If there’s one thing every Briton can get behind, more than anything else, it’s Greggs. The glorious bakery has for years been the refuge of many a hungover student, weary traveller or hungry builder. But a group of Americans caused a stir when they tried some of the hallowed pastries for themselves.
Gathered by Buzzfeed UK, the Americans, from various spots around the US, tried a series of different pastries. They admitted to having “always heard of Greggs”, particularly that it sold “the best sausage rolls you can buy” – but had never tried them.
They earned themselves a great deal of flack from commenters straight off the bat when one of the guests compared said Greggs’ sausage roll looked like a “McDonald’s apple pie.”
“Comparing a pastry to a mcdonalds apple pie is truly the most american thing ever,” observed one commenter. The basic sausage roll received a fairly lukewarm reception – but when they reached its vegan cousin, things really went downhill.
One of the Americans instantly rejected the ethics-conscious treat, putting it down and saying “no” repeatedly.
She asked: “What even is in a vegan sausage?”
They conceded that it would be acceptable if dipped in sauce, but this angered one commenter in particular, who responded: “When they said dip the sausage roll in sauce my soul was obliterated.”
Another added: “Americans have the audacity to call Gregg’s bad while they decided canned cheese was the best way to eat cheese.”
Users were also baffled when the taster commented “it all looks the same”, with many saying in response: “That’s how pastry works.”
However, others greatly appreciated the more supportive comments of two of them, one of whom said: “Greggs is a national treasure and must be defended.”
A commenter replied: “This guy gets it.”
The Americans also revealed a key difference between British and US tastes when a specific ingredient was almost universally rejected: the baked bean.
One said: “Why do you guys put beans in everything?”
But one vengeful Brit shot back: ”If they were my four guests on ‘Come Dine With Me’, my evening would be a Beanfest. That’d give them something to whinge about.”
