French Connection, West Bromwich

French Connection calls itself a "baguette house" but this term somehow undersells what is a top class lunch stop in West Bromwich.

Yes there is a mouthwatering selection of sandwich fillings on offer, but there are also other tempting snacks to try depending on your mood.

For instance there are baked potatoes with hot and cold fillings, hot paninis and breakfast-in-a-bun options served until 11am.

My hungry colleagues and I decided to pick up some lunch from the shop after ordering over the phone. We found there was plenty to suit our rather varied tastes including four non-meat eaters in the group.

Anyone who enjoys chicken will be blown away by the choice which includes, tandoori, Mexican, Chinese, Cajun, plain breast, tikka and tikka mint mayo. There was also some tempting fillers for the non-carnivores including Mexican veg, mixed cheese and prawn and avocado.

Salad boxes are also on offer which proved a hit with our group and we ordered two Mexican veg and one prawn which comes in marie rose dressing. The order also comprised of Mexican chicken and prawn baguettes.

On arrival at the shop in the High Street, I was pleased to find it was spotlessly clean and staff were friendly and welcoming.

There are on street parking spaces nearby and the takeaway is just a stone's throw away from the Astle Park shopping centre, which has its own car park.

Our orders were bagged up ready to go and I was pleased to find that five lunches came to just over £11.

The Mexican spices in the sauce divided the group. One colleague said they were zingy and little bit unexpected, a male tester found them to be "quite normal".

The salad boxes were generally greeted with enthusiasm with a crisp and tasty selection which includes, lettuce, tomato, sweetcorn and optional coleslaw.

There was plenty of fresh tasting salad per portion in fact it was a struggle to polish it all off. The Mexican vegetables were mixed with beans which made this snack more filling than other light-as-air salad choices.

Salad boxes start at £2.22, baguettes £1.44 and hot filled options at £2.44.

There are also some tempting fillings for meat eaters which include ham, turkey, beef and BLT. For fish lovers there is also Mexican tuna and tune sweetcorn mayo.

There are also meal deals on offer if you order fruit and drinks with your baguette.

French Connection is open 7.30am to 4pm Monday to Friday and 8am to 4pm Saturday.

Rebecca Jones

High Street, West Bromwich

Phone: 0121 52519989