M&S no doubt started the latest food trend when it launched its viral strawberry and creme sando earlier this summer. Now, Tesco have unveiled its own version of the hybrid sweet treat: the birthday cake sandwich.
Celebrating 30 years of the Tesco Clubcard, the limited-edition sandwich is available in more than 1,000 stores nationwide - but only until 31 August. M&S’s sandwich became so popular it daily sold out in most stores across the UK, and there’s similar hype mounting for Tesco’s take.
The idea of a sweet sandwich is derived from the Japanese fruit sando, a popular snack that includes fresh fruit, sliced white bread, and fresh whipped cream. This isn’t the first time Tesco has nodded to the signature treat –14 years ago, the supermarket chain launched a strawberries and cream sandwich to mark Wimbledon.
But its latest offering has a playful spin thanks to its strawberry jam and cream cheese filling with a colourful sprinkling of rainbow confetti. Better yet, it costs £3 and is included in Tesco’s office-favourite meal deal (a main, side and drink for just £3.60).
But is it a nostalgic homage to childhood birthday parties or a sickly addition to the meal deal line-up? Four of our team testers at IndyBest swapped their usual sarnie for the new birthday sando – here are our (mixed) thoughts.
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Tesco birthday cake style sandwich
Why we love it
- Novelty treat
- Good value as part of the meal deal
Take note
- Presentation is messy
- Too sickly for some
- Not much filling
Packaged in a party-themed purple box, it’s much better value than M&S’ sweet sandwich. The Tesco version brings us two slices of its birthday sandwich for £3; by comparison, M&S’s was just one slice for £2.80.
However, M&S’s sandwich also looks much better. The presentation of this Tesco sandwich is a little messy, thanks to the congealed cream cheese and strawberry jam blend, though the rainbow sprinkles give it some colourful brownie points.
However, some of our testers found that it tasted as off-putting as it looks. The strawberry jam is layered over a thin spread of full-fat soft cheese (effectively cream‑cheese icing), which divided our four testers. Some of us thought it was sickly sweet, but others liked the tangy taste balanced with the sweet flavour of the rainbow sprinkles.
M&S’s sando was made with red diamond strawberries, and the jam in Tesco’s take certainly doesn’t taste as fresh. It’s more reminiscent of a Victoria sponge cake, with the lightly sweetened and squishy brioche bread serving as a lighter accompaniment than sponge.
It was generally felt that the filling was a little sparse, and the supermarket could have included more of the jam to balance out the flavours. On top of that, the smell of the sandwich was universally unappealing. It’s inexplicably odd and artificial.
In the end, some of our testers thought it might be a fun substitute for a savoury sandwich when you’re craving a sweet treat during a long working day (you could complete your meal deal with a smoothie and savoury snack). The sweet flavour of the dessert sando might be too sickly if devoured in one go, but it could be perfect for sharing at a picnic or children’s birthday party.
Buy now £3.60, Tesco.com
Does the Tesco birthday sandwich pass our taste test?
Sweetened with strawberry jam and rainbow sprinkles, balanced with cream cheese, Tesco’s viral sandwich divided our testers. If you lack a sweet tooth, you’ll find the sando a little sickly, and the presentation is certainly lacking when compared to the M&S sando. For a novelty sweet treat, however, Tesco’s birthday sandwich would make a fun taste test for kids at parties.
The birthday sandwich is available in shops and for online delivery until 31 August.
We also taste tested M&S’s viral red diamond sandwich – here’s our thoughts
