Latest news with #PretAManger
Telegraph
01-08-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Ann Summers gives staff body-cams amid shoplifting epidemic
Ann Summers is introducing staff body-cameras that can film customers as the lingerie shop battles a surge in shoplifting. The company said it was testing cameras worn by employees in a number of its shops, saying it wanted to 'significantly reduce the issues faced in store, ultimately ensuring our teams feel safe and supported'. The cameras may prove controversial, given that the retailer sells intimate items including lingerie and sex toys. Ann Summers deliberately sends its online orders in plain boxes and envelopes that do not feature its logo, saying: 'Your privacy is really important to us, and, with our discreet packaging, you can be totally confident about shopping with us.' However, the retailer said the trial was necessary in response to a rise a shoplifting and antisocial behaviour, which has 'become increasingly challenging' for staff. Ann Summers said: 'The personal safety and wellbeing of our colleagues is absolutely essential.' The new cameras will be able to record up to 10 hours of footage from a single charge and can be activated by the wearer when they feel unsafe. The lingerie retailer the latest in a growing number of companies to introduce the cameras. Tesco, Pret a Manger and English Heritage have all already rolled them out for workers. While many shops are turning to body cameras, some customers dislike being filmed. A recent survey from YouGov found 29pc of 18 to 24-year-olds were not comfortable with store workers wearing the cameras, compared with 17pc of over-55s. More than 40pc of people said they would think twice about their behaviour if staff were wearing body-worn cameras, according to the survey of 2,200 UK adults. Ann Summers' decision comes in response to a surge in thefts and attacks on workers across the high street. Official figures last month revealed the number of shoplifting offences jumped by a fifth in the year to March.
Daily Mirror
27-07-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mirror
American in UK visits impressive service station that's 'like a theme park'
An American woman has said she's finally come to understand why Brits have a favourite service station after visiting a Welcome Break in the UK she compared to a theme park UK service stations are typically quite basic, offering a couple of eateries, a shop and toilets for travellers in need of a rest on the motorway. However, one Welcome Break UK services is drawing visitors from far and wide. An American woman was left astounded after her recent visit at the Yorkshire service station, describing it as "exquisite". Situated of the M1J33 near Rotherham, the service station boasts an array of popular chains such as Starbucks, Pret A Manger, Burger King, Chopstix, The Good Breakfast, KFC, Waitrose, and WHSmith. Not only does it offer top-notch facilities and a variety of dining options, but the service area - which opened its doors in January this year - also provides 458 parking spaces for various types of vehicles. Plus, it has resulted in the creation of around 230 new jobs. Iniki, an American woman who relocated from Florida - a state known for its large 'petrol stations' - hailed the Rotherham Welcome Break as "the nicest UK service station." In a recent TikTok post, Iniki said: "I think I finally understand when Brits say they have a favourite service station because this service station was exquisite. This is a brand new Welcome Break in Rotherham and I was thoroughly impressed." The woman, who is married to a British man, likened it to "kind of looks like a little town" and said it reminded her of Universal Studios. She described her experience as akin to "a walk in the park." The American was also impressed by the variety of dining choices, gaming section and children's play area. "So yeah, I never understood the hype about service stations until now," she added. One person remarked: "As someone who was born in Rotherham, it's strange hearing an American say it haha. Driven past this service station many times but never been in. Looks nice!". One declared it's "probably the best thing" in Rotherham. "Nicest place in Rotherham," chimed in another. "Wow, it's really nice," noted someone else. A further user commented: "I love a good service station. It's kind of like you're going on holiday, slight airport vibes without the planes or security."
The Guardian
11-07-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Supersize me: recreating Pret's miso salmon super plate at home
This week Pret a Manger sparked uproar when it launched a range of new supersized salads. It came as a response to what Pret said was a 'shift in what customers want from lunch', though possibly not from their wallet, with the premium salads priced between £10-£13. But how good are they? And is it right that they cost that much? I set off to recreate the miso salmon super plate at home. It's fun copying the ingredients off the back of a packet to come up with a recipe. With the miso salmon plate, I'm impressed by the original: the plate looks very pretty, and the lightly smoked salmon fillet has an excellent texture. The tenderstem broccoli is just-blanched, and pleasingly crunchy. It's only when I compare the miso-orange dressing with my own version that I realise quite how much sugar must have gone in – ditto the chilli aubergine, which is a bit gloopy (thanks, cornflour). But it's a generous dish, with a triple hit of protein from the salmon, soya beans and quinoa, I have none of my usual sugar/chocolate cravings in the afternoon. Based on the texture of the Pret aubergine, I treated it like the Korean side-dish gaji-namul – steaming the aubergine before stirring through the dressing (minus the cornflour). The homemade dish is very close in taste, but overall my dish tastes punchier, because I used freshly grated ginger and garlic throughout, rather than pastes. The significant difference is the cost: Pret's salad comes in at £12.95, while my homemade one comes in at about £8.14 per person, after factoring in the proportion of each packet/jar used (I got most of it from Sainsbury's and the more unusual/less widely available ingredients from Sous Chef). But if you haven't already got shichimi togarashi, gochugaru (red pepper flakes) or aonori seaweed in your cupboard, then you're setting yourself back £11.65 just on so-called 'store cupboard ingredients' that you might never use again. So £8-ish, plus an initial outlay of £12 to recreate this at home, which is more than a bit steep. The clincher? I'm not the kind of home cook or food writer who ever, ever wants you to have use two pans, a steamer, two sieves, three bowls and a baking tray to make a single dish. You might not mind several processes and more than an hour hands-on time for a recipe, but I really do. Ultimately, I'd say the Pret salad is worth £12.95, because there's no outlay on expensive store-cupboard ingredients and, given its quality (it's fresher than comparable on-the-go post-workout meals). And it'd certainly save me £3-£4 on cake/cookies/ice-cream in the afternoon. Prep InterminableCook 20 minCost £8.14 per portionServes 2 2 lightly smoked salmon fillets 2 teaspoons mixed seeds 2 teaspoons shichimi togarashi ½ teaspoon aonori seaweed ½ teaspoon sea salt flakes ½ tablespoon rapeseed oil 50g mixed black & white quinoa ½ aubergine, sliced lengthways and cut into 1cm quarter moons 1 clove garlic, peeled and grated 2 tsp gochugaru (red pepper powder) ¼ tsp chilli powder 20ml rapeseed oil 5ml brown rice vinegar ½ tsp sugar ½ tsp sea salt flakes 6 stems Tenderstem broccoli 4 heaped tbsp edamame beans 2 handfuls mixed salad leaves 1 ripe avocado, finely sliced and dressed with a little lemon juice15ml rapeseed oil 15g miso paste (I used red) 10ml brown rice vinegar ½ tsp finely grated ginger ½ tsp finely grated garlic ½ tsp sugar Pinch chilli powder Pinch sea salt flakes ½ lime, cut into quarters to serve Sign up to Feast Recipes from all our star cooks, seasonal eating ideas and restaurant reviews. Get our best food writing every week after newsletter promotion Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/gas 6. Put the salmon on a lined baking tray, and scatter with the mixed seeds, shichimi togarashi, aonori seaweed and sea salt flakes. Drizzle with the oil, then bake for 12-14 minutes, until just cooked through. Boil the quinoa in a pan of boiling water for 20 minutes, then drain well and leave to steam-dry for 10 minutes. Put the aubergine in a steamer set over boiling water, and steam for eight minutes, until just cooked through. While the aubergine is steaming, mix the garlic, gochugaru, chilli powder, rapeseed oil, brown rice vinegar, sugar and sea salt flakes . As soon as the aubergine is done, stir it through the chilli dressing and set aside for 10 minutes. Put the broccoli in a pan or large bowl of boiling water, leave to blanch for a minute, then drain well. Whisk all the dressing ingredients. Put the salad leaves in a bowl, then arrange the salmon, tenderstem, avocado, aubergine, quinoa, edamame and lime quarter on top, and serve the dressing alongside.
Daily Mail
11-07-2025
- Business
- 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'.
The Independent
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Popular sandwich shop chain raises eyebrows with £13 salad range
Pret A Manger has launched a new "Super Plates" salad range, priced between £9.95 and £12.95, in response to increased demand for larger, nutrient-dense salads. The new range, which includes Miso Salmon and Chipotle Chicken options, is 60 per cent larger than existing salads and features premium ingredients. Pret stated that sales of its salads have grown significantly, three times faster than sandwiches, prompting the introduction of these new protein-packed options. However, the high price of the "Super Plates" has sparked widespread debate and outrage among social media users, who criticised the cost for a salad. The new salad range will be available in 250 Pret stores across the UK, including major cities like London, Edinburgh, Manchester, and Birmingham, from Thursday, 9 July.
