The Real Greek is opening its first northern restaurant in Manchester
Popular for its souvlaki wraps, halloumi fries and massive mezze selection, The Real Greek will take over the former Wahaca unit in Manchester's Corn Exchange
Popular greek restaurant The Real Greek is opening a new restaurant in Manchester, it has been revealed.
Part of the same restaurant chain as Franco Manca, it will take over the former Wahaca unit inside The Corn Exchange after choosing Manchester as its location for the group’s first restaurant in the north.
Incredibly popular down south, the restaurant is known for its amazing souvlaki wraps which come stuffed with a choice of Loukaniko sausage pork belly, pork skewer, halloumi, chicken, lamb meatballs, falafel with tahini or jackfruit, alongside chips, homemade tzatziki, and salad.
It also offers a huge selection of hot and cold mezze, including a grill section featuring the likes of grilled octopus with fava beans, chicken Monastiraki, beef and pork sausage skewers, aubergine, and vegan meatballs served in a tomato and cumin Soutzoukakia sauce.
Elsewhere, you’ll find crowd-pleasing favourites like halloumi fries, stuffed vine leaves, battered salt cod and Greek moussaka, plus spinach tiropitakia – handmade filo parcels stuffed with creamy leek, spinach and feta – and jackfruit stifado.
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The Real Greek Manchester will also offer a set dinner menu, Filoxenia, priced at £13.95 for a selection of four dishes. This will give you a choice of flatbread or crudites, a hot mezze, a cold mezze, three sides or salads – all for less than £15.
Further set menus listed include Tonia’s Selection, priced at £36 for two to share, and the slightly more expensive Santorini (£40), also designed for two to share.
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Image: The Real GreekImage: The Real Greek
As for desserts, think homemade baklava (crisp filo pastry drenched in honey and walnuts), Greek filo custard pie (a traditional dessert from Sérres, North Greece, known as Bougatsa), and a Grecian caramel, pecan and vanilla cheesecake.
On the wine list, you’ll find a good selection of Greek wines including a selection of delicious full-bodied reds produced on the slopes of Mount Vermion – one of the first AOC regions to be registered in Greece.
You’ll also find Ouzo on the list here – the popular dry anise-flavoured aperitif for which Greece is well known amongst holidaymakers.
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Image: The Real Greek
The new opening is part of a planned group expansion across the UK, which will also see The Real Greek open a second new site down in Kent.
Speaking on the new opening David Page, chairman of Fulham Shore, said: “Fulham Shore continues to experience growing sales across both our businesses. Many of our restaurants throughout the UK continue to break trading records on a regular basis.
“We are accelerating our growth in the UK and abroad. We continue to trade ahead of our own expectations and have a strong pipeline of exciting new locations.”
The opening date for the new site is still under wraps for now but make sure to follow them on Instagram for further updates.
Medlock Canteen confirms gutting closure after just 18 months
Danny Jones
Relative Manchester newcomer and city centre gem, Medlock Canteen, has announced that the business has now closed, sharing a lengthy statement on their social media.
The Deansgate Square favourite, which looked tipped to be one of the founding members of the emerging New Jackson foodie district, has sadly confirmed its immediate closure, with all existing bookings being unfortunately cancelled.
Medlock only opened back in March of 2024 and left a big impression on its many diners during that time, but sadly, the ever-present pressures of the hospitality industry don’t discriminate.
Writing on Instagram, the restaurant said: “With heavy hearts, we’re announcing the closure of Medlock Canteen. When we opened our doors 18 months ago, our dream was simple: to build a neighbourhood spot where everyone felt welcome, serving proper good food you know, love and can’t wait to eat.
“But the current climate has made that dream a tough one to sustain. Rising costs, increased taxes, and tighter spending have created challenges we’ve fought hard to overcome but, sadly, they’re ones we just can’t compete with.
“We’re proud to say our amazing team has been looked after, with payroll up to date and everyone offered roles elsewhere in our family of venues. If you’ve got opportunities going, drop us a message – we’d love to pass them on to anyone ready for their next chapter.”
Owned by the same group behind Belzan in Liverpool and Manchester’s Madre over in Kampus, the team led by co-owner Owain Williams has offered replacement reservations at their other venues by way of an apology to their loyal customers.
It was only back in April last year that renowned food writer Jay Rayner described it as “special” and dubbed the admittedly swankly skyscraper location a “welcome haven for all.”
Couldn’t agree more. Few could’ve seen Medlock Canteen closing barely a year on from such a glowing write-up.
They signed off by adding: “To everyone who dined, left us a rave review, shared a laugh, or came back for seconds: thank you.
“You made this little place feel truly special. And yes, we promise, one day, somehow, we’ll get that rhubarb pie back to you!”
We’ve lost another impressive little spot far too soon, but we’ll always have the unbelievable scran, and it goes without saying that while Medlock Canteen may have closed, there’ll still be plenty of continued support for the likes of Madre and its sibling down the Mersey.
Fingers crossed we get a comeback one day, but until then, let’s just stop and appreciate how stunning their food truly was.
Pulp at Co-op Live, Manchester – tickets, times, setlist and more for UK tour
Thomas Melia
Britpop band Pulp is heading over to Manchester for a night of singing along right through to ‘Sunrise’ or until Co-op Live’s curfew.
Jarvis Cocker and co., known more famously as UK cult classic band Pulp, are heading on the road, stopping off at various arenas up and down the country.
Their latest discography addition, their comeback LP, More, just debuted on the UK’s Official Album Charts and in pole position, no less: a very impressive feat that makes that a total of three number ones in their career.
Their eighth album is remarkable in more ways than one, as not only has it become a talking point in the music world, it’s also the band’s first new release in 24 years – an absolute banger as well, by the way.
Cocker and his bandmates are no strangers to the North either, much like our friends over at The Sheff, the Pulp frontman and several members of the lineup, both past and present, are Steel City natives.
As Britpop lovers and fans of the band ourselves, we’re buzzing about their chart-topping return, but no way as proud as their home city.
Pulp gig guide – all the key info you need to know
Pulp’s last visit to Manchester took place at Castlefield Bowl when they played a show as part of the impressive summer music series, Sounds of the City. Fast forward to 2025, and now they’re taking on the region’s biggest indoor entertainment and live music arena.
Let’s all imagine this picture of Jarvis is him checking the road signs on his way to Manchester
Are there tickets left for Pulp at Co-op Live?
If you’re suffering from ‘The Fear’ of not getting your seat ahead of Pulp’s ‘You Deserve More’ tour, there are limited seats for the Co-op Live show in Manchester HERE.
Don’t wait around, though; these won’t be around for long.
And if you fancy feeling all special and setting yourself apart from the rest of the ‘Common People’ for once (not that the mixer isn’t still the best place to be), why not treat yourself to a luxury concert experience thanks to SeatUnique, where you have access to your own private lounge?
Pulp 2025 ‘You Deserve More’ tour setlist
Spike Island
Grown Ups
Slow Jam
Sorted for E’s & Wizz
Disco 2000
F.E.E.L.I.N.G.C.A.L.L.E.D.L.O.V.E
Tina
Farmers Market
This Is Hardcore
Sunrise
Something Changed
The Fear
O.U (Gone, Gone)
59 Lyndhurst Grove
Acrylic Afternoons
Do You Remember the First Time?
Mis-Shapes
Got to Have Love
Babies
Common People
A Sunset
What are the stage times for Pulp in Manchester?
Pulp are set to perform at Co-op Live, Manchester on 21 June.
Co-op Live has a strict curfew of 11pm, meaning everyone can stay for the final ‘Slow Jam’ or two without worrying about getting home too late.
Anyone attending can expect the doors to open at 6:30pm with a kick-off time of 7:30pm, which gives you an hour to turn to your friend and ask, “‘Do You Remember the First Time’…we watched Pulp?”
Pulp x Co-op Live afterparty
If you’re not ready go home after the encore and you really do think ‘You Deserve More’, you can always cop yourself a ticket to the afterparty inside Co-op Live’s Backstage Club’ too.
With a DJ set to play indie favourites straight after the show and until late, the party doesn’t stop until you say it does. Tickets are available now.
We recently got to experience it ourselves on our last visit to the arena to watch the one and only Lionel Richie, and it certainly left an impression on us.
We didn’t meet him backstage, but he did call us his ‘cousins’…
How to get to the venue
Tram
For those of you heading to Co-op Live, you’ll be glad to know it’s right next door to a rather famous big blue stadium and its integrated Metrolink stop.
Head along the light blue or orange lines directly to the Etihad Campus or Ashton-under-Lyne, and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.
Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre, and until 1:00am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Bus
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You can find the full list of bus routes HERE, with the one in closest proximity to the venue being the 53 bus, which runs from Cheetham Hill through to Higher Crumpsall, Old Trafford and Pendleton, leaving just a two-minute walk to Co-op Live. You also get free Bee Network travel with any valid event ticket.
Getting there by car and parking
If you’re driving, there is limited parking available at the venue, but this must be pre-booked ahead of time, and there are designated drop-off areas.
The postcode is M11 3DU and you can follow the signs towards the wider Etihad Campus as you get closer; directions to the adjacent drop-off points will also be signposted.
Keep in mind that congestion on the roads close to the stadium is expected to gather around two hours prior to any event, so if you are travelling on the road, these are the suggested times they provide come event day, though estimates will obviously vary:
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Alan Turing Way (both directions): plan an additional 20 minutes into any journey by road.
Hyde Road (eastbound): expect an additional 15 minutes to be added to your journey.
Mancunian Way (westbound): plan for an extra 10 minutes of travel time.
There are also three park-and-ride facilities near Co-op Live, but be advised that the Velopark and Holt Town stops will be closed post-event to help safely manage crowds:
Ashton West (Ashton line) – 184 spaces and 11 disabled spaces
Ladywell (Ashton-Eccles line) – 332 spaces and 22 disabled spaces
Walk/cycle
Lastly, Co-op Live is only a half-hour stroll from Manchester Piccadilly, and you could even walk along the canal all the way to the front door if you fancy taking the scenic route.
Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes via the Beryl app, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the bike all through an easy-to-use app. There are hire points just near the south-west corner of the Etihad Stadium on Ashton New Road.
For more information on all travel options, you can check out the enhanced journey planner.
Georgina Pellant -
10th November 2021 
