Won’t be long until you go to Benugo...
LONDON cafe chain Benugo has revealed plans to open its first Manchester branch.
The restaurant operator runs a variety of venues throughout the capital, including public spaces like Regent’s Park and the Museum of London, as well as high-street cafés and in-house concessions for businesses.
Now it is bringing its upmarket café model to a new site inside the XYZ building on Hardman Boulevard, Spinningfields, in early September.
Set up by brothers Ben and Hugo Warner, the brand was inspired by the delis and fresh sandwiches of New York.
Speaking about the new Manchester branch – which will feature plenty of meeting spaces for the building’s office workers – head of marketing Rory McEntee said: “From the outset, Benugo was driven by a desire to be different. We take great pride in our product, people and design and we hope you see that when we open.”
And like its London counterparts, in Benugo Manchester you won’t find packaged sandwiches, they’re all counter-top and wrapped to order.
“It’s almost the anti-fridge sandwiches,” said Rory.
“Our most famous is the New Yorker: turkey bacon, sliced tomato – big chunky sandwiches – that’s the inspiration.”
He adds. “We do have a fridge which we call grab and go, which is predominantly salads – like hot smoked salmon and avocado, they change seasonally.
“We also have a bakery and we bake a lot of our products. We are working on a new super-seed muffin which is gluten free, dairy free and vegan – it’s got apple coconut, carrots and lots of seeds.”
“And we do have a lot of indulgent cakes like carrot cake. We have really good coffee with fully trained baristas. We see ourselves as bakers, and then also sandwichmakers, taste-makers. We see ourselves as quite an urban, independent-style cafe bar.”
So how does the price point of Benugo Manchester compare to its competitors?
“We’re probably 5p more expensive than the likes of Pret, but I think we are on a more premium level,” said Rory, who is still finalising the exact prices.
“Our food quality and staff reflect the price at a premium level. I don’t think you can get what we offer in the likes of Nero or even in somewhere independent. We have a lot of bespoke products that you just wouldn’t get.”
He adds: “Manchester is a really cool edgy city, and that’s how we see ourselves as a coffee shop. I think we’ll complement Manchester well.”