A few weeks back, Manchester City and England star Jack Grealish gave another vintage interview where he delighted fans by revealing he orders a big, dirty Chinese takeaway after every game.
In the era of footballers having dedicated dieticians and personal chefs waiting for them at home, it kind of warms the cockles of our hearts to hear that some players don’t always take food as seriously and still like to channel the Jamie Vardy vibes of port, pizza and Red Bull.
With that in mind, although we might not know how Grealish fuels himself before a game, we do know what he rewards himself with after every single match: a massive five-item order from the one and only Wing’s Restaurant in Spinningfields.
This has been a regular haunt for footballers and famous faces for decades now, with the legendary dining spot collecting countless autographs on their signature plates dotted around the room, but this Brummy baller likes to get a special order to take home with him.
Wing’s never used to do takeaway, but they started dipping their toes in during the pandemic and since Grealish arrived at Manchester City, he’s been ordering the same thing after every game: Singapore chow mein, salt and peppers prawns, salt and peppers chips, egg fried rice and curry sauce. Bosh.
I mean, as far as Chinese takeaway orders go, it’s a pretty strong choice and certainly similar to the kind of thing we’d have ourselves, the only difference is that since he’s ordering it from a restaurant that has regularly featured on the Michelin guide, his costs a whopping £56.20. Good job he’s a footballer, eh!
Now, we don’t know if Pep and the fitness coaches necessarily approve of the 27-year-old’s carb-heavy post-match meal, but we certainly did when we ordered it this past week.
Piling the plate high with the tried and true staples of egg fried rice and salt and pepper chips — both of which are as simple but delicious as you’d expect — before dumping on a big helping of the chow mein, packed with flavourful sautéed veg, spicy prawns and more carbs, this thing was spilling over the sides.
The Jack Grealish takeaway order (Credit: The Manc Group)
The maddest part was that we weren’t even close to being done; ‘Super Jack’ supposedly scrans this whole thing and we still had the enormous juicy king prawns to get through, the curry sauce, a mix of classic and Thai-style prawns crackered, as well as more of everything else we’d already plated up.
All that said, once we tucked in, it was pretty easy to see why Jack keeps coming back. The rice noodles were light, glassy and lovely, soaking up every bit of seasoning; salt and pepper chips are undefeated, the big prawns were bursting with flavour and the whole thing was smothered in a spicy curry sauce.
How can you possibly go wrong with that?
When we took further inspiration from the Wings-loving winger and started mixing the whole thing together in a “big free-for-all”, we’ll admit the plate looked pretty messy, but every mouthful tasted of delicious chip-shop style curry sauce and that is never a bad thing.
As we described it on the day, it became a big, saucy Chinese orgy.
After finishing a whole heaping plateful, we still somehow had about half a tub of every item left — including even more curry sauce — and while some of us put more of a dent in it than others, it ended up taking four people to finish off every last scrap.
We don’t like waste in The Manc office.
So, although we certainly couldn’t manage the Jack Grealish takeaway order before 90 minutes of running around, we can totally see why it’s his go-to treat after a game.
And who knows, perhaps the secret to luxurious locks, big calves and playing for one of the best teams in the world is to just grab yourself a big, naughty Chinese for tea.
Featured Image — The Manc Group/Jack Grealish (via Instagram)
Eats
Inside the Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser Cafe in Manchester
Daisy Jackson
Hotel Chocolat has today opened the doors to its first Velvetiser Cafe in Manchester, serving up shakes, hot chocolates, sundaes, and loads more.
Part cafe, part retail space, inside you’ll find everything from molten chocolate fountains to a full range of chocolate boxes, bars and hot chocolate powders.
The popular chocolatier has stores up and down the UK selling its ethically-sourced sweet treats, hitting a new level of fame with its Velvetiser, an invention that creates velvety smooth hot drinks at the touch of a button.
They’ve been so popular, Hotel Chocolat is now opening Velvetiser Cafes across the UK – and Manchester is next.
There are exclusive-to-Manchester-sundaes in store, each one inspired by their most popular chocolates, like a Billionaire’s Shortbread and an Eton Mess.
You can also grab yourself a hot choc shake, with loads of flavours, milks and toppings to choose from.
Hotel Chocolat’s new Velvetiser Cafe in ManchesterThe chocolate boxes at Hotel ChocolatInside the Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser Cafe in ManchesterMix-and-match hot chocolate selection boxesInside the Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser Cafe in ManchesterExclusive-to-Manchester ice cream sundaesCroissant with a molten chocolate potInside the Velvetiser Cafe in ManchesterInside the Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser Cafe in Manchester
The Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser Cafe also has pastries, which you can order with a side of melted chocolate for dipping and drizzling.
As part of the experience inside, there’s a wall of hot chocolate sachets, which you can mix and match to build your own selection box.
And all along the way there’ll be samples, and loads to learn about the chocolate industry.
The Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser Cafe has officially opened its doors today on Cross Street in Manchester city centre, just next to the new Joe & The Juice.
The old fire station in Salford that’s now home to a bakery, brewery and bar
Daisy Jackson
A former fire station in Salford has been turned into a bustling base for some of the North West’s finest baking and brewing talents.
The Old Fire Station, right beside the University of Salford, is now operating as a bakery, brewery, bar, cafe and restaurant.
That means pastries, bread, pizzas and even beers are made within a few feet of where you’ll be eating and drinking them.
The space is beautiful, still boasting those gigantic red fire station doors and the traditional ceramic tiles that would have been here when the space was still home to fire engines instead of bread mixers.
Around half of the pastries coming out of the bakery, headed up by Erick Molero Delgado (his CV includes top bakeries across the USA and Europe), are completely vegan – not that you can tell from looking at their glossy, laminated layers and extravagant fillings.
We’re talking perfectly cubed laminated brioche with sweet maple flavours, mini pizzettes with olives and tomatoes dotted inside a pastry wall, and striped pain suisse stuffed with nuts and chocolate.
Then there are the not-very-vegan-at-all pastries, like a spandaeur, which is like a croissant and pastel de nata hybrid, and thick slices of Basque cheesecake.
There are new signature ‘Salford bagels’ too developed by assistant head baker Scott Shannon, which are a fusion of North American, German and Jewish styles, fermented for up to 48 hours with a crisp outer shell and a chewy centre.
A spandaeur pastry and a pain suisseHeirloom tomato bruschetta on sourdoughThe bakery line-upThe ‘Salford Bagel’ with smoked salmon
We had ours stuffed with smoked salmon, cream cheese and capers and raved about it all the way home.
Erick says: “Our new menu is a true labour of love by the whole team – from early ideas and experiments right through to the final bake.
“If someone has an idea, we run with it. That creative freedom is priceless. It keeps the work exciting, and it means our customers have the opportunity to get something fresh every time they visit.”
As for the beers, they’re all made on site too – on the opposite side of The Old Fire Station is Lark Hill Brewery, headed up by Jack Dixon, who’s able to experiment and explore new flavours in this top-spec microbrewery.
Jack Dixon in the Lark Hill BreweryLaminated briocheThe Old Fire Station bakers at work
There are experimental beers, sometimes made in collaboration with researchers at the University, as well as true-to-style classics like a New England Pale Ale and the Lark Helles, a fresh take on a classic German lager.
Jack said: “Having the autonomy to design and brew what I want, without limits, is rare and exciting,.
“It means every beer we pour here has a story and a personality. We’re proud to bring something new to Salford’s craft scene.”
This summer, they’re launching New York-style pizzas, made on slow-fermented, hand-stretched pizza dough.
And very little goes to waste here – the trimmed-off croissant pastry is now being turned into their own croissant loaf, which they’re whipping into French toast for the brunch menu.
Everything at The Old Fire Station is crafted with talent and love, and you can really taste it.
Danny Jones -
8th April 2023 
