Classic autumnal flavours, such as maple and pumpkin, make a return to the menus of coffee shops and food to go chains alongside hearty soups and seasonal savouries, as MCA rounds-up the latest menu launches, featuring Pret, Greggs, Costa Coffee and more
Pret A Manger
Pret’s new autumn menu includes upgraded breakfast ciabattas, new flatbreads and a new premium pastry range.
Launched this week, its hot breakfast offering now includes a Triple Sausage Ciabatta, Triple Bacon Ciabatta, Veggie Breakfast Ciabatta – featuring a mushroom and roasted tomato omelette with feta and chives, and an Ultimate Breakfast Ciabatta, with British pork sausage, beechwood smoked British back bacon, and a roasted tomato omelette with chives, in a crusty ciabatta roll.
Two new toasties have been introduced to its lunch range – Mushroom Florentine and Chipotle Chicken and Feta, both of which are on seeded bloomer bread. While its soup range has been expanded with the return of its Butternut & Sage offering, as well as the slightly more unusual Lasagne soup – which contains chunky Italian-style sausage meat, ditalini pasta, and tomatoes with basil, oregano, and parsley. Returning items include its Beef & Horseradish Baguette and Brie & Bacon Baguette.
The multichannel retailer has also upgraded its flatbreads with a new recipe, with options for autumn including Shawarma Spiced Chicken, Mediterranean Style Tuna and Falafel, Avo & Chipotle.
On the sweet side of things, Pret has introduced a Stem Ginger Cookie and Spiced Apple & Pecan Muffin, and has launched a new, more indulgent pastry category to its menu, which features a Cinnamon Crown as its hero product.
Hot drinks include a Pumpkin Spice Latte and Salted Caramel Latte.
Commenting on the new range, Katherine Bagshawe, UK food & coffee director, said: “We are incredibly proud to offer a menu that not only celebrates the comforting flavours of autumn but also highlights Pret’s dedication to quality.”
Pret will also be revealing a second wave of autumn menu products later this month.
Greggs
The food to go retailer has focused on bringing a bit of spice to its menu, with its seasonal launches.
It has introduced a new Mexican Bean & Spicy Cheese Flatbread (containing mixed beans in a Mexican style sauce with mixed peppers, sweetcorn, and jalapeños, covered in slices of cheddar cheese with chillies) and, on the sweet side, a Pumpkin Spice Doughnut, which is topped with icing and a caramelised biscuit crumb.
Also new to the menu is an All-Day Breakfast Baguette – containing omelette, sausage, bacon, Cheddar cheese and ketchup. While its pizza sharing boxes (available in both four and six slice boxes) now include a BBQ chicken option.
Its popular Pumpkin Spice Latte and Salted Caramel Latte have made a return to the hot drinks menu – both of which are now available over ice, alongside the Orange Mocha and Orange Hot Chocolate.
Costa Coffee
Costa Coffee is embracing a lot of the classic autumnal flavours with its new seasonal menu – which will be available in its shops from tomorrow (5 September).
New products include a Brie, Bacon and Chilli Jam Panini, Chicken and Chorizo Panini and Chilli Beef and Cheddar Toastie. While its Hog Roast Toastie and Roast Chicken and Bacon Sandwich will be making a return.
A ‘Nuts about Maple Slice’ will be joining the line-up of sweet treats, to tie in with its Maple Hazel drinks range. It features a shortbread base, topped with a maple syrup, caramel, pecan and hazelnut filling. Also new is a Sticky Pecan Mini Loaf and Iced Ghost Gingerbread Biscuit.
Costa has focused its innovation on the food menu, with its popular Maple Hazel drinks range returning this autumn, featuring a Maple Hazel latte, frappé and hot chocolate.
The coffee chain has also just launched a new breakfast deal, where customers can get a small or medium drink, croissant or toast, and an Innocent orange or apple juice for £5.99.
Starbucks
Starbucks beat everyone to the punch when it came to their autumn menu launch – introducing it in stores from 22 August.
This year has seen the introduction of the coffee shop’s Pumpkin Cream Iced Chai Tea Latte for the first time in the UK, alongside a Pumpkin Cream Iced Oat Shaken Espresso, Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew, Salted Maple & Caramel Latte and Iced Salted Maple & Caramel Latte.
Additions to the food range include the Pumpkin Spice Marble Loaf Cake and Pumpkin Spice Cookies.
Leon
Leon is to launch a gluten-free katsu curry called Lucky Katsu – which it claims is the first of its kind – in its shops on 11 September, to mark its 20th birthday, with further details of its autumn menu launch to land later this week.
The dish is made with crispy gluten-free chicken nuggets, covered in a creamy katsu curry sauce, and is finished with tangy pickled radish and fresh herbs, served on brown rice.
Ole & Steen
Danish bakery chain Ole & Steen also launched a new menu this week, which draws inspiration from popular Nordic flavour profiles.
The new all-day range features a Pumpkin Spice Latte Cheesecake – a biscuit base topped with pumpkin spice cheesecake, coffee cream and gold coffee beans, Pumpkin Spiced Latte and Honeycomb Latte.
Other new products include a Cardamom bun – already popular in its Danish stores, and a Blackberry & Strawberry Tart – made with a sweet shortcrust almond base, covered in chocolate topped with vanilla custard, fresh blackberries, strawberries and flaked almonds.
To cater for savoury tastes, Ole & Steen has also introduced a Bacon & Brie Croissant, with caramelised onion chutney and rocket, and an Avocado & Egg Open Rye.
Tortilla
While not strictly an autumn menu item, Tortilla has just launched what it is claiming is the UK’s first ever cheeseburger smash burrito, to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the cheeseburger.
Beef smash, Mexican rice, Monterey jack cheese, chipotle cheese sauce, crisp lettuce, chipotle mayo, pico de gallo, salsa ranchera and pickled onions.
The filling has been designed to taste exactly like a cheeseburger and is a mix of savoury beef mince, seasoned with a tangy mix of ketchup, mustard and mayo.
Available for a six-week period, the new Smash range also features the Smash Tres Tacos, Smash Quesadilla and Smash Nachos Queso.
James Garland, food director at Tortilla said the Beef Smash recipes were inspired by the viral social media trend of cheeseburger smash tacos.
“This is the start of an exciting pipeline of food development, we have been busy in the kitchen creating even more exciting flavours and dishes to add to the already millions of different combinations you can build from a burrito at Tortilla,” he added.
