A diner has opened in Sheffield where the staff are rude to you, and you’re encouraged to be rude back – and it won’t be long before Manchester gets its own taste of the Karen’s Diner experience.
The immersive pop-up dining experience has been exported from sunny Australia to the temperamental climes of the northwest.
It’s just landed in Sheffield ahead of a June opening in Prestwich – so, obviously, we had to take a trip over to see what it’s all about.
Full disclosure, if you’re mild-mannered and thinking of paying them a visit, brace yourself. Even writing this down is starting to give me the shakes again. I already knew it was going to be a bit full-on, but this was an ORDEAL – like the hospitality equivalent of being hazed.
Charming staff at Karen’s Diner. Credit: The Manc Group
It was also completely hilarious. You have to laugh, really, or you’d probably cry.
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‘Welcomed’ with hard, glaring stares, then shouted at for being late (which, to be fair, we were), we were led on a merry dance around the diner – circling tables four or five times – before the staff eventually showed us to our seats.
The diner itself looks like it’s been lifted straight from 1950s America, complete with checkered black and white tiles, red and white leather booths, and vinyl records pinned to the walls.
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There’s a predictably diner-esque menu of burgers and fries topped with American cheese that never quite seems to melt.
Spinning the wheel of shame at Karen’s Diner. Credit: The Manc Group
Throughout the hour we spent at Karen’s Diner – one of the longest hours of our lives – we were routinely humiliated: forced to spin a ‘wheel of shame’, do a fashion catwalk through the diner, drink ‘toilet shots’ or swirling Kahlua and Baileys, and wear customised paper hats that read ‘Vegan in Denial!’ and ‘Messy B*tch’ (they got that last one spot on for me, it has to be said).
We’re handed a colouring-in sheet and a handful of broken crayons, before our artwork is snatched away and torn to shreds before our eyes. The more talented creations – including one featuring a doodled penis – are pinned proudly to the walls.
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The toilet shots
With our customised hats
Our artwork being shredded
I ask for a napkin. It’s brought to the table, a corner torn off, and presented with a perfect ‘f*ck you’ smile.
A minute later, I ask for sauce. This is intentional – I want to be annoying, I want to see what they’ll do. My efforts are rewarded. The sauce arrives, along with napkins. I can’t believe my luck. Sauce and napkins for this messy b*tch? Perfect.
Not so much. The sauce is unceremoniously dumped, upside down, on the aforementioned napkin, then he promptly leaves. From there, it’s up to me to do what I want with it. Like any self-respecting sauce lover, I eat it off the napkin.
Image: The Manc Eats
As an ex-hospitality worker of some ten years or so, I myself have spent many years sullenly mouthing ‘f*ck off’ or some other insult under my breath at an annoying customer who’s taken things too far. It’s just a part of the job.
What I would’ve done in those days to work somewhere where I was not only able to shout it at their face, but be paid for the pleasure. In that regard, Karen’s Diner is a dream.
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Retail workers get it, hospitality workers get it. Sometimes the customer just isn’t right – and those customers, the really annoying ones, known in the industry as ‘Karens’, could do with a big telling-off.
Whether the people manning the tables at Karen’s Diner are actors, or incredibly disgruntled hospitality staff, we’re never too sure – either way, they never break character.
Every polite request of ours is greeted with a middle finger or an exaggerated eye roll, red baskets of burgers are dumped on the table with such force that all the fillings tumble out, and we’re so afraid to leave our seats that we have to wait for their backs to be turned to make a dash to the loo.
This is the place to go and get it – and when you’ve had enough, you’ll be bid farewell with a hearty ‘f*ck off’.
Inside Manchester’s newest Italian restaurant serving 70-year-old Calabrian recipes
Clementine Hall
A new restaurant inspired by Calabrese cooking has opened its doors in Manchester city centre.
Sometimes only a steaming hot bowl of homemade pasta will do, and you’ll find it at the new Pranzo Italian in abundance.
Located on King Street, slap bang in the centre of town, this light-drenched restaurant is set to become your go-to for authentic Italian cuisine.
Born in West Yorkshire, they opened their first restaurant in the spa town of Ilkley back in 2018 before quickly opening another location in Harrogate after Pranzo became inundated with hungry customers.
Images: The Manc
Fast forward to now, they have another site in York and now luckily for us, here in Manchester.
Inspired by founder Marco’s Italian heritage and his Nonna’s traditional Calabrese cooking, every single thing you’re served here is homemade.
From the fresh pasta and the rich sauces to the fluffy focaccia used to mop up said sauces, and not to forget the cherry gin used in the standout Sour Cherry Negroni.
Dishes here are as traditional and authentic as they get, using 70-year-old recipes that Marco learnt from his Nonna (who you’ll spot in old pictures proudly hung up around the restaurant).
Images: The Manc
On our visit, after indulging in couple of cocktails at the bar we kicked things off with a couple antipasti, because it really would be rude not to.
The arancino picante was a real standout, stuffed with spicy fennel sausage, smoked provola cheese and served on a bed of nduja cream.
This had everything you wanted in an arancini, crispy on the outside, gooey on the inside and served piping hot.
We recommend ordering the focaccia el aglio alongside it to dunk into the smoky nduja cream, a genius move if you ask us.
Images: The Manc
Now, onto the mains.
We ordered three of Pranzo’s specialist pastas and every single one was cooked to perfection. If you’re a fan of proper al dente pasta then trust us, you’re going to love this place.
The ragù di manzo features fresh mafalde pasta in a deeply savoury 4-hour beef shin sauce, and they definitely don’t skimp on the meat.
Showered in parmesan at the table, it’s a favourite on the menu for a reason. The reason? It’s nothing short of delicious.
Images: The Manc
We don’t know about you, but if burrata is on the menu then we’re ordering it with zero hestitation.
A lot of the pastas on the menu give you the choice of plonking a burrata on top, and we went for the nduja è salsiccia piccante.
The sauce is decadent and fiery, combining nduja with spicy fennel sausage, spinach and cream. The addition of the creamy burrata was another genius move, balancing out the spice perfectly.
Last but not least, and a personal favourite, was the scoglio seafood pasta.
This wasn’t just some pasta topped with a couple of prawns, this was absolutely packed full of juicy tiger prawns, mussels and squid – all perfectly cooked and tossed with garlic and cherry tomatoes in a silky sauce.
The recipe used for this one hasn’t changed in 70 years, and we’re glad that it hasn’t.
Images: The Manc
Elsewhere on the menu you’ll find seasonal specials such as your classic caesar salad and pan fried fish, as well as a selection of pizzas.
Of course it wouldn’t be an Italian feast without a tiramisu and this one hits all the right spots.
Indulgent with a punchy coffee flavour and almost cloud-like in texture, that’s a winning dessert if we’ve ever seen one.
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The space, set across two floors, is light and airy whilst the service is top notch. But don’t just take our word for it, find out more about Pranzo and book your table here.
‘Do not let Britain’s independent businesses disappear on your watch’ – Manchester bakery makes heartbreaking plea to Andy Burnham
Clementine Hall
A beloved Manchester bakery has issued an open letter to Andy Burnham ahead of the Budget begging him for help.
Barbakan Deli in Chorlton is basically an institution at this point.
The legendary bakery and delicatessen has been serving the community for 62 years, famed for its freshly-baked loaves of bread, its handmade sandwiches, and its pastries and cakes inspired by bakes from across Europe.
Posting on Instagram last night on Thursday 18 September, Frankie Dyer the director of Barbakan, issued an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Andy Burnham.
Images: The Manc Group
It read: “Dear Mr Burnham, As an independent business owner in the hospitality sector, I am begging you to please read this.
“Really read it. And seriously consider what businesses like mine are telling you before the upcoming Budget.”
It continued: “In just the last two years, we have self-funded new bakery machinery, new catering kitchens, essential repairs and renovations and opened a second retail site, creating another six local jobs. We have won more than ten national awards for the quality of what we do.
“We have invested. We have grown. We have employed more people. We have worked harder than ever. In short, Prime Minister, we are doing everything you keep asking British businesses to do.
“And our bank balance is finished. That is the reality.”
The letter finished by Dyer inviting Andy Burnham to come visit the bakery and pleading for a ‘fighting chance’ to save the business: “We need action. We need meaningful reductions in the tax burden placed on employers.
“We need Employer National Insurance looked at urgently. We need a business-rates system which allows independent high-street businesses to survive. We need VAT reform for hospitality. We need Corporation Tax to reward businesses which reinvest, employ and grow.
“And we need proper grants and incentives that help established independent businesses invest and expand — not schemes with endless criteria which most ordinary businesses can never access. We need you to do something.
“And we need more than one token gesture in the Budget. A band-aid for a bullet wound. So I am asking you, Prime Minister, to come back to Manchester and see it for yourself. Pop an apron on and stand behind our counter.
Images: The Manc Group
“Come into our bakery in the middle of the night and meet the people making Manchester’s bread while most of the city is asleep. Look at our payroll, our energy bills, our rates, our supplier increases.
“Look at what leaves our bank account every single week simply for the privilege of keeping 50 people employed and our doors open. You said you wanted a government that understood the regions. You now have an opportunity to prove it.
“Independent businesses across this country are not asking for a handout. We are asking for a fighting chance. I sincerely hope your next Budget gives us one”.
Georgina Pellant -
27th April 2022 
