spirulina product to hit Pret's shelves. Following customer interest in Pret's Blueberry Balance Bowl which first launched in January, the new Spirulina Iced Latte builds on the success of that product but now with a refreshing twist.
Briony Raven, Chief Customer & Product Offer at Pret A Manger said: "Iced coffee continues to boom in the UK, and at Pret we've been investing to make sure our customers can enjoy even more choice — especially when the sun's out.
"We've invested heavily in making sure more than 90% of our shops have ice machines to give customers the opportunity to enjoy more Barista-made iced drinks and we're proud to launch Ube and Spirulina iced lattes, bringing bold new flavours and colours to our menu. These new drinks are a fun, fresh twist for customers this summer and sit alongside favourites like our Iced Matcha Latte and Iced Americano."
Viral food reviewer Emily Jade, recently rushed out to try the new lattes. The content creator, who boasts over 459,000 followers on TikTok, first tucked into the Ube Brûlée Iced Latte.
Emily said: "It's literally purple, it looks so cool...oh my god that's good. I love the colour but honestly I'm not really getting the Ube flavour I'm just getting a sweet kind of flavour. I definitely get the crème brulee vibe."
Moving onto the Spirulina Macaron latte, Emily said: "I think the colours are so cool. It tastes really good, but it does just taste really strong of coffee like I'm not getting any other flavour with this. It's good but I definitely prefer the other one."
Meanwhile vegan food viewer Mairead, from Manchester, also rushed out to try the treats - and approves of the the Spirulina Macaron. She said: "It's not super intense...it's just got a nice, subtle macaron flavour to it." She also noted she could taste hints of vanilla and coconut.
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Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
Giant tunnelling machine is lifted to the surface after finishing HS2 tunnels (no wonder it's costing so much)
A giant tunnelling machine has been lifted to the surface after finishing work on a HS2 tunnel - and no wonder the project is costing so much. The huge metal device has spent more than a year underground working on sections of the new high-speed rail network beneath the capital, finishing its project in June. The so-called tunnel boring machine (TBM), named Emily, had been tasked with a 3.4-mile drive, starting at Victoria Road in the west London borough of North Acton. It has now resurfaced as of Saturday, at its final destination of Green Park Way in the town of Greenford in neighbouring borough Ealing. Since launching in February last year, it has completed one bore of the eastern section of the Northolt Tunnel, the second longest on the HS2 network at 8.4 miles. It has removed 775,000 tonnes of clay and installed 17,514 tunnel segments in the passage, which stretches from Ealing to neighbouring borough Hillingdon. Emily - weighing a huge 1,700 tonnes with a 9.11m diameter - is the third of four machines to work on the tunnel, with the final one expected to finish later this year. But such enormous machines carry a hefty price tag - the entire network could end up costing as much as £80billion to build. Shocking pictures show the device dwarfing the workmen supervising its removal from the ground. Heavily reinforced ropes, hanging from a huge red metal structure, drag the machine from what appears to be an incredibly deep shaft leading down to the tunnel below. The revelation of the truly imposing size of the machinery involved in HS2, or High Speed 2, is a stark reminder of the eye-watering cost of the project. The Department for Transport's 'estimated range' for HS2's total cost in November 2023 was £45-54billion, a report by the Committee of Public Accounts published in February this year noted. The latest estimate by HS2 Ltd - the government-funded company responsible for HS2 - was £54-66billion in June last year, it added. The report concluded: 'With their competing cost estimates still in 2019 prices, then once adjusted for inflation the total programme costs might be close to £80billion.' This came just before another damning report on the cost of the project, published last month. It was discovered last month HS2 is set to be delayed for another two years as a report revealed costs for the project had increased by £37billion. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander announced last month the line between London and Birmingham would no longer be completed in the target time of 2033. She claimed the cost of the project shot up £37billion between 2012 and the last general election, The Telegraph reported. The minister accepted 89 recommendations from an independent review into infrastructure projects, spearheaded by former Crossrail chief executive James Stewart. Mike Brown, former Transport for London (TfL) commissioner, became the new chairman of HS2 Limited - the company in charge of the project. A damning dossier of the project's shortcomings said the previous government spent £2billion on the original network between Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds before scrapping it. After the Birmingham to Leeds and Birmingham to Manchester legs were scrapped in 2021 and 2023 respectively, HS2 will now just connect London and Birmingham. More than £250million was spent by HS2 Ltd on failed designs for a new station at Euston by HS2 Ltd, the report also revealed. The company was reportedly asked to provide a cheaper alternative but ended up nearly doubling the price in the second design. A HS2 statement said Emily got through around 38 metres of the Northolt Tunnel each day 'at peak production'. Had this pace been consistently maintained, the 3.4-mile route would have been completed in just over 140 days, or nearly five months. Emily has in fact been working for 14 months. The machine was manned by three teams of 48 working round the clock to dig the tunnel before lining it with concrete segments weighing up to seven tonnes each. It came after two other TBMs, named Sushila and Caroline, worked on the western section of the tunnel from the West Ruislip area of Hillingdon. Sushila and Caroline's drives were completed in December 2024 and April 2025 respectively. The final machine, still working, will complete the work Emily started on the eastern end of the passage this summer. Some 34 cross passages between the eastern and western bores will then be finished, before a flat surface is laid on the tunnel's base for tracks to be laid on. Tunnel shafts for ventilation and emergency access will finish off the Northolt Tunnel project. This passage will eventually take HS2's new high-speed trains from the outskirts of London to the new Old Oak Common station in west London. All four devices finish at Green Park Way, lifted out of the ground like Emily. It comes after Mary Ann, the first of two machines excavating the Bromford Tunnel from Warwickshire to Birmingham, finished work in early May. The 3.5-mile passage stretches from the village of Water Orton to the West Midlands city's Washwood Heath area. HS2 project client director Malcolm Codling said of the completion of Emily's work: 'HS2's tunnelling drives in London for the Northolt Tunnel are nearing completion and it is a real achievement for our team to complete this 3.4-mile section on the tunnel safely and with such efficiency. 'There is still much more to do in the tunnel to get it HS2 ready and we will be focusing on productivity to continue with our work safely to get the HS2 route in London ready for track to be laid, and systems installed.' Emily's work was completed by HS2's London Tunnels contractor Skanska Costain STRABAG JV (SCS JV). The firm's tunnels and routeway project director, Dave Hannon, said: 'The arrival of TBM Emily at Green Park Way marks a significant milestone in the programme. 'We are now approaching completion of the Northolt Tunnel - an exciting achievement and a testament to the collaboration, dedication, and technical capabilities of our teams. 'With our continued focus we are pressing ahead at pace to complete the remaining works, including cross passages, tunnel walkways, ventilation shafts, headhouses, and portals, as we deliver on part of the HS2 project.' Teams manning Emily removed the clay from the ground on a conveyor belt. The excavated soil has since been reused on sites in Cambridgeshire, Kent and Warwickshire, where it was transported by train. Emily was made by world-leading tunnelling experts, German firm Herrenknecht. This latest machine to finish was named Emily after Emily Sophia Taylor, who established Ealing's Perivale Maternity Hospital in 1937. She became the borough's first female mayor a year later. HS2, or High Speed 2, was proposed in 2009 to build a high-speed railway to connect London, the Midlands and the north of England. The project was announced in 2010 by then Conservative Transport Secretary Philip Hammond. But ever since it has been beset by controversy amid ballooning costs. It was originally divided into phase one, from London to Birmingham; phase 2A, from Birmingham to Crewe; and phase 2B, from Crewe to Manchester. The network will now just connect London and Birmingham. And a particularly bizarre element of the works included spending £100million on a tunnel for bats. This is despite there being 'no evidence' the trains will interfere with the mammals, ex-HS2 chairman Sir Jon Thompson said. He claimed this is an example of the UK's 'genuine problem' with completing major infrastructure projects. The company also came under fire when £20,000 was spent on a model station made out of Lego. The company spent the equivalent of £1 per plastic brick - and used it at 20 events in two years. The toys were used to recreate a planned site to help inform communities, businesses and the public about a new train station. The Lego version turned out to be roughly the size of a kitchen table, and consultants Bricks McGee were paid to construct it. In June, a whistleblower who lost his job after accusing HS2 executives of fraud over the true cost of the project won more than £300,000 in compensation. Risk management expert Stephen Cresswell repeatedly raised concerns that the cost of the high speed rail line - which could end up landing the taxpayer with a bill of more than £80billion - was being 'actively misrepresented'. The consultant was told by one HS2 executive to 'disregard' scenarios he had prepared which forecast a 'significant' increase in the price to the public, an employment tribunal heard. As a result, Mr Cresswell warned he found himself in a 'very uncomfortable position' of having a 'very different' view to the high speed rail line company's 'documented position'. The tribunal heard that in a meeting with bosses he said 'fraud had been committed because he understood fraud to be making false statement so as to secure a benefit'. After losing his job, Mr Cresswell took HS2 to an employment tribunal, claiming he had his contract terminated and been denied other work as a result of blowing the whistle. After the rail firm admitted that he had not given adequate levels of protection following his disclosures he has now been awarded £319,070 in damages. In response, campaigners said it was not to late for Labour to consider scrapping high speed rail over years of 'catastrophic mishandling'. HS2 Ltd previously said investigations into Mr Cresswell's claims found no evidence of fraud or illegal activity. In a statement it said: 'HS2 Ltd has accepted that Mr Cresswell raised concerns as a whistleblower and was not then given the appropriate level of protection when his contract came to an end. 'This is regrettable and HS2 Ltd is committed to ensuring that staff and others can raise concerns in confidence. 'This admission does not mean that HS2 Ltd accepts the specific allegations around cost estimating practices raised by Mr Cresswell. 'However, the company is under now under new leadership and a comprehensive review of its skills and structures is being carried out.' In May, a DfT spokesperson said: 'We take all whistleblowing allegations seriously and it is important that individuals are given appropriate levels of protection, which clearly was not the case for Mr Cresswell. 'There is a lot of hard work still to do to get this project back on track, which is why we are overseeing a total reset of HS2, and reviewing the programme's costs, schedule and culture.' A HS2 Ltd spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) Emily achieved a peak production rate of around 38 metres per day during her journey beneath London. 'However, this rate reflects the machine's performance during optimal conditions and does not account for the full range of operational factors that determine overall tunnelling progress. 'In practice, the speed of a tunnelling operation is influenced by several variables, including ground conditions, maintenance requirements, logistics, and the careful set-up and commissioning phases at the start of the drive. 'These all contribute to the total time taken to complete a tunnel section. 'TBM Emily's tunnel drive was completed safely and successfully over 14 months, delivering a vital section of the HS2 route that will help to improve rail capacity and connectivity across the country.' They added: 'Our Chief Executive Mark Wild has been clear that the overall delivery of HS2 has been unacceptable and significant changes are clearly needed to break the cycle of cost increases and delays. 'He is now embarking on a comprehensive review which will lead to a full reset of the company and project - ensuring the railway is delivered to the lowest reasonable cost. 'The multi-year financial settlement for the project - set out in the recent spending review - provides greater certainty to the delivery of HS2 and lays the foundations for the reset. 'This work is essential to ensure that HS2 can deliver the transformational benefits of economic growth and vital new rail capacity between our two biggest cities.'
The Guardian
18-07-2025
- The Guardian
Is Pret's mega salad actually mega expensive?
Your article says that it costs £8.14 per portion to prepare a version of a premium salad sold at Pret for £12.95 (Supersize me: recreating Pret's £13 miso salmon super plate at home, 11 July). However, Pret's charge includes 20% VAT. It also covers the cost of refrigeration, premises, the wages (and holidays and pension and national insurance contributions) of the staff who fill and clean the fridges, those who prepared and sold the salad, the accountants and human resources managers behind the scenes, the staff training and Pret's work with homeless people to give them employment and a future. If Pret can do all that with the £4.81 left after making the salad, it should be running the CampbellSwindon Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Daily Mail
11-07-2025
- Daily Mail
The most expensive salads on the high street: Pret causes a stir with new £13 lunch - but commuter are already shelling out as much as £25 on leaves
Pret A Manger caused a stir this week by unveiling a £13 supersized salmon salad targeted at hybrid workers who 'want to treat themselves the days they are in the office'. Social media fury quickly erupted over the price, which will be higher depending on location, with airport and train station branches charging more and 20 per cent VAT slapped on if customers want to eat it in-store. But a salad that costs more than your hourly wage is not a new concept, with other high street lunch spots selling hearty bowls of leaves and protein and meal deals for as much as £25. Retailers inist that these are not rabbit food, but proper meals. For instance, the co-founder of the Salad Project, James Dare, says that their meals will keep people 'full'. But the same cannot be said for one's bank account, as a meal deal from the business cost one woman £25.30, more than twice the National Living Wage for those aged 21. Hybrid workers who might wish to indulge in a fancy lunch during their days in the office might pop to Whole Foods, where salad is measured by weight. But at around £2.40 per 100g, their nourishing green goddess bowls can easily cost upwards of £12 if it has heavy ingredients in it, such as boiled eggs and chicken. It's just one of the many luxurious salad options available for hungry employees to grab on their lunch breaks... but you might need a hefty salary to be able to afford them. The Salad Project, £25.30 The Salad Project currently have seven stores and has expanded across London since opening its doors for the first time in 2021. Founders Florian and James believe eating salads should be a 'lifestyle' because it 'brings you joy in its simplest and most enjoyable forms'. 'It's your new bad habit, except it's really good,' they state on the website. The brand attracts half-an-hour long queues on a regular basis and their success is reflected in the 4,000 salads they sell each day in London alone. 'These are indulgent salads,' James Dare, The Salad Project's co-founder, claimed in conversation with The Times. He added: 'Yes, they are more expensive than a salad you might buy from Pret. But they'll keep you full. You won't need to have a sandwich immediately after.' However, if you become accustomed to picking up The Salad Project daily, you may be left with little left in your bank account afterwards, with some variations costing more than £20. Restaurant deal app NeoTaste tried one of the most expensive salads in London from the self-service The Salad Project branch in Bank. One of the NeoTaste employees ordered a custom bowl made with prawns, salmon, and 'all the greens', however, she got a fright when the bill came to £25.30. This included a super ginger drink and a mini Tony's Chocoloney bar, and she described the salad as 'so big, the lid didn't even close'. The Salad Project also have The GOAT salad, which will set you back £12.95, along with The Big Deal and the Miso Salmon options. This means that if a Londoner bought the most expensive meals from The Salad Project all week, they would be spending almost £65 on lunch alone. The GOAT contains rocket, roasted sweet potatoes, cherry tomatoes, pickled onions, honey mustard chicken, goat's cheese, maple walnuts and green goddess dressing. Bibi's, £14.75 Bibi's - located in Soho, Mayfair, Bankside and Fenchurch - is billed as a health food restaurant inspired by Turkish cuisine. They offer some of the most expensive salad boxes in London, with their Signature Roasted Salmon costing an eye-watering £14.75. The fish is infused with honey and garlic flavours and customers can choose two sides to have with the protein. This includes rice, cabbage salad, roasted vegetables, hummus, mixed leaves, a carrot salad or a beetroot salad, along with choosing their own sauces. The signature salad box - which contains no meat or fish for vegans and vegetarians - costs £10.20 and offers the same sides. Bibi's was founded by Turkish-born chef and food creative Billur Yapici, known as Bibi, and her partner Tansel, who wanted to bring flavours from around the world to London commuters. Olive + Squash, £14.30 Located in Holborn near the famous landmark St. Paul's Cathedral, Olive + Squash says it offers 'fresh, sustainable and seasonal food' which is made 'from scratch every day'. However, the convenience of having a nutritious lunch whenever you want it comes at a hefty price tag, with some of their salad bowls going for almost £15 online via Deliveroo. The Saucy Salmon Avocado bowl will set you back £14.30, without the cost of delivery and service fees if you're ordering directly to your office. The 'healthy treat' contains smoked salmon, half an avocado, giant cous cous, little gem lettuce, local radish, spring onions, coriander, sesame seeds and crispy chilli dressing. And for the vegetarians, Olive + Squash offers a premium Burrata al Pesto salad. Despite it containing no form of protein other than cheese, it is priced just 15p less than the salmon dish. It contains burrata from Puglia, homemade pesto, rocket, fusilli pasta, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, Kalamata olives, house croutons, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Atis, £14 Another pricey chain, Atis, has taken over London, offering corporate workers expensive salads in several locations across the city. They have both 'power plates' and 'salad bowls' on offer, with customers having the choice of picking between a chef-curated meal or layering up their own dish. One of the most costly items on the menu is the Miso Salmon Slaw power bowl, priced at £14. It contains miso orange salmon, miso slaw, cucumber, wholegrain rice, baby spinach, crispy shallots and a lime wedge. Atis says it was 'developed to meet the demands of an evolving relationship with food', adding that it wanted to provide a space that was 'reflective of the modern approach to eating'. Other pricey items on the menu include The Big Greek, Chicken Peso Parm and The Steak Out power plates. The Salad Kitchen, £13.75 The business has proclaimed itself as 'London's favourite salad shop' and was set up in 2014 by Sam Cole and Ross Cannon. The Salad Kitchen now has six restaurants and offers different salads based on goals, whether that is to lose weight, eat more protein or cut out gluten - but it all comes at a price. The large Gluten Go Home box will set you back £13.75 and contains a gluten free Crunchbox with pulled chicken, grilled halloumi, avocado, smoked chilli mayo, lemon pesto and toasted seeds. A crunchbox is described as a 'medley' of salads with a choice of pulled chicken, avocado, vegan kimchi, goat's cheese and/or grilled halloumi. The Salad Project's regular Protein Paradise salad also costs £12.20 and contains a crunchbox with extra an pulse, two and a half portions of pulled chicken, smoked chilli mayo, honey mustard and toasted seeds, which all contain a whopping 64g of protein. Those watching the pounds may opt for the pricey regular £11.25 So Cali low-calorie bowl, which contains a crunchbox with kimchi, roast tempeh, sriracha mayo and sourdough croutons. Tossed, £13.99 At Tossed, it appears that vegetarian salads can actually cost more than those that contain expensive ingredients, such as meat and fish. The Harissa Cauliflower salad contains harissa roasted cauliflower with houmous, pickled vegetables, roasted peppers, cucumber, mint and pomegranate relish, baby plum tomatoes, fresh coriander and tahini dressing. It costs £9.99, a heftier price tag than the £8.49 Tuna Niçoise salad, which is made with tuna, egg, olives, baby plum tomatoes, pickled red onion and French dressing. But one of the most expensive salads on their Deliveroo website is the Avocado Caesar Salad, which will set you back £13.99, without the cost of delivery and fees. Customers can choose between chicken or salmon with avocado, parmesan crisps, baby plum tomatoes, egg, croutons, Caesar dressing and lemon juice. Palm Greens, £13.50 Palm Greens' base is pinpointed in the heart of trendy east London, Shoreditch, an area with a thriving arts and culture scene and home to many other independent shops and restaurants. It therefore may come as no surprise that its mantra is 'lunch, just not as you know it', again, promising bold flavours with 'seasonal goodness'. Palm Greens currently has three salads on the menu: Mexican Tostada, Kale Caesar and Miso Mushroom, all of which cost a hefty £13.50 each. This means a post-gym wellness drink and salad would easily rack up to more than £20 per person, as the smoothies themselves are £8.50 alone. Urban Greens, £13.50 With five locations across London, in Kensington to London Wall, Urban Greens are beginning to establish themselves as one of the industry giants within the city's health food industry. The store aims to 'deliver nutritious, powerful, delicious food' for busy commuters in a rush who perhaps don't have time to prepare food at home. Customers can build their own salads, but those in a hurry may choose their pre-made dishes off the menu, however, they don't come cheap. The Salmon Avocado Signature Salad bowls cost £13.50 - 55p more than Pret's salad - and it contains hot smoked salmon, quinoa, shredded kale, pickled cabbage, avocado, fresh parsley, sesame seeds and a basil pesto dressing. The business has also recently teamed up with Paradise, a restaurant owned by British-Sri Lankan chef Dom Fernando in Soho, to create the Paradise salad. It costs a whopping £12 and contains tamarind and jaggery glazed chicken, red rice, broccoli, pickled red cabbage, pickled chillies, coconut and cherry tomato pol sambol, coriander, cashews, crispy onions and a curry leaf pesto dressing. Pick Your Own, £12.45 Pick Your Own champions 'field to fork' has opened its first location on Fenchurch Street, a busy hub full of hundreds of offices, financial, insurance, and legal sectors. The regular Salmon Crunch Salad costs £12.45 and upgrading to a large costs £13.95, almost putting the company on par with Bibi's. It contains ezme fava beans, seasonal shredded vegetables, nut crumble, shredded carrots, green harissa tahini dressing and chilli-encrusted sockeye salmon. Pick Your Own also has a Calabrian Chilli Chicken bowl costing £11.95 for a regular and £13.45 for a large. For that cost, customers receive lemon and herb chicken, baby spinach, shredded vegetables, Calabrian chilli crunch, red pepper and lemon and orange asparagus and courgette. Pick Your Own says its aim is to 'champion a holistic approach to sustainability in the quick-service restaurant industry'.
