Tesco's birthday cake sandwich is the latest weird (and it remains to be seen whether wonderful) sweet-savoury offering from British supermarkets.
Hot off the heels of M&S's viral strawberry sando, the new birthday cake sandwich from Tesco has started cropping up in UK stores as a limited-edition sandwich and one of their meal deal mains. And no, it's not April 1st.
Retailing at £3 individually or £4 if you make it a meal deal, the good (or bad news, depending on how you look at it) is that it comes with two sandwiches rather than the rather stingy single in the M&S strawberry sando, meaning there's more to go around.
Despite it looking like a bit of fairy bread your grandma might rustle up for you, the Tesco birthday cake sandwich is actually made from a sweet brioche-style white bread. Filled with full-fat soft cheese, vanilla frosting, sprinkles and strawberry jam, on the surface, this very much feels like the Victoria sponge of sandwiches. But how does it measure up in the eyes of the Glamour team?
We're jumping on the cookie craze.
Initial thoughts on the Tesco birthday cake sandwich
We'll be real. Initial impressions in the Glamour offices were largely coloured by disgust and confusion. Truly, many felt this was rage bait material. Responses in the group chat to news of the new launch were altogether damning:
"Too much. But also, curious…”
“Looks like tuna and jam”
“The sprinkles are giving.... I've sat on the shelf for over a week”
“Are people ok? Is that icing?”
Despite some hesitation, we're all for not judging a book by its cover. And frankly, we appreciate a novel experience, even if in the form of an admittedly slightly off-putting new sandwich combo.
So, beyond its slightly sad aesthetic, what did Glamour testers make of the actual flavours in the Tesco birthday cake sandwich?
The results are in, and it's fairly unanimous!
Tesco birthday cake sandwich reviews
Initial thoughts were…confused?
We had a hard time recruiting willing participants, if we're being fully transparent, though those whom we were able to coerce into taste testing had the following thoughts on the Tesco birthday cake sandwich:
Rating: 7/10
“I actually enjoyed it! It's just like a jam sandwich but with cream cheese instead of peanut butter. I have a sweet tooth, but didn't think it was overwhelmingly sweet like some American Birthday cake-flavoured things can be. Not sure if I would get it again as let's be honest, there's no nutritional value here…”
Rating: 6/10
“It's like birthday cake, but without the best bit: the cake.”
Rating: 4/10
“This sandwich is as confusing as it looks. You're met with an undeniably sour, off-putting odour when you go in for the first bite. Make it past that point, though, and I'm not convinced it gets any better. Philadelphia mixed with jam results in a deeply unappealing, bitter, tangy flavour. Final thoughts are that it looks like it's off, smells like it is and doesn't taste much better either. Why they didn't swap the cream cheese for some regular cream is beyond me.”
Rating: 🤢/10
“That sandwich was absolutely not for me. Don't get me wrong, as an American, I love a PB&J, but switching out the peanut butter for this tangy cream cheese and sprinkle combo sent shivers down my spine (not the good kind).”
Rating: 3/10
“It smells sour and almost like it's gone off…When it comes to taste, it's exactly what it says on the tin: sweet Philadelphia mixed with jam on bread."
All in all, it's safe to say that this ‘sandwich’ tasted like nothing we've ever come across before, for better or for worse. Any joy that could be taken from the sprinkles is lost to the cream cheese and jam filling, which almost curdle into one another.
We will not be repurchasing.
Is this the sando of the summer? 🍓
