Andy in another thread - I read in the newspaper at the time that Sheffield is the only city in the world where Pret wasn't sucessfull. Another claim to fame :clap:

I LOVE PRET A MANGER! (Despite it being a member of the McDonalds group :gag:.

Is this a sign of Sheffield mentality? I mean they sell fantastic food, hand made in the shop, it's not cheap but it's reasonable for what you get compared to how much you get charged for some of the sh*t they sell elsewhere, and yet, it closed down!

Of course, one explanation could be the location - they put it in the Market Street part of Meadowhall, and aside from us all knowing the Poundland implications that holds, in comparison to the trendy, slightly bourgeoisness of Pret, maybe it being away from the food hall was a problem?

I dunno...SHeffield seems so damn backwards sometimes.

I'd love to see one open in Sheffield City; I'd definately go there! Mmmmm Crayfish and rocket....

Avocado and pine nut wrap.....

Mmmmm.

Maybe it wasn't successful because it's sells overpriced rubbish. The biggest crime being 'crisps' made from beetroot slices, BEETROOT! (how do I get that being sick smilie?!?!)

Originally posted by Kristian
I'd love to see one open in Sheffield City; I'd definately go there! Mmmmm Crayfish and rocket....

Boots do a crayfish and rocket sarnie.

One did open in Sheffield.
It didn't do very well so it closed!

Nomme

i used to work in picadilly in london and there were about 5 pret a mangers within 1/4 mile of each other, they were very very expensive with rude staff and the food wasn't that good, the sandwiches were so poncy, i like a good old BLT without the posh mayo etc, it was hard to find somewhere other than pret a manger to go for lunch and i ended up spending so much money there. I'm glad sheffield doesn't have one, but i wish the city centre had more cafes/quick places for lunch that you can take friends and family when out shopping.

Good food???

Its a fact that mcdonalds is healthier than pret a manger!!!!

Originally posted by noseyrosie
Is this a sign of Sheffield mentality?

Yeah, not wanting to pay stupid money for yet another faceless chain of crappy food?

Originally posted by eddies32
Maybe it wasn't successful because it's sells overpriced rubbish. The biggest crime being 'crisps' made from beetroot slices, BEETROOT! (how do I get that being sick smilie?!?!)

Ooh, I love them! I like the ones that are the mixed root veg crisps - beetroot, swede, turnip etc - they are great!

I'd far rather have pret than have two bloomin' subways, but I'd rather have an idependent sandwich shop than either of them!

Perhaps Sheffield folk just see sandwiches as sandwiches, just as they do with coffee and not distinguish between quality and value.

I don't think there is a cosmopoiltan air to workers in Sheffield like there are in other cities.

having lived and worked in london i do consider my tastes to be quite cosmopolitan - i do like good food and am quite a 'foody' and i like the whole lunch thing with mates or collegues, but i don't like paying loads of money for the pleasure, lol

There was one in Meadowhall many years ago, but it closed.

I love their granola and yoghurt pots....MMMM.

Originally posted by foxycoxy
There was one in Meadowhall many years ago, but it closed.

I love their granola and yoghurt pots....MMMM.

I'm afraid my experience of Pret a Manger wasn't very positive.

My sister and I had sandwiches and coffee in the Meadowhell outlet, and neither of us were very impressed. It was really expensive and the food wasn't that nice.

Maybe we just got them on a bad day .....

StarSparkle

Originally posted by scottf
Good food???

Its a fact that mcdonalds is healthier than pret a manger!!!!

This statement is out of context so ignore it.

link (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/thehealthnews.html?in_article_id=340825&in_page_id=1797)

They tested the pret cheese sandwich against the big mac burger. And to be fair the results were similar it wasn't like pret had a huge amount more calories. In fact the difference was 15.4 calories. Big wows. Pret admitted that cheese sandwiches would be full of fat, but then again we all know that cheese is fattening. Pret on the other hand have a whole range of low fat sandwiches, healthy options and salads.

I'd much rather eat a pret cheese sandwich over a big mac anyday. Big macs are full of preservatives, processed foods, white bread etc etc. Pret, granary bread, and no hidden ingredients.

Don't read an article and condem all pret food. :loopy:

Bring Pret back to Sheffield. Every time I go down to london I have to have a pret sarnie.

There are plenty of places where you can get a decent sandwich in Sheffield without having to buy into a brand image. Try Relish on West Street for starters.

no pret

no habitat

no muji

etc

i think many companies avoid sheffield because they think it won't work (and they are probably right).

Given the choice I'd always go to Pret because of the fresh that day sandwiches. The sandwiches are much healthier than McDonalds (who actually own only a 33% stake in the company) and use fresh ingredients. I always get the Chicken Caesar sandwich! Mmmmm! Off to York today so am planning to do Pret again (was in London yesterday and went to the Tothill St one).

On my excursions to London I've been in a Pret-a-Manger once or twice (when I'm feeling flush with cash and wanting to try new things) and have to say that I wasn't impressed.

Part of it could be because in sandwich terms I'm a 'meat and two veg' sort of guy, if that makes sense. But it struck me as being 'fur coat and no knickers' - i.e. a triumph of style over substance.

I guess that the management didn't feel they could make as much profit here as they needed.

Joe

Is the Pret short for pretentious ?

Originally posted by hillsborough
Is the Pret short for pretentious ?

No it's short for "Pret a Manger" which means "Ready to Eat".

There is a certain pretentiousness about giving the chain a french name when one of the things you rarely find in France is chains - each town will have a number of family run deli's / bakeries.

Originally posted by hillsborough
Is the Pret short for pretentious ?

It would explain their lack of success in Sheffield, and all the other up-market but thankfully absent retail nonsense from the town centre. :P

Rumour has it they are considering buying/leasing a retail space in St Pauls Place block...

Pret is just a glorifued Subway. Bost expensive. Bost not very good. Both trendy so a lot of people will go their to be "cool" (like Starbucks). We aren't missing much.....

Maybe the reason theres a lack of pret a manger is that majority of Sheffield people have the sense not to want to buy over priced crappy sandwiches.

Originally posted by foxy027
Maybe the reason theres a lack of pret a manger is that majority of Sheffield people have the sense not to want to buy over priced crappy sandwiches.

no i think it is because they are too pikey and will happily settle for greggs

Originally posted by hillsborough
Is the Pret short for pretentious?[/B][QUOTE]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by JonJParr
No it's short for "Pret a Manger" which means "Ready to Eat".

don't you just love literal people ...

Being a bit of a fashion victim, when PAM first started up dahn sarf and their outlets were being vaunted in all the ulta-cool mags, I was desparate to be able to say I'd been there :rolleyes: I was young and foolish!

I was sooooo disappointed .... the place was dirty and uncomfortable, the staff trying to live up to the pretentious french name (in other words unhelpful and supercilious) and the food ..... maybe it was just because ... or maybe it was too close to closing time - whatever. I've never been tempted to give them another chance ...

btw we've had a Habitat here, ont Moor, I always had the impression that they were only here because we're a major city and they felt they had too ... they never seemed to give it 100%, the stock was limited and they didn't last long.

I just think that Sheffield people expect good service and value for money and if they don't get it they don't go there ... as a lot of companies that live on their image soon find out.

Originally posted by ultracynic
no pret

no habitat

no muji

etc

i think many companies avoid sheffield because they think it won't work (and they are probably right).

we had a habitat - it closed
we had a pret - it closed

there must be no demand

they opened one pret in sheffield only 1 and the location wasnt very good at all which is probably to do with the reason they closed. Had they opened in a different place am sure they would have done better

I always get a Pret sandwich when in London - far fresher and better than most of the dodgy sandwich shops in Sheffield where some 3-day old tuna mayo mulch is scooped out of its tupperware and slapped onto a white breadcake.

Hope we get one soon.

Of course you only have their word that the ingredients are fresh, their tuna could have been sat in the shop for a week before it was put into a sarnie.

Originally posted by nick2
Of course you only have their word that the ingredients are fresh, their tuna could have been sat in the shop for a week before it was put into a sarnie.

You can hide a few things, but you cannot fake whether salad ingredients are fresh, lettuce only lasts a few hours in bread before going limp.

Originally posted by MichaelJP
You can hide a few things, but you cannot fake whether salad ingredients are fresh, lettuce only lasts a few hours in bread before going limp.

Rubbish, it last much longer than that, at least a day, if properly stored.

Been to Pret a couple of times when in London and could never find anything I liked. When I did find something they'd sneaked Coriander into it unannounced and it was revolting. I can't stand Coriander. :gag:

Give me Subway any day. :clap:

If the lack of a Pret-a-Mangy is due to the Sheffield attitude then my opinion of Sheffield has shot up several notches. Perhaps we prefer to eat something tasty from an individualist butty shop rather than pieces of plastic.