As a relatively new Cineworld Unlimited member, I’m entitled to in-house food discounts. Initially there’s a 10% discount on all cinema food and a further 25% after three months. This covers ice cream, pick and mix, hot drinks and favourites like hot dogs, nachos and popcorn.
Traditionally cinema food and drink has been considered expensive and of inconsistent quality. However family and kids deals can also help reduce costs when purchasing.
I wanted to review the food options and my experience is below after many Cineworld visits.
Drinks (Hot and Cold)
Sizes range from small, regular and then large. The soft drinks are decent sizes and they are on draft. They also sell Pepsi Max and Pepsi Cherry which are my favourites.. along with other options like Tango etc. They are a little pricey though for a drink. However, you are paying for the convenience and the soft drink quality was good.
The coffee isn’t great, mainly because the milk tastes like Long Life which wasn’t particularly good. However, the hot chocolate is fantastic and my wife, a hot chocolate connoisseur, confirms it’s her favourite. We often visit Cineworld for drinks and it would be great if they could use fresh milk for the coffee.
Icee Frozen Drinks
I did skip this one hoping my daughter would review for me. This is likely an option for kids, coming in lots of iced flavours. I did try a raspberry sample and while okay, I wouldn’t want to buy and drink one. Therefore I have not reviewed this slushie type drink.
Popcorn
This snack comes in salted, sweet, mixed and caramel flavours. I chose a salted regular size and there are also small and large options. The salted version was particularly good. It’s a generous portion for the price and just right. I’ve had it a few times now and it’s salted well and thankfully mostly free of kernels. I thought the price is reasonable for the quality for this product.
Nachos
I opted for the salted nachos with sour cream. They come with a variety of dips and nacho options. I began with the regular nachos and initially thought the portion looked a bit small. However, I quickly changed my mind as they were tightly packed into a small card container and were both salty and warm. I’d definitely order them again but with another dip. The sour cream dip was a bit watery. This is a Rollover product.
Hot Dog
I unwrapped the pre-heated and sealed large Rollover hot dog. The soft baguette looked promising but the hot dog itself felt a bit lacking. While ketchup and other sauces were available, I felt it was missing the essential ingredient: onions and does not appear to be an option.
I expected a bit of a smell when I opened it but it wasn’t too bad. It probably tastes better than it looks though as it wasn’t particularly exciting and it does look a bit anaemic in colour. The roll was soft though. If I’m really hungry I might have another but I’ll probably skip it next time.
Pick and Mix
Candy King is the brand of choice for the Pick and Mix counter. The only slight downside is the inclusion of tongs instead of a proper scoop for grabbing sweets. These tongs are difficult to use and easily drop sweets on the floor. However the price was reasonable (at least for smaller amounts) and the selection was decent. I have had this quite a lot now as the selection of sweets is good.
Ice Cream
Baskin Robbins offers a decent selection of ice cream flavours, though not as extensive as a full-on ice cream stall. It’s a stand rather than a full-sized kiosk.
I tried a piping hot apple pie accompanied by cookies and cream ice cream. I also opted for chocolate sauce with sprinkles and it was really good!
The service made the experience truly special (at least on the first occasion). The helpful lady served me and recommended dishes, guiding me through the menu. I’ll definitely return and maybe even try the cookie next time. Since my visit, I’ve had a three-scoop pot of ice cream and I’m definitely planning to try more.
Hot Food
Some Cineworld locations offer extras like southern fried chicken goujons and chips. Unfortunately, our local doesn’t sell them but I’ll update this review if I find a branch that does. So don’t be surprised if your Cineworld has more options.
Overall
My favourite treats were the Baskin Robbins ice creams and puddings, closely followed by the pick and mix. Then there’s the popcorn and nachos. The hot dog is my least favourite but overall the food selection is good and decent service. It’s a shame my branch doesn’t offer hot food but they do have lots of sweet bags, additional popcorn flavours, crisps and other items on sale near the counter. Though some of those items are a little pricey.
They also offer deals and during my review period they had a reasonably priced hot drink and chocolate bar offer. I’ve always thought cinema food was expensive but the markup isn’t too bad on most items with Cineworld’s unlimited discount. Without the discount, to a non unlimited member it is likely to be considered pricey particularly on soft drinks. But the options are about convenience.
Scores below are based on the food quality only to guide you on what is worth trying. Hence I have not factored in the cost into the rating (as I understand costs can vary between locations).
Scores
Baskin Robbins 5 out of 5
Pick and Mix 5 out of 5
Popcorn 4 out of 5
Hot drinks 4 out of 5 (hot chocolate is 5 and coffee 3)
Soft drinks 5 out of 5
Icee – not reviewed
Hotdogs 2.5 out of 5
Nachos 3 out of 5 (nachos good but dip let it down)
