An American vlogger who flew from New York to London and sampled Greggs, Wetherspoons, Tesco and Nando’s has crowned two popular UK eateries as the best of the bunch. Jon Barr, a US YouTuber whose videos showcase his adventures seeking out the most “unusual, affordable, and unforgettable” food experiences, recently embarked on a trip to the UK to check out British fast food.
Enlisting the help of a local taxi driver named Tom, Jon started with the legendary bakery chain, Greggs, and sampled two iconic delicacies. The first was a sausage roll which he dubbed “salty” and “what I expected” while the second, of course, was a steak bake. It would be the “juicy” latter that won the hungry vlogger over, however, as Jon declared that he was a “steak bake guy”. In typical YouTube fashion, Jon announced that he would then rank the locations on a tier list, S, A, B, C, D, and F, in descending order of how much he enjoyed them. Greggs started strong with an A.
Next up was a blast from the past, the burger restaurant Wimpy, where both he and Tom sampled its cheeseburger offering. Jon described both the meat and the bun as “fine”.
A little disappointingly, he called the combination “just plain” and summed it up as “good” but “maybe not great”, ultimately giving Wimpy a middle-of-the-road C ranking.
He then headed to a Tesco Express to try a meal deal, opting for a ham, cheese and chicken triple sandwich and expressing his delight at the price, dubbing it the most “incredible cheap eats deal” that he’s ever seen.
Sampling his deal, Jon noted that it tasted better than it “looks” and, upon trying his chocolate bar (a Yorkie that he’d swapped with Tom), concluded that the meal deal belonged in the A tier with Greggs.
Tortilla was next on the list, where Jon tried a “super soft” beef burrito as he admitted that he loved both the rice and the beans. Ultimately, he placed it between a B- and a C+, translating to a B ranking on his list.
For their next restaurant, Jon and Tom visited the popular eatery Nando’s, which Jon liked immediately as they entered, noting the “polished” vibe and what he described as “African motifs”.
Opting for a medium peri peri chicken butterfly with peas and fries, Jon described how the first bite hit him hard and how Nando’s had made grilled chicken “sexy again”, calling the meat “killer”.
After their meal, he said: “I wasn’t sure if anything was going to get the S tier on today’s video, and Nando’s has turned me into a fanboy; S tier for them. They’re going to the top.”
The duo then tried a rice box, waffle fries and watermelon matcha ice teas from Leon. Jon described the sauce on top of the rice as having a flavour similar to Thai food, but wasn’t a fan of the fries, slotting the restaurant into the C tier.
Next up was German Doner Kebab, where, of course, he tried a doner kebab but was left “shocked” by the taste. Later adding it to the A tier, he dubbed it “delicious” and praised the bread.
Finally, they set off to try a legendary British institution, Wetherspoons, namely The Pommelers Rest. Jon opted for a chicken korma, accompanied by naan bread and poppadoms, and a pint of Ruddles, a combination he called a “perfect pairing”.
As they left, Jon said: “All right, it’s time for the tier list ranking for Wetherspoon; cheap beer, cheap food, good vibes; S tier for Wetherspoon. I didn’t think I would do two Ss in this video. I didn’t think it was possible.”
Jon’s full ranking
- Nando’s – S
- Wetherspoons – S
- Greggs – A
- Tesco Express – A
- German Doner Kebab – A
- Tortilla – B
- Wimpy – C
- Leon – C