LEON launches new autumn menu and opens brand new Liverpool Street Station store with SSP

Main NEW menu feature: chef Gizzi Erskine’s fast chicken satay salad

Chain also celebrates winning best salad award from PETA UK

Naturally Fast Food chain LEON launches its new menu today [Wednesday 21 September].

The autumn menu includes an exclusive new dish, made in collaboration with professional chef, food writer and TV presenter, Gizzi Erskine. Rooted in their shared passion for satisfying nutritious recipes, and keen to create a fun new menu item together, the LEON X Gizzi Chicken Satay Salad takes inspiration from Gizzi’s cookbook Gizzi’s Healthy Appetite and proves that it is possible for fast food to be good food created by chefs.

It has also opened its new Liverpool Street Station store, the first to be opened by franchise partners SSP. The partners signed a deal earlier this year which will see LEON bring its fun, fresh and fast food to additional new sites in railway stations across the UK.

The chain’s commitment to helping everyone eat well, live well and eat more plants is borne out by the addition of three new vegan items to the menu (coconut bircher, black bean and avocado pot and sweet potato falafel salad). This comes as LEON’s Vegan Superclean Quinoa Salad scooped the Best Vegan Salad award at Peta UK’s Vegan Food Awards.

The Gizzi satay salad comprises a sweet potato, carrot and daikon spiralised salad, topped with LEON’s chargrilled chicken and finished with a punchy pot of satay sauce. A generous sprinkling of LEON’s toasted seeds is added last for extra crunch.

For those reluctant to abandon meat eating entirely, the new menu will include Pulled Ham Black Bean [LEON’s current black bean dish with ham added] and Sicilian Chicken Meatball Salad.

Excited for the launch of the brand new dish, CEO John Vincent says, “I love working with people that I love working with. Gizzi cares about and enjoys food as much as us, and has always believed as we do that food can both taste good and do you good. We’ve found a soulmate – together we’re going to create the next chapter in the future of fast food.”

Gizzi adds: “I’ve always loved LEON, and working with them to turn my recipe into a quick and healthy dish has been so much fun. There have been so many unexpected obstacles – from sourcing affordable ingredients without compromising quality, to making the method simple enough to serve the dish within thirty seconds across thirty-eight stores. I’ve really enjoyed coming up with innovative solutions to these challenges, and I’m really proud of what we’ve created together and the fact it’s available for all LEON lovers. We’re working on more exciting projects this year, so watch this space.” 

Simon Smith, CEO of SSP UK said: “We are delighted to be bringing this great brand to passengers at London Liverpool Street as well as those who live and work in the local area. Offering a fresh take on the concept of ‘fast food’ Leon is a brand that will undoubtedly prove popular with SSP’s customers and our clients. “