Pret A Manger's first location in Bradford city centre is right outside The Broadway Shopping Centre, on Charles Street, opposite Metro Bank and next to Zizzi.
It opened fairly recently in July 2023, so the location obviously feels shiny, new and modern. The interior is bright, and bold and has lots of comfortable seating.
The opening hours are quite restrictive, they close at 5 pm during the week when Broadway is open until 7 pm, this is quite annoying, especially for people who prefer to go out in the afternoon. They are open until 6 pm on a Saturday though, and that extra hour makes all the difference, but still could be much later.
I did appreciate how despite visiting in the last hour before closing, the barista did not rush me out, however at 18:05, with no warning about the closure being imminent, they did ask everyone to leave due to being closed. There were still a fair number of patrons inside the business at that time, so it does go to show later openings would be useful to many people.
There seemed to be one staff member doing everything, it might have been due to the time I visited, but she seemed friendly although service was slowed down for those waiting in the queue as she was doing everything, despite this she tried her best to ensure friendly and fast service while maintaining a quality of hand-crafted beverages, of which the other members of my party were pleased with their hot drinks.
PRO TIP: It costs more to eat in here, as they charge VAT (tax) for customers wishing to dine in, on a nice day, take your food outside and eat on a bench or on the go, to make the most of the sunshine and save the tax!
I picked up a Souper Tomato Soup and an Orange Juice, both were good quality and enjoyable, again slightly premium but no more than any other PRET.
A nice PRET location that still has stock even before they close, compared to others which seem to run out early in the afternoon! Some improvements to be made for sure but one of the better options for coffee and a bit more in the centre of the 2025 UK City of Culture. 4* read more