A retro Breville toastie stall is opening inside the Arndale Market
Think super noodle toasties, Full English breakfast toasties, chilli con carne toasties, a toastie stuffed with four-cheese macaroni, chocolate and LOADS more.
A new toasted sandwich stall selling supernoodle, spaghetti hoop and bean and cheese melts is set to be opening at Manchester’s Arndale Market this summer.
From the same team behind Portland Street retro toastie favourite Frankie’s Toasties, the new food stall will offer all the same goodies — in a slightly smaller package.
Sharing the news with followers on Instagram, Frankie’s Toasties wrote: “It’s Official! We’re coming to the Arndale Markets!
“We’re proud to announce we will be opening a “Little” Frankie’s branch in the Manchester Arndale food market!
The Salford super noodle toastie at Frankie’s Toasties. / Image: Frankie’s Toasties
“We also have some amazing new things coming to our main Frankies site on Portland Street, such as a whole new re-brand, refurb and also some UK’s first concepts! Watch this space.”
Joining the likes of Pancho’s Burritos, Just Natas, Wholesome Junkies, and more, the new grab-and-go ‘Little Frankie’s’ stall is tipped to open inside the Arndale Market this July.
Lovers of an old-school Breville toastie will not be disappointed, with childhood favourites like spaghetti hoops, super noodles, and bean and cheese melts all featuring on the menu.
Image: Frankie’s Toasties
Elsewhere, you’ll find Full English breakfast toasties, hamburger toasties, chilli con carne toasties, a toastie stuffed with four-cheese macaroni, pulled pork and more.
There are spicy ramen noodle toasties, tuna melts, apple and custard toasties and chicken katsu toasties.
And that’s not all. There are sweet toasties too – wodged full of chocolate and sweets, smores, peanut butter, banana and Lotus Biscoff.
There’s really a toastie for every mood – and you can mix and match ingredients however you like to tailor it even more.
Image: Frankie’s Toasties
Frankie’s Toasties first opened its doors in Manchester in 2018, spurred on by one man’s self-proclaimed mission to open the UK’s first “dedicated lip scalding, mouth stripping, retro toastie shop.”
As its website says, “everyone loves a red hot toastie, that’s so hot it nearly melts your face off.”
Named after Barry Chui’s ‘proper top’ family pet, Frankie the bull terrier, this no-fuss toastie shop is the place to go get your Breville fix – no messing about now.
Find its existing site on Portland Street for now, and keep an eye out for the Arndale Market stall’s opening this July.
Feature image – Frankie’s Toasties
News
There’s a World Gravy Wrestling Championship near Greater Manchester
Thomas Melia
Just on the outskirts of Greater Manchester, there’s a country pub set in a rural village that hosts a world gravy wrestling championship.
Leave it to us northerners to organise a world gravy wrestling championship because let’s face it, there’s nothing more northern than plummeting yourself into bucket loads of gravy.
At The Rose ‘N’ Bowl in the village of Stacksteads, it’s not just their meals they’re drenching in the brown nectar; they drench any willing guest in this beige saucy goodness too as part of the World Gravy Wrestling Championships.
Here’s a little taster from nearly a decade ago.
Participants are expected to wrestle in the gravy for two minutes, with the winner being judged not only on their play-fighting skills but also on their choice of fancy dress, comedy effect and entertainment.
Past wrestlers have rocked up as zebras, racehorse jockeys and famous TV characters like Ali G and Mickey Mouse.
Each wrestler is encouraged to raise money on behalf of a charity of their choice, but if you don’t have one, donations will be sent to East Lancashire Hospice, which has helped people countywide suffering from life-limiting illness for the past 30 years.
The World Gravy Wrestling Championships have been held outside this very pub for over a decade, with the first ever event taking place at a car park in Wigan before it found a permanent home outside The Rose ‘N’ Bowl.
And if swimming in a pool of gravy isn’t for you, don’t fret because there’s a handful of sauce-free activities you can get involved with spread throughout the pub’s car park.
Fret not, past events have included bouncy castles, cheerleading performances, craft beer stalls, cake and tombola stands and even a BB gun shooting range that are all completely gravy-free.
There will even be help from a local fire brigade who will be on hand to wash down wrestlers in between their gravy-filled tournament, so they can wander round all the stalls too.
The 2025 World Gravy Wrestling Championships are coming to The Rose ‘N’ Bowl in Stacksteads on 25 August, with tickets available in person only, but plenty of information about the event HERE.
If you’re after signing up to be one of the wrestlers at this event, applications are still open and you can get stuck in with all the details you need HERE.
And if that wasn’t enough Northern food competitive action, we’ll catch you at the World Black Pudding Hurling Championships, innabit.
Inside this Victorian mansion with 10 bedrooms, a swimming pool and more near Greater Manchester
Thomas Melia
There’s a million-pound Victorian-style mansion that has 10 bedrooms and its own personal swimming pool just outside of Greater Manchester.
Just like the childhood nursery rhyme, “There were three in the bed and the little one said… there’s another seven beds, roll over!” or at least that’s how they remember it in this character property.
Located in Warrington, less than an hour away from Manchester city centre, this property is a semi-detached Victorian property built in 1860, with 10 bedrooms and its own private swimming pool, all spread across four floors.
As soon as you enter the foyer, your eyes are drawn to the sleek silver chandelier before you notice the grand staircase, which feels like a piece of living history.
Inside this Victorian mansion with 10 bedrooms and a swimming pool near Greater Manchester / Credit: On The Market)
The ground floor hosts two of a whopping 10 bedrooms alongside a teal-toned farmhouse-style kitchen and that extremely impressive swimming pool with its own built-in projector.
In the kitchen, the focal point is the large wrap-around kitchen unit, which is accompanied by a variety of hanging lights and a big central island.
On the way to the swimming pool, there are a handful of lockers identical to those found in a leisure and as you enter the room, your eyes are drawn to the island-inspired feature wall.
Venture upstairs to the first floor and you’re greeted by five spacious bedrooms with one having its own en-suite while the rest share a main bathroom.
Each of these bedrooms follows a completely different design style, with the largest following a muted grey palette with pops of yellow thanks to the artwork and bed accessories.
The grand staircase and one of ten bedrooms inside this Victorian mansion near Greater Manchester / Credit: On The Market
As you go upstairs again, you’ll find (you guessed it) even more bedrooms, three to be exact, with the standout
The stand-out of this second floor is the navy-walled bedroom with a vintage vanity unit, patterned floor-to-ceiling curtains and a similarly dark-blue rug to match its four walls.
Another flight of stairs and you’ve finally reached the top of this property, and there’s an LED-lined ceiling and a neutral bedroom colour scheme of greys, whites and everything in between.
There are various amenities nearby, including three schools and three train stations… for if you get fed up of strolling around your four-floored ten-bed, swimming pool-owning mansion.
Two contrasting bedrooms found within this Victorian mansion near Greater Manchester / Credit: On The Market
We know this property may not be in the price range and might not be affordable for a lot of readers, ourselves included, but we can dream, right?
You can check out this Victorian mansion and flick through even more pictures of this property – Snooping never hurt anybody? Official site HERE.
As always, make sure to check out The Manc‘s property page to check all the other stunning structures currently on sale/in progress across Greater Manchester and in the nearby North West.
Georgina Pellant -
17th May 2022 
