Rigatoni’s has announced the shock closure of its pasta restaurant in Ancoats, saying ‘we have failed not just ourselves, but more importantly our customers and our staff’.
The restaurant used to be known as Sugo Pasta Kitchen, later rebranding to Sud and then on to Rigatoni’s.
At the time of its latest rebrand the restaurant group had four locations around Greater Manchester, but closed its sites in Sale and then at Exhibition food hall.
Ancoats had been Sugo’s second restaurant and was a key part of the neighborhood’s regeneration.
In a statement shared online today, they wrote that the last year had been ‘brutal’ and a ‘massive uphill battle’.
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They wrote that Rigatoni’s had been an attempt to ‘create a more affordable, accessible, but still quality product that could be replicated across many sites’ – but added: “I/we now have to accept that we have failed in this mission.”
Rigatoni’s in Ancoats will close its doors for good on Saturday 25 May.
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As for their final restaurant over in Altrincham, it sounds as though the team will be bringing back in a little bit of the Sugo DNA that made them so loved in Manchester – ‘Pugliese crockery / the small, ever changing and considered menu will be scrawled all over our chalkboard / deliveroo will no longer be a part of what we do’, they wrote.
Rigatoni’s statement in full as they close Ancoats restaurant
I know you all must be sick of the sight of yet another announcement from us, and I can definitely understand why.
The last 12 months (and even going back to covid) have been brutal to say the least. We’ve been on a constant mission to try to make our restaurants sustainable – for us, for our customers, and for our staff, in what has felt like a massive uphill battle, in the midst of conditions that obviously have not been unique to us.
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Rigatoni’s Ancoats is closing for good. Credit: The Manc Group
The latest attempt to do this was in the guise of going all out to create a more affordable, accessible, but still quality product that could be replicated across many sites. I/we now have to accept that we have failed in this mission. The hardest part is that we have failed not just ourselves, but more importantly our customers and our staff, and for this we are truly sorry.
What this means is that unfortunately our Ancoats restaurant will be closing this week, with the last day of service being Saturday the 25th May. We’ve an incredible and talented team of people there, who I know will go on from us to do great things – a huge thank you to them for doing there absolute all in trying to make work whatever we have put before them.
After the journey of the last few years, we’ve really spent time recently considering what the most important values were to us that we held closest when we first started out.
Quite honestly it was simply to create unique, high quality southern Italian inspired dishes, with a small, deeply passionate and committed team, that cannot be found elsewhere. And this is what we want to breathe back into our Altrincham restaurant – to give you a product and a service that you and us can be proud of. We’re not going to be trying to compete with anyone else – we will simply endeavour night and day to be the best possible version of ourselves that we can be, offering a unique experience that will only be found in the walls of our small Altrincham restaurant.
To give you a feel for what I’m talking about – we’ll be bringing back our Pugliese crockery / the small, ever changing and considered menu will be scrawled all over our chalkboard / deliveroo will no longer be a part of what we do / we’ll be committed to the principle of offering nothing ‘standard’. Oh, and our Dad is coming up to help us make this happen!
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We won’t be changing our name (we’ve done this way too many times plus we want to focus all our attention on delivering the above), but I’m sure you’ll be glad to hear that the red will be going! This mission begins in Altrincham from 5pm on Wednesday the 5th June. Until then we will run a normal service.
Manchester’s tackiest Christmas bar is returning for the first time in three years
Daisy Jackson
One of the most popular Christmas bars in Manchester is making a grand return after a three-year hiatus – and when we describe it as ‘tacky’, we mean that as the highest compliment.
Miracle on Cross Street is a pop-up festive bar that always used to use wrapping paper as wallpaper and cover every inch of the space in some sort of tinsel, bauble, or novelty celebrity portrait.
It was last seen in the city in 2023, but has announced a grand return for this winter, promising a more ‘refined experience’.
Guests can expect twinkling lights, festive spirit, and plenty of seasons greetings, tucked away beneath Salt Dog Slims on Cross Street.
The space will be packed with festive decor and seasonal drinks, plus plenty of nostalgic Christmas touches.
Tickets will be priced at £20 per person, which will get you a festive drink on arrival and a Christmas goody bag to take home, as well as complimentary mince pies and Quality Street during your visit.
You’ll also be sent on your way with a scratch card, which will reveal surprises and rewards (like free shots and hot dogs, or a chance to win £500) to enjoy upstairs in Salt Dog Slims.
Miracle on Cross Street will also offer a glimpse of what is to come from MDNT, the late-night bar usually found beneath Salt Dog Slims, ahead of its return in the new year.
Miracle on Cross Street, a Christmas bar in Manchester, is returning. Credit: The Manc Group
Michael Wood, Head of Bar Operations for Miracle on Cross Street said: “We’re incredibly excited to bring Miracle on Cross Street back to Manchester.
“It has been three years since we last opened the doors and, while guests can expect the same sense of fun, escapism and Christmas spirit, we’ve refined the experience and added some special new touches for 2026.
“Christmas in Manchester is always brilliant, and we want Miracle on Cross Street to be somewhere people can step away from the busy city, enjoy a festive drink and completely immerse themselves in the magic of the season.
“Whether it’s a Christmas catch-up, date night or festive celebration with friends, we can’t wait to welcome everyone back.”
The Miracle on Cross Street Christmas bar will return to Manchester on Thursday 19 November, and will be open seven days a week until 23 December. Bookings are now live HERE.
Manchester’s beautiful winter Teepee is back, with free pints this weekend and live music every day
Daisy Jackson
Nothing heralds the arrival of the autumn/winter seasons quite like the appearance of The Oast House’s beautiful winter Teepee.
The popular seasonal space is officially reopening its doors this weekend, and inside you’ll find roaring fires, a giant disco ball, live music, and plenty of pints to keep the colder months feeling a little less grim.
After giving its beer garden a major glow-up this spring and hosting a summer packed with live music, The Oast House is bringing back one of Manchester’s favourite winter hangouts – and it’s kicking things off with a proper belter of an opening weekend.
We’re talking twinkling fairy lights, faux fur throws, and a dedicated bar pouring Staropramen fresh from the tank, all inside its massive winter Teepee.
And there’s even better news for the first few through the door.
To celebrate the Teepee’s return, The Oast House team will be cracking open a full tank of fresh Staropramen on Saturday 10 October, with free pints up for grabs for the first 440 guests.
There’ll be live music every night in the winter TeepeeManchester’s cosiest venue is back
The Teepee will be keeping things lively seven nights a week throughout autumn and winter, with The Oast House’s much-loved Open House programme moving indoors for the season.
Expect everything from Bandeoke and Musical Bingo to Retro Sounds and Oast Acoustic sessions, meaning there’ll be something different on the cards every night of the week.
The venue’s free monthly live music festival, Oast House Live, isn’t going anywhere either. It’ll continue inside the Teepee on the last Saturday of every month, bringing even more live music to the heart of Spinningfields.
Of course, it wouldn’t be The Oast House without a menu worth getting stuck into.
The kitchen will be serving up its 12-hour-brined rotisserie chicken, alongside a line-up of tempting sides like Ziggy Fries tossed in chicken salt and chicken butter, cheddar and onion slaw, and charred corn on the cob drenched in house-made Scotch bonnet butter.
Food in The Oast House Winter TeepeeThere’ll be 450 free pints given away on SaturdayRotisserie chicken
And if you’re after something a bit different, the house-special ‘addictive’ Chicken (T)oastie is one you won’t want to miss.
Sundays are all about the roast, too, with the kitchen dishing up its signature rotisserie chicken alongside chicken-butter roasties tossed in chicken salt, all the trimmings and bottomless house chicken gravy.
Basically, if you’re after somewhere to escape the cold without sacrificing a good night out, you know where to head.
The Oast House and its Winter Teepee are open daily from 11am until late throughout the season.
The Oast House Winter Teepee opens Saturday 10 October, with free Staropramen pints for the first 440 guests.
For more information and to book your table, head HERE.
Daisy Jackson -
20th May 2024 
