Manner Coffee Moves into Light Meals

Manner Coffee, known for its affordable specialty drinks, has opened several light meal stores in Shanghai, Nanjing, Shenzhen, and Nanning. These locations serve beef noodles, fried rice, and salads priced between 25 and 50 yuan, developed with a chef from a Black Pearl restaurant. The goal is to offer office workers healthy, reassuring meals during lunch, extending the brand beyond coffee.

While the light meal concept has not attracted as much social media attention as the brand's bakery stores, some consumers see a limited audience because the stores are few and mostly in first-tier cities. Still, many netizens hope Manner will expand these offerings so more people can enjoy convenient work meals.

Recently, netizens discovered that at a Manner store under an office building in Shanghai, customers had steaming bowls of beef noodles in front of them instead of coffee, sparking widespread discussion. In fact, as early as the beginning of 2021, Manner opened its first light meal store in Shanghai, offering beef noodles, fried rice, salads and other meals priced between 25 and 50 yuan, developed by a chef from a Black Pearl restaurant. Currently, Manner has opened several light meal stores in Shanghai, Nanjing, Shenzhen, Nanning and other cities, but one store in Nanning has discontinued its light meal service due to a change in its retail space. Compared to its bakery stores, Manner's light meal stores have not garnered much attention on social media. Some consumers believe that light meals have a limited audience, and that the stores are few in number and concentrated in first-tier cities. Nevertheless, many netizens still hope that Manner will expand its light meal offerings so that more office workers can enjoy healthy and reassuring work meals.

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Recently, a netizen noticed a rather unusual Manner at the bottom of a commercial office building—instead of a cup of coffee, customers seated inside had a steaming hot meal in front of them. In the video, this Manner looked like a canteen for office workers upstairs, with customers discussing work with colleagues while eating their lunch.

This discovery amazed the blogger, who exclaimed that they never expected Manner, a coffee seller, to enter "canteen mode" and start selling beef noodles. But for office workers who frequent that building, they were not at all surprised by this Manner location that offers meals.

In fact, Manner's first light meal store in Shanghai opened in early 2021. At the time, many brands were experimenting with "coffee + ?" combinations to extend coffee into consumers' daily routines, and Manner was no exception.

The brand first launched bakery stores, using the classic pairing of "coffee + bread" to capture the breakfast and afternoon tea market. As for the lunch period, Manner chose light meals, which were gradually gaining popularity among young consumers, to win over health-conscious office workers.

It is understood that the light meal store's main offerings include beef noodles, fried rice, salads, snacks and more, with prices ranging from 25 yuan to 50 yuan. These meals were all developed by a chef from a Black Pearl restaurant specially invited by Manner, and are prepared by kitchen staff in a semi-open kitchen before being delivered to customers. If customers have any concerns, they can see the overall environment of the kitchen preparation area and the staff's operations through the window at the pickup area.

Many consumers who queued up to check in at the store said that compared to the "office worker boxed meals" offered by nearby food brands, Manner's per-person pricing of thirty to forty yuan is not expensive, and the ingredients are generous, making people feel reassured about what they eat.

Moreover, for office workers, they can not only solve their lunch at the light meal store, but after eating their fill, they can also buy some bread and coffee to take upstairs for afternoon tea. This work life is truly "comfortable and healthy," making netizens in other regions envious, with many calling out, "Can Manner's light meals open across the whole country?"

Currently, Manner has opened several light meal stores in Shanghai, Nanjing, Shenzhen, Nanning and other cities, attracting many local fans to visit and taste the food.

However, in May of this year, the light meal store in Nanning discontinued its light meal service due to a mall retail space adjustment—the new location was smaller and could not accommodate a kitchen area—and reverted to an ordinary coffee shop. Some fans said they only learned about this Manner's uniqueness after the closure announcement was made, lamenting that they had not gone to experience it sooner.

At the same time, they also noticed that, compared to the bakery stores, Manner's light meal stores have not received much attention on social media since opening. Some consumers believe that light meal products have a limited audience and are not as easily accepted by the general public as coffee and bread. Moreover, there are currently very few Manner light meal stores, concentrated only in bustling areas of first-tier cities. Therefore, even though Manner has been involved in the light meal sector for three years, surprisingly few people know about it.

Many netizens said that today's young consumer group is increasingly focused on healthy eating, and Manner might as well promote its light meals more widely so that more office workers can enjoy healthy and reassuring work meals.

Image source: Internet

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