‘The Earl of Sandwich is rolling in his grave’: Tesco’s birthday cake sandwich divides opinion
Tesco has launched a birthday cake sandwich, complete with strawberry jam, soft cheese, vanilla frosting and sprinkles – but the candle isn’t included.The limited-edition sandwich, between slices of brioche-style white bread, contains 31.g of sugar – 35% of an adult’s recommended daily intake – and will be on sale for £3 at 1,000 stores for four weeks.Videos of people trying out the sandwich have attracted tens of thousands of views on TikTok over the past 24 hours.Some Tesco customers expressed scepticism on Reddit.
“Birthday cake is not a flavour,” one said.“It’s not like everyone has the exact same cake for their birthday.”Another suggested that creating a birthday cake sandwich should be a criminal offence.“The Earl of Sandwich did not intend this to happen,” one Reddit user wrote.“Bet he’s rolling in his grave.
”The fourth Earl of Sandwich is said to have invented the sandwich in 1762 when he asked for a serving of roast beef to be placed between two slices of bread so that he did not have to leave the table where he was playing cards.Tesco said the “soiree sandwich” was being released to mark the 30th anniversary of the Clubcard.TikTok users have suggested it reminds them of a jam sandwich.“It tastes like that, but with a bit of cream,” one said.“If you love a jam sandwich, it’s literally that – but elevated,” said another.
“This is way better than I thought it would be.”It follows the release in June by Marks & Spencer of a strawberry and cream sandwich, nicknamed the “strawberry sando”.Inspired by the craze for Japanese fruit sandos, the M&S version went viral on social media, and the sandwich chain Subway then released its own version.Nutritional information for Tesco’s sandwich shows that it contains 515 calories with 8.4g saturated fat – 42% of an adult’s recommended daily intake.
Despite being a “dessert sandwich”, it can be part of the Tesco meal deal for £4, alongside a drink and snack.Tesco’s brand manager, Violaine Barthe, said: “With 3.1million sandwiches sold in Tesco each year, sandwiches make up a big proportion of Clubcard purchases and so there was only one way to celebrate Clubcard turning 30.“The birthday cake sandwich is a celebration not to be missed and we can’t wait to hear the nation’s feedback.”Sign up to First EditionOur morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it mattersafter newsletter promotionI love birthday cake.
I cannot get enough invitations to afternoon tea and I am even quite fond of a jam sandwich.But this is an abomination.At first glance, squashed against the plastic packaging, the sandwich looks like it is covered in specks of mould.On closer inspection, I realise these are blue sprinkles – they glisten slightly amid the fat of the soft cheese.There is a sickly sounding swishing noise as I bite into the bread.
The sweetness of the jam tastes so odd combined with the gloopy cheese and cloys to my tongue, so that I continue to taste it long after I have swallowed,While the bread is reminiscent of brioche, it also tastes like – and resembles – the white bread I would expect to find in a packaged Tesco sandwich, especially the crust,With each bite, I am expecting to taste a savoury meal,Instead, I am confronted with a dessert,It reminds me of sickly homemade desserts I have forced myself to eat out of politeness.
I wouldn’t even buy this to celebrate my worst enemy’s birthday,
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