American Tries Vegan Options At London Chains (Greggs & Nando's)
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- Опубліковано 30 січ 2024
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While I was across the pond I thought it would be only fitting that I do a tier ranking of 2 of London's most popular chain restaurants! Greggs and Nandos!! I am so curious to see if other people echo my feelings on this one.
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Different olives taste different, do you also dislike the fresh-tasting olives that don't come in brine? Like Cerignola?
Haha! As a Brit, I can tell you that your expectations of Greggs were far too high. It's essentially a fast food bakery for builders...high quality food isn't the aim there
it's a food chain that always saved my hangovers @@GK-rt2oz
No hate here hun,greggs is just a quick n dirty thing we all eat when we need a fast snack or meal 😂😂
OUTRAGED at the ranking of the Greggs sausage roll, its so iconic, sometimes they get a bit dry but thats when the ketchup comes in!
Agreed !
I tried both the vegan and the normal one and didn't like it either, my British boyfriend almost broke up with me when I told him 😂
I knew this was going to be a controversial video
@@MerleONeal watch Peirs Morgan’s rant on Vegan Sausage Rolls, that’s how controversial they are
@@MerleONeal I think you got unlucky and had a very bad one. I had it in Glasgow and I loved them so much and they weren't dry at all and very sausagy... so sad 😕
Hey Merle, I wanted to let you know Bhaji is pronounced bha-ji, not bhahee. It’s a type of Indian fritter. No hate at all, just wanted to inform!
that baji is different from bhaji
was looking for this comment. I bet it would've been delicious too, sad she didn't get to try it 😍
LMAOOO "next to a bunch of fuckin British figurines" followed by a long sigh then "here's the goddamn hummus" I felt all of that
you understand
You pointing out Arias mouth breathing and then hearing it was pretty funny lol
Lowkey, for some reason, you slightly remind me of Abbi Jacobson from Broad City. It might just be the hair though. You strike me as a fan of Broad City but if you're not, I HIGHLY recommend you watch it! My fav show ever.
I LOVE Broad City
I like how cozy and realistic this video was.
For Nandos you should try dining in because youre missing the experience of dousing your food with all their sauces and asking for a water cup and secretly getting soda 😀.
It was just sooo SOOOOOO loud!!!
My veggie/vegan friends really like Nandos options. Nandos is significantly better eaten in, takeaway/delivery is fine but it knocks the quality down soooo much.
I am kinda bummed that I couldn't do the ranking there, but i'm positive you wouldn't have heard a word I said
Honestly the loud music in Nandos is my least favourite part about it. Every single Nandos is the same @@MerleONeal 😂
Missing the Greggs breakfast selection 😂 took me right back to London seeing this video! Hope you and Aria enjoyed the trip❤❤
Glad you liked it- A brekkie burrito would have been great or even a nice vegan English breakfast
I love our vegan queen as always so good to have another video. I so appreciate the fact you took the time to film this for us whilst enjoying your holiday away with Aria!! Much obliged 😂❤❤❤.
But I even more so appreciate the fact you did the voice-overs. I am very noise sensitive and huge thing for me with your theme parks videos (while I'd love them it was hard for me to listen to them because of the background noises), I very much so prefer this video format. So thank you for being so considerate, it did make a huge difference for me personally. I hope everyone else enjoyed it too, as much as I did. Can't wait for the next one and hope you both enjoyed your time off!!! ❤❤❤
As a British guy , I was hoping you would do this type of video 🤩😁
the breathing is making me hysterical HAHAHHAHA
We must laugh through the tears
“Tell me about it… spud” 😂😂
I love the chaos of this video!
You should have tried Wagamamas. They are British chain that serve Japanese inspired food and I love the vegan options they have there.
Ohh the olive Theory ❤
I love Nando’s plant based range 🤩. The Nando’s in South Africa have a very realistic vegan chicken recipe, seitan based.
Really ? Are they at all nandos or specific cities ?
@@maxlynx3911 as far as I know it's in all cities in South Africa. It's called the great pretender on the menu.
P.S. omz that was so cute when the guy showed up in the hallway haha. I used to live in the UK and the people really are so nice there!!
Anyway, what I was gonna say was, I can't believe you don't like olives!! I loove them, but...then I remembered that you keep making videos with mushrooms, and I hate mushrooms, so at least thatmakes me feel better now, haha. To each their own ey?? 😂😂❤❤
Such a controversial ranking for the vegan sausage roll and steak bake! Maybe it’s because I grew up eating the meat versions but I absolutely LOVE both of them
Early birds where yall at ✌️
British person here, I think even Gregg's meat sausage roll is quite squishy so ig it's intentional for the vegan sausage roll..?
I remember when all you could get at nandos as a vegetarian was fries so at least they have some more options now.
I’ve grown up eating Quorn, for me nothing replaces it. Just goes to show how everyone is so different ❤
True!!
I just wish their stuff was vegan. I don't know why they sneak eggs into so many of their products. It makes not trust any of their products.
@@driverjayneThey were a vegetarian brand for 30+ years before veganism really took off in popularity so rather than change their existing products (many of which do include egg) they just introduced new vegan ones too. I grew up eating Quorn 30 years ago as a vegetarian kid so to me its really comforting and familiar to have vegan versions of the same. But I can understand that if you went straight from meat eater to vegan or grew up vegan it can be frustrating to have to check labels rather than relying on the whole brand being vegan.
You would've liked a Wagas!!
One of the only chain restaurants with tons of really great vegan options. Love Wagamama.
Omg the breathing is so funny. WHERE is the microphone on the camera located? The back??? 😂😂 Edit: Ok wait I've gotten to the end of the video and you answer this question haha
LMAO
If I remember correctly the vegan glazed donut is the only glazed donut they have (ik they have other non vegan donuts), so a lot of non vegans eat them too. That was my FAVORITE thing from there! To get a vegan donut in the US you'd pay like 5 times that and honestly you'd be lucky if they had a place that sells them near you unless you're in LA or NY. I liked the sausage roll but the steak bake wasn't my thing. I think sometimes they have a bean and cheese pastry too. Meats and meat dishes there taste different vegan and non vegan imo. The flavor profile isn't what you'd expect but some of my non vegan family who tried the stuff at greggs thought some of the vegan stuff tasted similar to the non vegan stuff, the texture is definitely softer though
justice. for the sausage roll!!!!
Greggs is not a “London treasure”. Greggs’s home is in the north east in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Oh sweetheart! Please tell me you went somewhere decent aswell? Greggs I can sort of understand for a quick bite whilst sightseeing but Nando’s? That place is for chicken munchers and no one else! There are so many good options and exclusively vegan places in London. I hope you managed a few of those too…
Mate, London has absolutely incredible vegan choices. In Borough Market alone there's dozens of places doing delicious food. Greggs and Nandos is like the dregs of veganism in London 😣. Though I'd still rate a Greggs sausage roll, it's not suppose to be like a hot dog type sausage I guess. It's quite similar to the meat version from Greggs.
We got some great vegan options elsewhere, overall I was so impressed with London's vegan options!
@@MerleONeal oh I'm so glad you tried some stuff you loved! I would hate to think we'd left such a bad impression 😆. Your face eating some of that food, I really felt for you.
Do you have any recs beside the obvious famous ones ? I'm going soon x
@@MysteriousBeingOfLight Borough Market is huge and full of food choices, definitely worth a visit just for the experience: Gujurati Rasoi has some great Indian vegan options. My personal rec would be El Tahrir in Edgeware Road for Egyptian koshari!They only serve koshari, but it's delicious.
I haven't been but Vegan Yes has Korean / Italian fusion and apparently the burgers are great! Been a long time since I lived in London, so others may have better, more current options.
The hummas is supposed to come with a tiny bottle of chilli oil, they do forget it all the time and it always ruins my meal. It is very tasty.
When Merle said Courses I heard Horses. An thought It's nice but what would I do with a horse? I live in a little apartment in a big city!
LMAO hey, there's definitely a site for horse lovers too
If you ever come to Scotland, Edinburgh please please go to Considerat Donut. Absolutely amazing donuts 😍. Paradise Palms and Seeds for the Soul are also great. There are loads of great options
MY GIRL MERLE!! ❤🤗🥰
Hummus needs something tangy to balance it out. I like a small amount of mustard, for example.
Just want to say that I am right there with you on every comment you made. I literally made the exact same criticisms That you did about both restaurants.I was heartbroken about that sausage roll!
glad im not alone
* me going in the UK in a few days taking notes * hehehe ☺✨
That is an impressive candle!
I think the vegan sausage roll does a good job at pretending to be the normal sausage roll
Did you know that there are other cities and towns than London in the U.K.? You call everything ‘ London treasure’. Whereas Greggs was founded on Tyneside.
I'm headed back to London and super stoked for vegan pizza hut stuffed crust pizza!
I'm starting to rethink Merle's judgment.
Merle… you seemed a little bad moodish 😅 in this video. I am going to have to try it all the next time I am in England. I still love all your videos. ❤
There’s so much good vegan food in London. I hope you got to Unity Diner, Mildred’s, Wulf & Lamb or any of the other great vegan places! This was fun though!
Spicy chickpea in a pitty is my favourite. I think you were just unlucky and got the end with the pickles, as its honestly amazing.
My husband and I ended up at Nando's while looking for a place to eat before seeing Witness for the Prosecution in November. We really enjoyed it. It wasn't as good as the non-chain restaurants we went to, but many times better than what you can get at chain restaurants in the US. I love olives, so the spicy olives were a highlight for me. I thought the chickpea patty was pretty good, and so didvmy husband, who eats meat.
Gregg's is dire LOL. And i'm not sure that Nando's is the best place to go for Vegan food. Quorn is a fantastic meat substitue. I use it even though i'm not vegan.
The disdain is sending me! Bless you for persevering through all the adversity 😂
One thing I would love to see is you reacting to Jerry Heil Vegan, its an old song, but with her winning the national selection for her country for Eurovision this year its starting to see some limelight again.
You should get a good shotgun microphone for your camera or a lapel/clip on. There's some really good ones for great prices, especially wireless ones
THE OLIVE THEORY AWWW
Hey Merle! The crazy thing is, Nandos in South African doesn’t have rainbow slaw or hummus. The texture of the vegan chicken is also quite chewy, it’s so realistic that it freaks me out and I no longer eat it 😆 Oh and the extra hot is very hot!
I think the 'sweet potato bhaji' is an Indian thing as bhaji in Hindi means vegetable dish, usually used in Maharashtra, where I am from, but I maybe wrong. If it's that, it's pronounced just as its written with no silent letters. But once again, I maybe wrong! Apologies beforehand!
Lol every couple is made of one olive lover and one olive hater 😂😂
You should have eaten the sausage roll and the steak bake in the same mouth full. The sausage roll had the chewiness, and the steak bake had the moistness you wanted. Together they would be top notch!
I love Greggs but they only usually have one vegan "bake" at a time plus the sausage roll, so you can only ever try the one that's currently in rotation - they also do a generic vegetable one, a christmas one, a mexican one and an S tier sausage, baked beans and cheeze one, which is a copy of the meaty version and often referred to as just a "beany cheesy". I think the sausage rolls being dry is a common complaint so ketchup is mandatory, but having eaten a lot of both vegan and non vegan ones I think they're not that far off 😁
You know what, hear me out... You can learn to love olives. I didn't start loving them until my mid-30s! If you love olive oil, you're 25% there... then the next step is olive tapenade or herby mixed olives... mix them into dishes in small amounts, diced or minced at first to get used to the flavor. I hated them for so long, and now they're one of my favorites!!!
The Greggs vegan sausage roll is definitely best with the sauces. But then again, I love mush texturally 😂 if you want a good pie and mash vegan wise if you're ever back in london pieministers
next time im trying it with ketchup for sure!
@@MerleONeal I forgot to put the name of the place 🤦♀️
As an Australian....no, none of that sounded Australian. 😂 But love the video!
How did you manage to get a hot steak bake? 😮
I've never seen aria criticize or make fun of merle, only compliment her.
The accent you keep saying sounds Australian could not sound further from an Australian accent 😂
You’re lucky that you got a hot steak bake 😂 usually when I get them they’re stone cold! It’s kinda luck of the draw if you get a hot or a cold pastry from greggs 🙈
I’m surprised that Nando’s isn’t in California?! They are a handful in Maryland and we love it!
I believe their westernmost location is in Chicago.
I also visited with a vegan friend pretty recently and you're not alone in thinking the Greggs roll was bland as hell lmao 😂But you really missed out on the vegan ham and cheese toastie that was at Costa and also the McPlant!
Hate it when stuff sucks. It makes me wonder what tastebudless executive approved the things for sale and if they let enough vegans sample them first.
I HATE the vegan sausage roll at greggs. It's a salty mush, I don't like it. My favourite vegan item at greggs was removed one or two years ago, the vegan sausage, cheeze and bean melt. I want them to bring it back. Also I lovethe vegan sausage muffins they do at breakfast but I don't know if this is limited to Christmas season or not.
As someone who was born and has lived in London all their life: I agree re: the sausage roll, it’s just so dry, even when doused in sauce. 🫠 if you’re ever in London again, would love to see you try “The Hogless Roast”, “Temple of Seitan” or “Mildred’s”, some really good vegan spots! ❤
Video idea... recreate these iconic foods at home with better ingredients so they are more palatable 😊
In the U.K., we generally find it quite disgusting to eat with one’s mouth open, reviewing food and saliva strands.
Darn! You should’ve tried Tofu Vegan!!! Delish!!!
Greggs had a Vegan Mexican Chicken bake and it was good. I would get it all the time. Nandos chicken is good. But I'm not surprised that the food wasn't very seasoned. They kinda lack in that department. Btw I'm a non-vegan but I like vegan food and eat vegan things at least twice a week. I live in Scotland but I'm from America lol
You didn’t miss much not trying the onion bhaji and rice, bit flavourless. You got a bad sausage roll though, they’re normally pretty good.
Something definitely went wrong for you to have to wait 45mins in nandos, usually it’s 20mins tops
Another vegan option in Greggs is the southern ‘chicken’ hot baguette, which is really nice
The vegan sausage roll a D?! As a Londoner that always found comfort at Gregg's during my hangovers, I believe this is UNACCEPTABLE! (Also, I never had one that dry, usually their sausages are very moist and soft, melting in your mouth. I'm hungry now. 🙃)
lmao, i hope they treat you better than they treat me, mine was dry as the SAHARA
You're a complicated lady lol. You like chickpeas but not hummus? I get it though. Hummus is definitely a vibe. I find it interesting that the wrap was too sweet. Isn't the entire world on the US for making things too sweet? Take that London LOL!! I love your channel Merle!!
LMAO I do not like hummus, idk how much I really like chickpeas I guess hahahhaha - I don't DISLIKE them but I definitely prefer other beans
@@MerleONealI only like my homemade hummus. Store bought is crap!
Shame you didn't go to Dishoom - a seriously good Indian restaurant in London.... amazing food.
Many people especially Indian's people, tells how bland and overated it is :(
GASP, vegan sausage rolls are so good ;;
Greggs comes from the North of England (Newcastle Upon Tyne), not London - It's Geordie treasure. The ratings on these were quite shocking to me lol. I think people love them so much because they have done such a good job of replicating the OG product but I guess you're not privy to that information or of the nostalgia that comes from eating them.
I also think you might mean UK chains because both of these are all over the UK not just in London. Chains in the UK are usually a bit crap!
Greggs is all pre made food that sits under a hot lamp for hrs. It’s better in Scotland than England for some reason - maybe more folks eating sausage rolls?
I will be going to Scotland in May!! Maybe I'll give them another chance
@@MerleONeal Probably worth it!
A lot of local shops in Edinburgh also sell vegan sausage roll alternatives- the sauce is really important. Folks in the UK and Ireland don't usually put a lot of seasoning in their food!
Screaming about Ari’s mouth breathing. I know that man’s septum is DEEEVIATED. As a fellow mouth breather, I feel seen and represented.
LMAO you clocked him
A vegan who doesn’t love hummus???? 😨
Rank the McDonald’s and Burger King options!
THANK YOU I HATE OLIVES TOO GOOODBYEEEEE
I honestly think you would have enjoyed Nando's more if you had dined in and it was fresh. Shame about the music. They pump it loud in the Aussie stores too.
not the lobotomy chaaaaaaair !!!
You would have loved that man we met in the hallway
Haven’t had Gregg’s since I stopped eating meat. So sad to see it’s not as good. ☹️
I'm a veggie burger Girl!
arias breathing is killing me
and me
Literally didn't hear him breathing once.
@@user-to8bj8li7r 7:24
If you don't like olives, stay away from the green ones! Black olives or Kalamata are more popular.
Nandos used to do a spicy tomato soya wrap/pitta/burger and it was the best thing ever. They removed it around 2017, worst decision ever.
Honestly? I feel like it’s a half ditch attempt for Nandoa to even try to do Vegan food… I have friends who like hummus and olives who have enjoyed ok other (I’m with you on the olives though!) but realistically, if you’re vegan 9.9 times out of 19, you’re not going to aiming to go out to eat at a Chrcken Restaurant!! (Nice to know there’s that faux chicken option though! I’ve never tried Gregg’s- unlike Nandos which we do have, we don’t have Gregg’s in New Zealand. We are however Nig on sausage rolls here… don’t really have any famous chains like Gregg’s though. We have far independent bakeries where I have hear you can get some fairly decent vegan sausage rolls…. (Meant(faux meat pies!) But one must, always… always have tomato sauce (ketchup) with their sausage roll of pie. It’s a sin not to in this part of the world….
Greggs is from the North of England and definitely not a staple of London haha, i'm sad you got a dry sausage roll though because they are usually so good and even my meat eater friends really like them too! I never liked Nando's even before going vegan, it's way overrated!! Hope you found better food and enjoyed your travels :)
Omg. A hallway lobotomy chair with Aria's mouth breathing. I'm howling 🤣🤣🤣
Nando's here in South Africa 🇿🇦 is much better than over there, in my opinion.
Don't worry, I also hate olives 😅
Why did I think you were Canadian??
Nooooo! You got a bad sausage roll! I love my sausage roll. They are the best.
Precovid, I used to like Nandos, but...it went downhill, in my opinion. Tbey took off the vegan options, and I refused to go back. Now that you've done the video, I have no reason to go back.
Noooo a D for the sausage roll 🙈
Gregs donut is sooo good why r u eating a donut if u dont want it to be sweet!
"A pork dream that never came to life". Oh my
Hummus isn't my fave either, it's a texture thing for me.
Nah I'm on your side Merle, as a vegan English person I think Greggs and Nando are not good, there is nothing at either place I would get.
On behalf of my fellow Australian countrymen, we will not be claiming whatever that accent was. Not even as Tasmanian or South Australian. Sorry. 🤷🏼♂️