The Christmas ads are on TV, you can get eggnog put in your coffee at Starbucks (if you’re into that kind of thing) and Wonderful Christmastime is playing in shops again – yes folks, the countdown to Christmas is well and truly on and the festive food menus of 2017 have been launched.
The best thing about Christmas, obviously, is the food and we make no apologies for being excited to sample our favourite Christmas treats. Pigs in blankets, turkey, cranberry sauce – and then everything shoved between two slices of bread.
We’re not giving up on our weight loss goals though. We’re big fans of the ‘everything in moderation’ school of thought and firmly believe there’s no reason why you can’t enjoy the festive goodies on offer at your favourite coffee shop.
As always, we’ve poured over the menus so you don’t have to. Here’s our lowdown on the nutritional make-up of the best the high street has to offer so you can make your mind up on whether it’s worth spending your calorie allowance on them.
The MAN v FAT Ultimate Guide to…Festive Food Menus 2017
Starbucks
Turkey Feast Panini
Turkey, smoked bacon, cranberry gravy, stuffing, bread sauce in a cranberry-studded panini
435 calories, 12g fat, 52g carbs, 6.4g sugar, 27g protein, 2.2g salt
Three Cheese and Cranberry Panini
Brie, Cheddar, mozzarella, bechamel and cranberry sauce in a seeded panini
520 calories, 22g fat, 59g carbs, 9.2g sugar, 19g protein, 1.4g salt
Turkey Club Thin Flatbread
Turkey, Emmental, crunchy slaw, stuffing, mayo on a flatbread
484 calories, 20g fat, 52g carbs, 8.9g sugar, 23g protein, 1.6g salt
Costa
Christmas Club Sandwich
Cumberland sausage, turkey, bechamel sauce, sage and onion stuffing, mozzarella, Cheddar, bacon, cranberry sauce and spinach in white bread. Costa certainly tried to cram as much Christmas into this one as possible.
Annoyingly, Costa haven’t made the nutritional information for this one available online yet, merely saying ‘see pack for info’. We’ll update this post when we hear back from Costa about the details. Or when we give in and try one. See what we’re willing to do for you?
Brie and Bacon Panini
French Brie, bacon, cranberry sauce in a stone baked sourdough panini
517 calories, 22.4g fat, 53.6g carbs, 7.8g sugar, 23.4g protein, 2.1g salt
Caffe Nero
Turkey Special Ciabatta Roll
Turkey, bacon, chestnut and cranberry stuffing, spinach, truffle mascarpone
448 calories, 12.1g fat, 57.4g carbs, 14g sugar, 27g protein, 1.7g salt
Brie, Bacon and Cranberry Panini
French Brie, smoked bacon, cranberry sauce in a stonebaked ciabatta
509 calories, 19.4g fat, 57.5g carbs, 9.4g sugar, 17.8g protein, 2.2g salt
Falafel, Chestnut and Spiced Slaw Wrap
Sweet potato falafel, roasted chestnuts, spiced slaw and cranberry sauce
425 calories, 11.1g fat, 67.4g carbs, 15.7g sugar, 10.4g protein, 1.3g salt
Ham Hock and Spiced Plum Chutney Gluten Free Roll
Ham hock, spiced plum chutney, spinach on a gluten-free roll
288 calories, 11.2g fat, 31.3g carbs, 4.9g sugar, 12.8g protein, 1.2g salt
Ham Hock and Cheddar Tostati Melt
Ham hock, orange chutney, mature Cheddar
424 calories, 15.3g fat, 44g carbs, 6.4g sugar, 25.9g protein, 1.9g salt
Quattro Formaggi Panini
Mozzarella, Emmental, provolone and Regato cheeses, fig chutney in a seeded panini
545 calories, 23.7g fat, 62.2g carbs, 12.6g sugar, 23.1g protein, 1.7g salt
Pret a Manger
Christmas Lunch
Turkey, pork stuffing, crispy onions, spinach, port and orange cranberry sauce, mayo on malted bread.
482 calories, 16.1g fat, 52.7g carbs, 9.3g sugar, 27.8g protein, 2.3g salt
Veggie Christmas lunch
Roasted butternut squash, Christmas nut pesto, crispy onions, rocket, yoghurt and mayo dressing on malted bread.
531 calories, 22.9g fat, 63,4g carbs, 16.9g sugar, 13.6g protein, 1.6g salt
Very Merry Christmas Lunch (aka the vegan one)
Grilled carrots, spinach, vegan stuffing, crispy onions, caramelised pecans, port and orange cranberry sauce.
523 calories, 20.7g fat, 63.7g carbs, 12.8g sugar, 13.6g protein, 1.3g salt
Festive Winter Salad
Roasted butternut squash, sprout & apple slaw, broccoli, spinach, Wednesleydale & cranberry crumble, caramelised pecans, pomegranate seeds, dijon dressing.
228 calories, 14.3g fat, 12.2g carbs, 10.4g sugar, 10.3g protein, 1.1g salt
Smoked Salmon, Soft Cheese and Dill
Smoked salmon, soft cheese, dill, lemon juice
453 calories, 14.1g fat, 53.1g carbs, 2.7g sugar, 26.6g protein, 3.3g salt
Ham Hock, Stuffing and Apple
Ham hock, crumbly pork stuffing, apple sauce, watercress, crispy onions, mustard mayo on a stonebaked baguette
596 calories, 27g fat, 62.9g carbs, 8.4g sugar, 23g protein, 2.2g salt
Brie and Cranberry
French Brie, rocket, port and orange cranberry sauce, pistachios, mayo
579 calories, 29.3g fat, 57.8g carbs, 5.5g sugar, 18g protein, 2.2g salt
McDonald’s
Beef and Cheese Feast
Beef, bacon, cheese, lettuce, red onions, cheese sauce, flour-topped snowflake bun
833 calories, 44g fat, 60g carbs, 15g sugar, 47g protein, 3.4g salt
Christmas Chicken Warmer
Two chicken Selects, cheese, fire-roasted red pepper sauce, slivered onions, cool mayo, lettuce in a glazed sesame-topped bun
560 calories, 24g fat, 57g carbs, 10g sugar, 27g protein, 2.8g salt
Cheese Melt Dippers
Breaded Camembert with a festive tomato dip
257 calories, 17g fat, 15g carbs, 0.8g sugar, 8.9g protein, 2g salt
Greggs
Christmas Lunch Toastie
Sage and onion turkey, sweetcure bacon, cranberry relish, Edam cheese, Cheddar cheese and Bechamel sauce in white bread.
507 calories, 11g fat, 68g carbs, 22g sugar, 35g protein, 1.9g salt
Christmas Lunch Sandwich
Turkey breast, sage and onion stuffing, cranberry and port sauce, spinach, mayo in malted brown bread.
495 calories, 15g fat, 57g carbs, 11g sugar, 32g protein, 2.1g salt
Festive Bake
Chicken breast, sage and onion stuffing, sweetcure bacon in a creamy sage and cranberry sauce in a golden puff pastry with a crunchy crumb topping.
453 calories, 27g fat, 37g carbs, 3.9g sugar, 13g protein, 1g salt
Turkey, Bacon and Cranberry Roll
Minced seasoned turkey, sweetcure bacon, dried cranberries in golden puff pastry
299 calories, 18g fat, 24g carbs, 1.9g sugar, 10g protein
Eat
Festive Full Works
Turkey, smoked ham, pork, prune and pancetta stuffing, spinach, cranberry sauce, mayo in multi-seeded bloomer bread.
600 calories, 23g fat, 61g carbs, 14g sugar, 36g protein, 3g salt
Turkey, Stuffing and Crispy Onion Baguette
Turkey, pork, prune and pancetta stuffing, crispy onions, mayo, cranberry sauce and rocket.
635 calories, 23g fat, 79g carbs, 14g sugar, 26g protein, 3g salt
Turkey Hot Pot
Stew made with turkey, leeks, carrots, parsnips, mustard sauce, mashed potato, braised red cabbage.
504 calories, 30g fat, 35g carbs, 21g protein, 2g salt
Pigs in Blankets Hot Roll
Crusty roll with wholegrain mustard mayo, ale and onion chutney, six pigs in blankets
503 calories, 24g fat, 49g carbs, 12g sugar, 19g protein, 4g salt
Pot of Pigs in Blankets
Sausages wrapped in maple-cured bacon with a pot of cranberry sauce
237 calories, 15g fat, 11g carbs, 11g sugar, 13g protein, 3g salt
So there we have it, if you want to get your tastebuds into the Christmas spirit you’ve got many, many options. It’s a good time to be vegan or vegetarian as there are more meat-free options than ever before but it’s a sad day if you’re not a fan of cranberry sauce 🙁
If you want a coffee to go with your lunch you can check out our guide to festive coffee shop offerings here (for Starbucks, Costa et al) and there’s also part 2 here (for Eat, Greggs, etc.). Look out for our guide to what the supermarkets have to offer with their Christmas sandwiches coming soon.
What do you think? Are you hungry after all that? I know I am. Let us know if you’ll be spending those precious cals on any of the festive food on offer over on the forum.
