The new M&S store in Liverpool ONE has officially opened – with a very different looking café.
Instead of the usual bustling café, the new M&S café will be known as a 'Coffee Shop' instead with fresh pastries and 'magic' coffees. Upon first glance, the space is much smaller than the original café, and offers a spot for shoppers to grab a hot drink and a bite to eat.
There is some seating available, with the main option being to takeaway. I've heard a lot of mixed opinions about the new Coffee Shop concept, so I decided to try it out myself – here's how it went.
READ MORE: First look inside the new M&S café after major change
The Coffee Shop
Aesthetically, the coffee shop is beautiful. It has a cosy vibe to it and you don't really feel like you're in the middle of a shop when you're visiting.
As it's right near the exit into Liverpool ONE, it has plenty of natural light combined with the warm glow of lighting for that typical coffee shop atmosphere. The Coffee Shop was clearly popular with shoppers as there were no seats left, so I had to grab my food to take away.
The amount of space in the Coffee Shop seemed surprising to some shoppers, as I overheard one woman asking why she "couldn't sit down to eat her food like in the old café". Sadly, there was not enough space, which couldn't really be helped in that situation.
In terms of the food, there were plenty of different choices on offer. The menu may not be as extensive as the previous café, but it still had some tasty looking options.
With freshly made baguettes to delicious looking pastries and sausage rolls, in true M&S fashion, even an egg and mayonnaise bun managed to look luxurious. Because of this, for my lunch, I opted for the Egg & Chip Sticks Brioche Roll, priced at £5.50 to takeaway or £6.60 to eat in.
I teamed up my roll with a M&S Magic Coffee, which I'm still quite frankly obsessed with after trying it previously. My bill came to £7.85, which admittedly was a little on the pricey side, but I'd consider a lunch at M&S a treat.
The roll was incredibly filling and bursting with flavour, as I expected. It was incredibly filling and was absolutely stuffed with rich egg and mayonnaise filling.
I really liked the addition of the crunch from the chip sticks, which was something I'd never experienced before. The roll itself was golden and flaky on the outside whilst still being soft on the inside.
The Magic Coffee was as delicious as I thought it would be, offering the perfect blend of caffeine and milk without being too bitter. I feel like I'm now always going to go to M&S for my coffee fix.
The Verdict
It's clear to see that there were some issues with the size of the Coffee Shop considering that the previous M&S café was so vast. I think a few more tables and seating areas in the Coffee Shop could've really helped, as it's quite a small space.
However, I personally really love the concept of the 'grab & go' coffee and lunch, but I know that it's not for everyone. For many people, the M&S café was a meeting spot, and during a busy weekday afternoon with less seats – it might be a lot tougher now.
The food and drink were up to M&S standards and offered a nice bit of luxury for a mundane Wednesday afternoon. I think this M&S Coffee Shop is going to appeal to younger customers especially those who want a quick bite whilst shopping.
As a whole, I enjoyed my experience, but would probably choose to always grab my food to take away because of how busy it was. Understandably, of course, some people may not want to do that.
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