'I went to Marks and Spencer's giant new foodhall in Canary Wharf and only one thing blew me away' - Alexandra Bullard
Grocery shopping has always been a source of great joy to me, until the harsh reality of living and feeding myself in London kicked in this year. Supermarket giants such as Waitrose and M&S are a rarity for me nowadays. When I first settled in North London, my go-to supermarket was Lidl.
Fast forward to today, I now live and breathe in Aldi. However, there is the odd visit where I need to pop into an M&S for an essential item. I was delighted to discover a brand new M&S food hall opening a few metres away from my office; M&S Crossrail Place.
Curious as I am - I decided to pay a visit during my lunchbreak one afternoon. I wanted to see if this so-called 'massive' M&S Food Hall would be a brand new shopping experience, or if it would just be the same regular trip.
For starters, the food hall is rather tricky to find. You have to follow signs to the Elizabeth Line and then head to Everyman Cinema before going down an escalator. It felt like a mission just to try and get there.
Arriving at the store entrance I find myself brimming with excitement. It was time to find out what this M&S really has to offer.
First impressions: the store is squeaky clean. Everything on the shelves was packed so neatly and with precision - I felt like I had walked into a movie set. Not one item had been plucked from the aisles.
As I made my way down each aisle, there were a few new features that I couldn't ignore. The Coffee To Go section was a nice touch, and a new in-store bakery serving up delicious pastries filled the room with a gorgeous scent.
The food hall wouldn't be complete without the drinks aisle, and they had plenty of alcohol to boot. There was also a freshly prepared hot food to go aisle which is perfect for people like me looking for a quick bite to eat on my lunch break.
As someone who is passionate about the free-from section, this store did not disappoint. I could enjoy a merry dairy-free festive treat, or indulge in some after-dinner snacks that didn't contain dairy or eggs.
Apart from that, the food hall was exactly how I expected it to be. There wasn't a lot of magic in the air and it certainly didn't blow my mind. It was just bog-standard M&S.
Since I visited on its opening day, I might be being slightly unfair as not many Londoners know about this new food hall. But, believe me, it's certainly not giving wow factor like other super stores I've visited.
If you're looking for a local M&S that sells the basic groceries, but also offers restaurant-quality food you can eat on your sofa, this is the perfect spot.
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