Food charity Eat Well Manchester, which helps support the region’s most vulnerable all year round, is teaming up with local hospitality venues for a crucial fundraising festival this autumn.
As another season of sun-soaked summer dining nears its end, we’re once again reminded of those less fortunate and the struggles that countless people all over the city and beyond face, especially as the colder months start to creep back in quicker than any of us would like.
That’s where important non-profits like Eat Well MCR come in, helping dish out free, nutritious and varied meals to Greater Manchester’s homeless community and anyone in need with the help of some of your very favourite restaurants.
With that in mind, as autumn fast approaches, the organisation has set up the fittingly named ‘Eat Well, Do Good’ festival, which will help raise vital funds and provide thousands of free meals to those who need them most.
Eat Well MCR works to tackle the growing crisis by delivering roughly 2,500 meals per month to individuals facing economic deprivation. By supporting the charity, venues and patrons can positively impact the community more than they know.
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With just £2, a meal can be provided for someone in need, and the collective efforts during this week-long festival have the potential to raise funds to not only unite local businesses but also show people sidelined by poverty in our community that Manchester cares like we know it does.
Eat Well MCR are also obviously encouraging as many hospitality venues as they can to get involved with this important charity initiative throughout the season; food and drink spots can participate in whichever way they find the most suitable – the most important thing is doing your bit.
This aim is not only to bring the Manc hospitality sector close together and help battle its own struggles, but help deliver meals, source ingredients and raise awareness and funds to support underprivileged communities on our doorstep, all with the help of volunteers and kind-hearted people in the industry.
Great North Pie Co.10 Tib LaneMarayJust a few of the names getting involved with Eat Well, Do Good (Credit: The Manc Group)
Will Taplin, Executive Chef for Ramona, Firehouse and Diecast, said of the event: “We’re really excited to be part of this fundraising campaign. We’ll have extra special slices at Ramona and full pie at Diecast on sale throughout October, with a built-in donation from every pizza sold going to Eat Well MCR.”
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Other hospitality vendors can get involved by offering a special dish or drink where a a portion of the proceeds are donated to Eat Well MCR, hosting their own fundraising activities or ticketed events, or by simply adding a £1 donation to every bill.
For instance, there will also be a party featuring DJs and more held at Ramona on 27 October to conclude the week of fundraising, where all proceeds from the evening will be donated to Eat Well MCR.
With stats like £1,000 worth of frozen food alone being thrown away by Mancs every year and that there are more than 7,000 homeless children across the 10 boroughs, it’s time to stand up and make a difference. Those interested can sign up via the Eat Well, Do Good Week sign-up page HERE.
Inside The Black Friar as Salford pub unveils incredible floral display
Daisy Jackson
Spring has really sprung in Salford – legendary pub The Black Friar has just revealed a sensational makeover, with gigantic flowers sprawled across its frontage and a new seasonal menu to go with it.
The historic pub is celebrating the changing of the seasons with both a striking floral installation and a menu that celebrates spring and Salford in equal measure.
Most Mancs will by now have spotted the 4,000 flower-strong installation that now adorns the front of The Black Friar, with bright pink, yellow and purple flowers spilling from a gigantic pink tap.
And all those florals continue inside, with the pub’s Tavern – previously a cosy winter hideaway – now filled with trailing blooms and woodland installations, just off their award-winning garden.
Cheshire-based artist Kelly Louise Chapman is the woman behind this sensational transformation of the much-loved gastropub.
As for the pub’s kitchen, they’ve crafted a new very seasonal and very British menu, with plenty of nods to Black Friar’s Salford roots.
There are dishes like a Boddingtons braised ox cheek (the pub still proudly displays its Boddingtons sign outside), aged beef tartare, butternut squash and ricotta tortellini, and pan-roasted cod fillet.
Spring small plates at The Black Friar pubDelicious spring drinksInside The Tavern at The Black Friar
A popular item from the Valentine’s Day menu – the Cornish crab vol-au-vent – will be sticking around on the spring menu, along with an enhanced grill section that includes a lamb Barnsley chop cooked over coals.
Then for desserts, you’ll be spoilt with a banoffee knickerbocker glory, and passionfruit panna cotta.
And for drinks (because this is a pub, after all), The Black Friar has put together a range of seasonal drinks like a rose sangria sharer, and non-alcoholic sodas like kaffir lime and coconut.
Ben Chaplin, head chef at The Black Friar, said: “This new menu is all about celebrating the best of spring produce.
“We’ve carefully crafted each dish to highlight fresh, seasonal ingredients and bold flavours, adding new depth to our offerings while still delivering the comfort that will always be associated with The Black Friar.
“My top recommendation and personal favourite dish is the Slow-Cooked Boddingtons Braised Ox Cheek.”
Neil Burke, owner of The Black Friar, commented: “We wanted to bring a taste of spring to The Black Friar, inside and out. This floral installation will transform the space and bring sunshine and smiles, whatever the weather!
“My top recommendation on the new menu is the Cumbrian Spiced Lamb Scotch Egg. It’s EXCEPTIONAL.”
To find out more about The Black Friar and to book a table, visit HERE.
Team behind award-winning Higher Ground to open new Bar Shrimp seafood bar in Manchester
Daisy Jackson
Higher Ground, one of Manchester’s very top restaurants, is to open a brand-new seafood bar later this year.
With Bar Shrimp, they’ll be bringing a brand-new offering to town, with cocktails, beers on tap, British seafood and snacks.
Bar Shrimp will come from Daniel Craig Martin, Joseph Otway and Richard Cossins, who at this point are a well-oiled operational machine.
They’re the team behind proudly British bistro Higher Ground, which grows much of its own produce at its Cinderwood Market Garden and earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand within a year of opening.
The same team are also behind Flawd, the beautiful waterside wine bar at Ancoats Marina.
And they’ve cemented themselves as one of Manchester’s most widely acclaimed hospitality teams – even Rick Stein says Higher Ground is one of the best places to eat in the entire country, which is high praise indeed.
Bar Shrimp, set to open in Manchester this winter, aims to be a ‘relaxed and focused bar with delicious food’.
They say: “Whether it’s a beer after work, some food with friends or after dinner drinks late into the night, Bar Shrimp will be a dynamic space where the music and energy evolves throughout the evening where everyone and anyone can come together for a memorable experience.”
They announced the news this morning on Cerys Matthews’ BBC 6Music Show.
British seafood with a side of cocktails? Sounds alright to us.
A location, opening date and more info on Bar Shrimp will follow – stay up to date with their latest HERE.
Danny Jones -
16th August 2024 
