I used to love the Lidl bakery, but I recently decided to swap to the M&S after one food item made me realise I was wasting my money.
Summer is my favourite season — there’s nothing quite like nipping to the supermarket after work to pick up a few picnic bits, then settling down by the beach for an al fresco dinner. I live just five minutes from a Lidl, and I’ve long been a fan of the bargains on offer, not to mention the chance to grab something sweet from the bakery as a little indulgence.
Lidl’s bakery has earned something of a legendary status — the aroma of freshly baked bread greets you the moment you walk through the door, and you can pick up a cake or traybake for under £1. I try to keep my weekday shop as budget-friendly as possible, which is why Lidl has always been my go-to — but I’ve recently begun to question whether the bakery is still worth it.
On a recent picnic with friends, I picked up a few cookies from Lidl for the occasion, only to find they tasted absolutely dreadful.
To my dismay, the cookies were stiff and nearly impossible to bite into, so I ended up carting them back home rather than eating them at the picnic.
At 55p apiece, they appeared decent value, yet by the next morning they had turned completely rock-hard and had to be binned.
It’s possible they had been sitting out for quite some time, but any product sold in a bakery ought to be fresh and perfectly enjoyable on the day of purchase.
One of the biggest draws of shopping at Lidl was always the bakery’s reputation for quality freshly baked goods — but in my view, standards have dropped considerably.
I purchased five cookies, ultimately losing £2.75 — perhaps not a substantial sum, but it dawned on me that most items from the Lidl bakery were becoming stale remarkably quickly after purchase, leaving me feeling I wasn’t getting proper value for money.
Then, about a week ago, a friend shared a video about Marks and Spencer’s cookies, which have been generating considerable buzz on social media following the introduction of a new flavour.
Despite living close to a Marks and Spencer Foodhall, I seldom shop there as I’m mindful of my spending, and the store is widely regarded as pricier than rival supermarkets.
Intrigued by all the online excitement, I popped into the bakery section and picked up a pack of five cookies for £3.10 — merely 35p more than the ones I’d bought from Lidl.
The cookies absolutely justified the internet hype, proving rich, buttery and remarkably sizeable, with each one roughly the size of my palm.
They were comfortably the finest cookies I’ve ever sampled and instantly shifted my view on shopping at M&S.
I actually had one cookie remaining after my picnic and tucked it away in my kitchen cupboard.
I’d entirely forgotten about it until I was tidying up over the weekend, only to discover the cookie was still perfectly edible after five days.
To my astonishment, it remained delicious, which highlighted the stark contrast in quality compared with my recent bakery purchases from Lidl.
Not only did the M&S cookies taste considerably superior, but they also represented better value for money, appearing to be crafted from fresher ingredients.
I never previously considered myself an M&S devotee, but this experience has entirely transformed my view of the supermarket, and I’ll certainly be purchasing all my baked goods there throughout the summer.
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