I’ve just eaten the culinary equivalent of a hug

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London: There are moments in life that stand as quintessentially British – a crisp autumn morning, a cup of tea with milk just the right shade of beige, and, of course, a trip to Greggs.

And this week there I was, standing at the back of a line that seemed to stretch endlessly, not unlike the Great British Queue itself. The reason? A wall of golden, flaky pastries that could tempt even the most steadfast dieter.

A sausage roll from the Greggs fast-food chain.Credit: Bloomberg

To the uninitiated, Greggs might appear to be just another low-cost bakery chain. But oh, my friends, it is much more. In an age of universal food chains the same the world over, Greggs is a national treasure unique to Britain. It’s where the ordinary becomes extraordinary, where a sausage roll can lift your spirits higher than an overpriced flat white from a hipster coffee shop.

Let’s talk about that sausage roll. Every young Aussie who has passed through London knows the one – a humble, flaky pastry filled with sausage that makes you feel like you’ve just eaten the culinary equivalent of a hug. It’s simple. It’s classic. And it’s only £1.30 ($2.70).

That’s right – for a quid and some loose change, you can experience a slice of heaven that can turn any dull lunch break into a moment of sheer bliss. They sell well over 130 million a year. When the price rose by 5 pence in January, it attracted national news coverage.

A nativity scene created by British bakery Greggs to promote its Advent calendar.Credit: File

And if you’re not a coffee snob, the flat white is smooth, reliable and, at £2, it’s much cheaper than that coffee shop where the baristas spend more time trying to be artists than making coffee.

Around me, I see the full spectrum of Greggs’ customer base: pensioners sipping tea, teens in tracksuits, mums with prams contemplating which pastry their kids will squabble over next, and even the occasional finance director treating himself to a cheeky toastie combo.

For me, it’s the sausage, bean and cheese melt that keeps bringing me back.

There’s something almost magical about how Greggs unites here. As if the nation has collectively agreed, “Yes, we’re all different, but we can all appreciate a sausage roll.”

Greggs was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1984 with a market capitalisation of £15 million and an estate of just over 260 shops. It has more branches in Britain than any other fast-food outlet, with 2500 stores across the UK. McDonald’s has about 1450 outlets in the UK and Ireland.

According to pollster YouGov, the chain has 99 per cent awareness among the British population – the single most popular dining brand in the nation.

At a time when the cost-of-living crisis is squeezing pockets, Greggs offers a breakfast meal deal or a sausage roll and hot drink deal for £2.85. In many small towns, particularly in the north of England – where John Gregg opened his first store in 1951 – it is not unusual to see two Greggs within walking distance.

Let’s not forget other staples on the menu. The steak bake – a pastry filled with meat so tender it makes you wonder why every pie isn’t made this way. During the first COVID lockdown, the company shared the recipe online so bereft customers could make their own.

The vegan sausage roll – a revolutionary product – made headlines and sparked debate in 2019 by professional culture warriors. Piers Morgan spat one out on live TV and called the company “PC-ravaged clowns” online. But buyers went mad for it. A month later, the chain attributed a 10 per cent rise in sales to the vegan roll.

Greggs’ vegan sausage roll has contributed to a surge in sales.Credit: Greggs

But it’s not just the food that has earned Greggs its place in the hearts of the British public. It’s the attitude. It doesn’t try to be anything it’s not. Its pitch to customers has always been value. It’s not fancy, and it doesn’t need to be. They don’t sell sparkling water. There’s no quinoa salad or avocado toast here.

The sandwich fillings come pre-chopped and the loaves are frozen before they’re baked, but that’s all part of the charm. The brand knows exactly who its customers are and has it down to a science.

Greggs is so wonderfully unpretentious that even the A-listers can’t resist it. It has given black “concierge cards” to Ed Sheeran and Stormzy, offering them unlimited food. Hollywood hunk Jake Gyllenhaal has admitted he delights in a Greggs visit when in the UK.

Apart from a failed attempt to expand into Belgium, Greggs has never, nor does it plan to, expand beyond Britain.

The future is uncertain, but in the world of fast food and flaky pastries, Greggs leads the way. It is a cultural touchstone, a symbol of comfort, and above all, like nothing else on earth.

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