The sun is beating down on you, there’s a couple of luminous orange Aperol Spritzes on the checked tablecloth, Italian pop music is trickling out over the speakers and you’ve got two heaping bowls of pasta on the way.
The setting could easily be a cobbled street in front of the Colosseum in Rome. But it’s not. It’s an industrial estate in Prestwich.
Caffè Lupo must be one of Greater Manchester’s most hidden gems in a very literal sense.
To get here, you have to drive or walk a strange looping circuit around industrial warehouses peddling everything from splashbacks to burglar alarms to grow tents.
One of these warehouses, located in the very furthest yard, looks a little different to the others, festooned with bunches of garlic and dried herbs strung up from the ceiling.
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There are shelves full of pasta, sauces and even crisps, a fridge packed with delicious Italian wines and beers, and retro football shirt-inspired merch hanging from the walls.
Its awkward location does nothing to hold back its loyal customers, who repeatedly return for the authentic taste of Rome on offer here.
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Lupo is operated by Nico Pasquali, who first ran it as a tiny Italian cafe on Chapel Street in Salford (before all the high-rises appeared), then shifted it over to the odd shiny-commercial-office-land that is Exchange Quay, then took it almost entirely remote to trudge through the pandemic.
At one point, Caffè Lupo existed mostly on WhatsApp, with customers texting in their orders ready for a doorstep drop on a Friday night.
But now the large-ish commercial unit is its main business, and it’s a special one.
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You are greeted, always, with a friendly wave, then given the sort of service where you’re very gently guided to order all the best things on the menu that day, feeling like you’ll personally offend Nico if you order differently and stray from his recommendations. Thankfully it’s pretty easy to trust this man.
We kick off with a couple of Aperol spritz, included in Lupo’s aperitivo offer, which means they arrive with nibbles. So far, so Italian.
There’s a dinky bowl of salted crisps, a tiny calzone each, and a pizzetti with a scrape of tomato sauce on top of a sweet, soft pizza dough.
It’s extremely hard for me to see amatriciana on a menu and not order it – so I don’t try. One bowl of rigatoni amatriciana for me, and make it cheesy.
Lupo’s classic tiramisu doughnutsThat show-stopping mille feuille
This is a textbook example of the deceptively simple pasta dish. Fatty guanciale cooked right down so that all that delicious pork fat melts into the tomatoes, then it’s seasoned with, I presume, several generations of secrets and love from Italian nonnas.
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The sweet, salty, meaty sauce is available on a pizza too, which will be top of my list next time I visit.
Across the table it’s an order of Roman-style pizza, a white base covered in a mountain of parma ham, rocket, fior di latte mozzarella, and shavings of parmesan.
If you can come to Lupo and walk away without ordering something sweet from the counter, you’re a stronger person than me.
They’re famed for their doughnuts (rightly), with bouncy dough filled with flavours including pistachio cream, lemon, and homemade jams.
Also displayed in neat rows are fruit tarts with a glossy glaze, towering cream cakes in neat layers, and puff pastry cannoncini.
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But Nico is adamant, absolutely adamant, that we order a slice of his mille feuille. It’s a sell-out, he says. We’re lucky he even has some in stock, he tells us. Who are we to argue?
And if you’ve made it this far, just stop reading right now, get in the damn car and go get yourself a slice before it sells out again.
Layers of lighter-than-air homemade pastry are sandwiched together with delicately sweet cream, and it’s good enough to bring a tear to your eye.
We leave with a doughnut in a box too, so that we at least have a snack if we get completely lost finding our way back out of the industrial estate.
As we head into summer, I’m fully expecting Lupo’s popularity to grow and grow, thanks to its huge outside dining space.
Chester Zoo’s award-winning gastro pub is extending its opening hours due to ‘phenomenal demand’
Danny Jones
Chester Zoo’s much-loved restaurant, The Oakfield, is set to extend its opening hours for the rest of the year following what they have described as ‘phenomenal demand’ from the public.
The award-winning gastro pub situated within the zoo’s grounds has been popular with visitors and Cheshire locals in general ever since it was lovingly restored in 2018, with footfall increasing as park numbers also continue to climb.
A Grade II listed building, The Oakfield was actually first opened all the way back in 1931 by Chester Zoo‘s founder, George Mottershead, and once housed everything from lions, bears, chimpanzees, pelicans, parrots and more.
Cut to today and it’s simply home to good food, a great drinks selection and wonderful service in line with Chester Zoo’s equally high standards when it comes to animal welfare and conservation – and now the restaurant is giving guests what they want be opening on additional days and for longer.
STAY IN THE ZOO UNTIL 11pm EVERY FRIDAY & SUNDAY! 🙌
That's right, you can now spend your Friday and Sunday evenings surrounded by 37,000 animals at our award-winning pub, The Oakfield
Located in the heart of the zoo, you can enjoy delicious classic pub dishes while taking in… pic.twitter.com/kdv8aGkjaj
As per an announcement from the zoo, the doors of The Oakfield will now be open every Friday and Sunday evening from 5–11pm.
Their inaugural Sunday service takes place on 12 May with doors open from 5pm and the last table reservation being taken at 19:30 – and trust us, this place can book up quickly. But don’t worry, walk-ins are still welcome and the bar serves until 10pm.
Naturally, the menu features big Sunday roasts as well as classic pub dishes such as The Oakfield’s signature steak burger, battered fish and chips and sausage and mash, just to name a few.
As for the newly rolled out Friday nights, doors open once again at 5pm with the last food bookings available until 20:45pm. The menu’s mouthwatering in this instance too, featuring the likes of Welsh black ribeye steak, a braised lamb shoulder dish and breaded aubergine with katsu curry sauce.
In the years since its return to glory, it’s won various accolades including the regional Taste Cheshire Awards and even international recognition from Traveller’s Choice Awards hosted by TripAdvisor – who just so happened to rank Chester Zoos’ gastro pub in the top 10% of restaurants in the entire world.
Speaking on the announcement, Food and Beverage Operations Manager at The Oakfield, Chloe Gill, said: “Our Friday evening trial proved to be super popular. So, in response to the phenomenal demand we’ve had, and as we head into summer months and begin to enjoy lighter evenings, we’re thrilled to extend our opening hours to include not just Fridays but Sunday evenings too!
“Our guests can enjoy our sun garden while taking in the sights and sounds of nature, brimming with bird song and the majestic roars of lions in the distance – all while knowing every sip of their drink or bite of their food supports our charity, helping to create a brighter future where wildlife thrives.”
Better still, it’s no easier to find than ever thanks to the zoo’s new events entrance on Caughall Road, Upton, which leads you straight up to the gastro pub.
If you want to see what all the fuss is about, you can book a table HERE.
Lead singer of Aussie band blasts mystery Manc café for rude and ‘aggressive’ treatment by staff member
Danny Jones
The lead singer of Australian indie and alternative band, The Buoys, has come out to criticise a mystery Manchester café after receiving rude and ‘aggressive’ treatment from a member of staff.
Lead vocalist and rhythm guitar player, Zoe Catterall, hopped on the band’s TikTok account to vent and indirectly inform others about the as-yet-unnamed coffee shop ahead of the group’s show at Gorilla in the city centre this week.
Noting that much of her family originates from Manchester and she usually gets “excited” by the “sense of home” away from home whenever she comes here on tour, her visit this time around was sadly marred somewhat by the treatment by one unknown member of staff.
As Catterall details in the video, despite going out of her way to be polite and familiarise herself with a new city centre spot as a tourist, she was unfortunately met by the purportedly blunt female worker, who “rolled her eyes” at a simple question and a general rude demeanour. Here’s how she says it went down:
Admitting she “was not expecting the response that I got”, she goes on to detail the woman finger-pointing and exhibiting just a generally rude tone.
Initially suspecting that she might be holding up a queue or irking the staff in some other way, she eventually goes on to describe her behaviour as “being an arsehole for no reason” and reiterating that you “don’t have to be that mean”.
Adding that she was welling up and feeling overwhelmed by the whole incident after a jet-lagged morning without any breakfast or caffeine in her system yet, she eventually felt so uncomfortable that she decided to grab her coffee and go decompress elsewhere.
Moreover, after explaining that she ended up going on to the café’s Google reviews out of curiosity, it turned out that the Manchester spot had racked up quite a few people who also had negative experiences and rude or ‘aggressive’ treatment by staff.
We’re not going to join in on the speculation but the comments have some ideas.
To Zoe and anyone else who may have unfortunately been on the receiving end of this rude individual’s service, we’re sorry you had to put up with that and we assure you it doesn’t represent the majority of Manchester hospitality.
And for those trying to help get to the bottom of who the mystery Manc coffee shop/employee was, we hope it serves as a kick up the backside for whoever it may be and a reminder that it takes virtually nothing to be nice.
All that being said, we can’t think of any better way of helping Zoe and co. shrug it off besides plugging their gig supporting fellow Aussie alt-rockers Vacations at one of our favourite venues on Thursday night.
If you fancy going along you can grab a ticket HERE. Oh, and if you think you know which Manchester café might be, don’t go and be rude to anyone yourself – we’re better than that. We’re sure they’ll come across it themselves soon enough, don’t worry.