Taking advantage of supermarket deals is something many of us are doing amid the rising cost of living. Popping out to a restaurant for a midweek meal isn't an option for many, so impressing our loved ones with a home-cooked meal is the only option - and the cheaper the better.
Manchester Evening News reporter Dianne Bourne tried the M&S deal where you can get steaks, chips, and a sauce for just a tenner. Since launching them back in 2008, they have sold an eye-popping 200 million of them - and it's not hard to see why.
Dianne wrote: "At first glance, £10 seems like a bargain for what is promised to bring "restaurant quality food to your dinner table for less." But when I went to check it out a couple of things didn't quite add up to me.
"So the deal itself is to make your choice of steak cut - ribeye, rump or sirloin, with two steaks in a pack, or you can go for a rotisserie chicken or salmon fillets. You then have a choice of just ONE side - so that's either veg or chips - and a choice of one sauce to share from a list including peppercorn, Diane and bearnaise.
"And that's your lot for £10. Now, I don't doubt that this is cheaper than a steak meal for two if you went to most restaurants.
"But you would probably be pretty miffed if a restaurant served up your steak and chips without any kind of greenery alongside it. And I personally like a bit of a crunch of veg to go with a juicy rump and frites.
"Also, it doesn't seem all that long ago (2020 to be precise) when the M&S steak deal was priced at £12 which was for two steak and chip dinners, a dessert each AND a bottle of wine. And only last month the M&S roast dinner deal included a meat joint and THREE sides for £10.
"We all know supermarket prices are on the rise, but it just feels a bit stingey to me to just have one side and not to throw in some veg on this one. And I'm not the only one to notice it."
She then went on to explain that social media users had left comments on their Instagram page questioning why the meal had been reduced in size.
Someone wrote: "Needs two sides included for it to be a full meal. My husband and I never think there's enough", and another said that there were cheaper available, commenting: "Aldi's is still cheaper."
People defended the M&S deal though, with a fan saying: "Try and find a restaurant where you can get one steak and chips for a tenner, let alone two. Some people are so greedy."
Dianne continued: "The first thing I noticed when I visited by local M&S food hall on Saturday afternoon was that the deal had clearly been flying out. There was only a couple of sauce options left on the shelf and when I asked a staff member if there were any others she said: 'No, all that's left now is what is on there'.
"However I did manage to pick up my preferred cut of steak - rump - as well as peppercorn sauce. I particularly like a steak frites so I went for the slimmer chip, although I was surprised to see there was only the option of a giant box of frites which "serves 4" even though this was a meal for two.
"The individual prices for the items I chose was £8.50 for the steak, £2.50 for the sauce, while the 600g box of fresh frites were priced at £4.50. So the overall cost of the items was £15.50, making a saving of £5.50 by doing the meal deal.
"But in reality, if you were buying items for a meal for two, I have to question who would buy a £4.50 large box of frites for four had it not been in the meal deal. Especially considering you can buy a regular box for two for around £2.60.
"And when I got it all home to cook it up I have to say that it was the frites that were the biggest disappointment. They tasted no better than frozen oven chips I usually deploy on a meal like this at home.
"However, I have to hand it to M&S with the steak and sauce. The rumps were both exquisitely tender cuts, and as good as anything you would expect to be served up in a restaurant.
"So too was the peppercorn sauce - a beautifully rich, creamy base with the punchy hit of the whole round peppercorns in there too. A real treat."
For the equivalent in Aldi, Dianne worked out it would cost £9.57, so it would be marginally cheaper, but after tasting both, she said: "M&S won hands down on the steak and sauce quality."
Will you be trying the M&S meal deal? Let us know in the comments.
