After seven months of keeping the locals happy at legendary Ancoats pub the Crown and Kettle, Mira’s saucy Neapolitan sandwiches have found a new home just around the corner.
The team will be moving intoAncoats General Store on 2 March, taking over from fellow sandwich slingers Bada Bing.
Mira built up a loyal fanbase during the pandemic for their saucy ‘Cuzzetiello’ sandwiches, inspired by the Italian region of Naples.
A cult staple of Napoli street food, the Cuzzetiello is a natural evolution of the simple act of tearing the end off a loaf of fresh bread to scoop up hot, home-cooked ragu.
Image: Mira
Crude but incredibly satisfying, it’s become quite the hit with locals who’ve fallen for these stuffed, saucy sandwiches in their droves.
Mira owners Mike and Rhea first fell in love with the rich flavours, culture and history behind the sandwich whilst travelling and felt compelled to bring it home to Manchester.
Popular fillings at Mira include slow-cooked Genovese beef brisket with onions, parmesan and salami; Italian meatballs in a slow-cooked ragu with fresh basil and mozzarella and a vegan-friendly juicy aubergine parmigiana sandwich with rich tomato sauce, cashew cheese and. basil.
The menu also features a regularly changing ‘wild card’ option – like the salsiccia, made with chilli sausage, spianata, marinara, garlic greens, parmesan and chopped olives.
The Salsiccia, made with chilli sausage, spianata, marinara, garlic greens, parmesan and chopped olives. / Image: Mira
To celebrate the move to Ancoats General Store, Mira will be giving away free sandwiches all day on opening day from 8am – 4pm (or until they run out).
To start with, Mira will just be serving its classics until they get settled in to the new space. Wild cards will then be reintroduced to the menu once they’ve got their feet firmly under the table.
Speaking on the move, co-owner Mike said:
“We’re buzzing to join the Ancoats General Store family and can’t wait to introduce more people to the Cuzzetiello.
“It’s a food that people in Napoli seem proud to keep sacred and we like to reflect that by cooking mainly old school Neapolitan recipes, with our Wildcard specials added occasionally to mix things up.
“Ancoats feels like home to us, and considering it’s Manchester’s ‘Little Italy’, our new residency with General Store is a perfect fit. See you next Wednesday for sandwiches on us!”
Mira will join Ancoats General Store from Wednesday 2 March until early June.
Feature image – Mira
News
Tatton Park makes decision to temporarily close gate after visitor is attacked by rutting deer
Emily Sergeant
Tatton Park has made the decision to temporarily close one of its gates after a member of the public following a ‘recent change in deer activity’.
It comes after ‘a couple of injuries’ despite warnings and a large amount of signage across the park.
The decision to close the Knutsford gate had to be taken by Tatton management with input from Cheshire East Council’s health and safety manager, and its director of growth and enterprise, along with ‘expert advice’ from the leading deer vet who works across many deer parks in the UK.
The Knutsford gate will be closed to pedestrians and vehicles ‘until further notice’, but the Dog Wood entrance and the main Rostherne entrance will remain open.
Tatton Park cited a current ‘larger number’ of stags than usual found feeding on fallen acorns near the Knutsford entrance, and an overall ‘recent shift in our deer herd’s behaviour during the rutting season’ as the reason for the gate’s closure in a statement shared to social media this week.
Rutting season – which refers to the autumn deer breeding season, typically from late September to early November in the UK – is when deer herds may exhibit aggression if approached.
“If you come across wild deer whilst visiting, we strongly advise you take an alternative route,” the park said in its statement.
The park’s Operations Team added in a statement, as reported by the MEN: “Despite all warnings, a large amount of signage, staff being on hand to advise people to avoid the deer, and all efforts to try to re-route people and get them to stop approaching the deer, we have unfortunately had a couple of injuries.”
One of the ‘injuries’ referred to was an incident involving 67-year-old man named Rod Savage, who was reportedly hurled up in the air after a large stag suddenly appeared and charged at him with his antlers, puncturing his stomach.
Tatton Park temporarily closes its gate after a visitor is attacked by rutting deer / Credit: Diana Parkhouse (via Unsplash)
The terrifying ordeal happened just 300 yards inside the Knutsford entrance, contributing to the gate’s temporary closure.
Tatton Park has now issued warnings and advice to all future visitors.
People are being told to ‘never walk between the deer’ and ‘never put yourself between deer and a fence’, while always maintaining a safe distance of 50m or more when possible, and ultimately remaining vigilant and fully-aware of your surroundings at all times.
“We’ll be monitoring the situation daily and continue to provide updates,” the park concluded in its statement on social media.
“We apologise for any inconvenience and thank you for your understanding.”
Featured Image – Diana Parkhouse (via Unsplash)
News
Shocking new study reveals that almost 100 people a day are caught drink-driving
Emily Sergeant
Nearly 100 drivers a day in Britain have had ‘drink-drive endorsements’ added to their licences in the past three years, a shocking new study has revealed.
Alarmingly, it’s people between the ages of 25 and 39 that are the most frequently penalised for drink-driving – with around 48,000 drivers in this age bracket being handed endorsements, followed closely by 40,000 drivers aged 40 to 65.
In contrast, only 15,000 drivers aged 17 to 24 were penalised, and a mere 3,000 over-65s received points on their licence between 2022 and 2024.
It’s all according to a study by road safety charity, IAM RoadSmart, using data obtained from the DVLA via a Freedom of Information request.
A shocking new study has revealed that almost 100 people a day are caught drink-driving / Credit: Pexels
Drivers caught over the alcohol limit face automatic licence revocation, potential imprisonment, and unlimited fines, while the endorsement remains on a driving licence for 11 years.
Another shocking revelation from the study is that fatalities linked to drink-driving have climbed over the past decade, peaking in 2022 at the highest level in 13 years – with the RAC saying this trend ‘raises alarms’ about the effectiveness of current road safety measures.
RAC road safety spokesperson Rod Dennis called it ‘completely unacceptable’.
“These disturbing figures show the twin evils of driving under the influence of drink and drugs are behind a frightening number of lives lost on the UK’s roads every year,” he commented.
A third of Brits want police to immediately ban drink drivers at the roadside / Credit – Vladimir Proskurovskiy (via Unsplash)
“A new approach to tackling these repugnant crimes is desperately needed. We hope this will be a key part of the Government’s forthcoming road safety strategy, [as] we’ve consistently been calling for a change in approach when it comes to reducing alcohol-related road deaths, as it’s clear the status quo isn’t working.”
The RAC has been campaigning for courts being given the powers to mandate the fitting of alcohol interlocks (‘alcolocks’) to offenders’ vehicles to prevent them driving drunk again.
It is also ‘supportive’ of the police being given the powers to immediately disqualify any driver who fails a drink or drugs test at the roadside.
Georgina Pellant -
23rd February 2022 
