Eats

Acclaimed taco bar Madre to set up shop in Manchester this summer

Madre will be serving their traditional Asado-inspired tacos at Escape to Freight Island - the new outdoor food and entertainment complex at Mayfield Depot near Piccadilly.

The Manc The Manc - 23rd July 2020
Madre / Instagram

Madre – an acclaimed supergroup of smash-hit taco brands – are setting up a brand new stall in Manchester this summer, owners have confirmed.

A combined venture from the teams at Mexican outlets Belzan and Breddos, Madre has proven enormously popular in Liverpool over the past two years.

Now, owners are taking their famous tacos down the M62 – pitching up at Piccadilly’s new food and festival space, Escape to Freight Island.

Madre / Instagram

Co-founder Sam Grainger said: “We can’t wait to get to Manchester, we’ve been waiting patiently and searching for the right space to come up and when we heard about Escape to Freight Island we just knew it was for us.

“The opportunity to work with this team is beyond exciting and it’s a great way for us to introduce ourselves to Manchester.

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“If you’d have asked me at the start of lockdown if I thought I’d be opening in Manchester in July then I’d have laughed!

“But here we are, the truck is loaded and the Mexican barbecues are ready to light!”

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Operating from a converted 1981 VW truck, Madre will be dishing out an authentic Mexican menu featuring dishes such as Pork Al Pastor, Carne Asada and Grilled Elote with fresh salsa.

The first Belzan and Breddos collaboration event in 2018 sold out in less than an hour, laying the foundations for Madre – which has moved from strength to strength ever since.

The move to Manchester represents the biggest step for the brand yet.

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“We spent our formative years in Manchester and it will be incredible to come back, get back stuck in to the city and experience this incredible new development,” said the owners.

Madre arrives at Depot Mayfield on 24 July, with the taco brand among the first traders to join Escape to Freight Island.

Table slots of three hours are available Thursday to Sunday from midday to midnight.

You can book online here.

Eats

The Pack Horse – the Michelin-recommended Peak District pub serving the best pre-hike breakfast in the North

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson The full breakfast at The Pack Horse Hayfield. Credit: The Manc Group

There’s a pub in the Peak District that’s comfortably established itself as one of the very best in the UK, and this banging local isn’t just about pints and Sunday roasts.

The Pack Horse in the village of Hayfield is also a purveyor of an excellent breakfast, perfect to fuel you up before a big hike in the surrounding hills.

Want a little taste of this pub’s accolades? In the space of just one week, The Pack Horse placed in the Top 50 Gastropubs and then got added to the Michelin Guide – a stunning double header.

The restaurant in Hayfield was praised by Michelin inspectors for being ‘a true village local’.

Just this week, it was also added to the Good Food Guide’s list of the best Sunday roasts in the UK.

Headed up by chef and co-owner Luke Payne, The Pack Horse in the village of Hayfield is an outstanding establishment.

Here is a pub where you can have a world-class meal that shows off the best of British produce, while sipping an ale, with muddy boots on your feet.

Inside The Pack Horse Hayfield. Credit: The Manc Group
Inside The Pack Horse Hayfield. Credit: The Manc Group
Outside the Pack Horse in Hayfield
Outside the Pack Horse in Hayfield

It doesn’t really matter who you ask, The Pack Horse is readily and consistently named one of the best pubs in the entire UK and anyone stepping through its door would struggle to argue with that. 

Because although the price point sits a little higher than your average boozer, it still has all the trappings of a proper country pub. 

Yes, there are crisps behind the bar. Yes, there’s a pub quiz. Yes, there’s a resident pub dog (Lola the Labrador will sit and stare you out if there is anything edible in your immediate vicinity). 

But what we haven’t seen anywhere near enough people harp on about is the breakfast at The Pack Horse.

The ingredients on their breakfast menu are all sourced so locally you could probably hike to any of them with a bit of grit and determination.

From Port of Lancaster smoked kippers to bacon cut thick and laced with maple, everything is of the highest quality.

You can’t go wrong with The Pack Horse signature breakfast, which has eggs, bacon, Manchester sausage, crispy hash browns, Doreen’s black pudding, wild mushrooms, confit tomato, trotter beans, AND sourdough.

A bacon and egg muffin at The Pack Horse Hayfield
A bacon and egg muffin at The Pack Horse Hayfield
Coffee, juice and a breakfast menu at The Pack Horse. Credit: The Manc Group
Coffee, juice and a breakfast menu at The Pack Horse. Credit: The Manc Group

You can have the full portion for £20 or just take one of each item for £10 and then immediately regret not having more.

The bulk of the menu beyond that centres around the pub’s homemade English muffins, toasted and buttered and filled with whatever breakfast item takes your fancy (scrambled egg and bacon for me, always).

It’s a breakfast worthy of the fanciest hotels and most popular of brunch spots. 

Once you’re suitably fuelled and ready for a walk there are two hikes nearby that aren’t too strenuous and crucially don’t take too long (those daylight savings hours really mess with a big hike, eh). 

The Sett Valley Trail starts just across the road and is a consistent and mostly flat out-and-back.

Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group
Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group
Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group
Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group

You can follow it all the way to the Torrs Millennium Walkway in New Mills if you fancy, or just turn back when you’ve had enough.

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Or you can head the other way through Hayfield out towards Kinder Reservoir – the loop will take you over streams and stepping stones and little wooden bridges, past the huge body of water, through woodland and fields, and place you within sight of Kinder Downfall waterfall. 

This is the poster child of the Peak District and one of the National Park’s best, most comprehensive walks. 

You’ll also be close to Kinder Scout, but this is a more challenging hike and at this time of year we’d really recommend setting off nice and early to get maximum daylight hours.

And that would mean no time for a Pack Horse breakfast, which just won’t do. 

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Featured image: The Manc Group

Eats

Peek inside the space-themed festive tipi bar that’s appeared in Manchester city centre

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester

A gigantic new festive tipi has appeared in Manchester city centre, and this one’s out of this world.

Nova Star is an intergalactic, space-age tipi, filled with twinkling stars and shimmering galaxies.

The space-themed pop-up bar has appeared in Sadler’s Yard, right outside New Century.

Inside, you’ll be able to get your mitts on festive food specials from beloved Christmas Markets favourites Parmogeddon.

Their menu includes raclette-covered roast potatoes, with additional toppings like hot honey, brie, stuffing crumbs and gravy.

There’ll also be pigs in blanket hot dogs topped with cranberry and chilli ketchup and stuffing crumb, with an indulgent pot of gravy for dunking, plus profitteroles with a homemade brandy cream filling.

Nova Star’s bar will have a menu of shimmering cocktails and ice-cold beers too, with a full menu of Cosmos, including a Nebula Cosmo (which tastes a lot like a pina colada but is blue), a Cosmic Amore (close to a classic Cosmopolitan), and the Milkyway (a sweet and creamy concoction with hazelnut and vanilla).

Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester
Loaded raclette roasties at Nova Star, Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester
A pigs in blanket hot dog. Credit: The Manc Group
Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester
Profiteroles from Parmogeddon. Credit: The Manc Group

Nova Star will be serving up their very own signature ‘Nova Staro’ pints, created in collaboration with Czech Pilsner specialists Staropramen in their first ever rebrand.

It’s a far cry from your typical Bavarian Christmas experience, swapping out holly and ivy for stars and shimmers.

Visitors will also be able to enjoy a line-up of festive entertainment.

Abby Moore, managing director at New Century, said: “Nova Star is all about celebrating Christmas at its most magical – and for us that means with all the dazzle of the space age.

“It’s a chance to escape the traditional and enjoy a spectacular atmosphere, stellar cocktails and incredible food.

“We can’t wait to welcome the people of Manchester to our space-age Christmas destination.” 

Nova Star opens at Sadler’s Yard on Friday 22 November.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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