Eats

A huge Italian food festival and outdoor cinema is coming to Manchester

First launched in 2017, the festival is promising some exciting new additions for its fourth edition - including a massive outdoor cinema.

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 25th May 2021

The UK’s biggest Italian food festival Festa Italiana is returning to Manchester in 2021 – with Cathedral Gardens turning green, white and red over August bank holiday.

Featuring delicious pizzas, fresh pasta, sweet crepes and deli meats as far as the eye can see, Festa Italiana is known for bringing amazing street food into Manchester city centre and showcasing top Italian chefs from across the region.

First launched in 2017, the festival is promising some exciting new additions for its fourth edition – including a massive outdoor cinema.

Sponsors Peroni will be bringing a big screen down for the weekend, hosting themed screenings of classics like La Dolce Vita, Romeo and Juliet and Cinema Paradiso – so get ready to sink into bean bags and deck chairs, tuck into popcorn and sip on aperitivo cocktails or bottles of Italian lager.

The UK’s biggest Italian food festival is coming to Manchester / Image: Festa Italiana

A ‘photography exhibit surprise’ is also on the cards for Festa Italiana 2021 (more on this in due course), as well as a wide range of workshops, demonstrations, book signings and banquets.

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Top-class chefs like Aldo Zilli, Giancarlo Caldesi, Gennaro Cantaldo, specialist pasta maker and author Carmela Sereno Hayes, and Festa founder Maurizio Cecco are all confirmed to attend.

Maurizio’s 12-year-old daughter, Sienna Cecco, will also be making an appearance: leading some free cooking classes over the weekend for children.

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A talented little chef in her own right, Sienna has her own YouTube channel and developed quite a following after live-streaming family cooking lessons during the lockdown.

Salvi’s owner Maurizio Cecco founded the Italian food festival / Image: Festa Italiana

Elsewhere, Salvi’s has confirmed it will be bringing back its popular deli stand – so whether you’re after top-quality cured meats, cheeses, olive oil or cake you know where to go for the finest Italian produce.

The street food lineup for this year is still being kept under wraps for now, but with the emergence of some new Italian-inspired eateries during the lockdown, we are crossing our fingers for some fat slabs of lasagne and Italian-American deli sandwiches.

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Always a big part of the festival, previous years have seen festival founders Salvi’s churn out popular fried pizzas and fresh pasta alongside Shudehill’s Pasta Factory, Rio Ferdinand’s glitzy Italian Rosso, and sourdough West Didsbury pizzaiolos Proove.

Festa Italiana will take place at Cathedral Gardens in August / Image: Festa Italiana

Born out of Manchester’s rich Italian heritage and community, Festa Italiana will return to its home at Festival Piazza, Cathedral Gardens from August 27 – 29.

To find out more information and keep up to date on new announcements, head over to the Festa Italiana Facebook page.

Eats

Hot Blobs – Retro drink makes return to Manchester Christmas Markets, but what is it?

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Hot Blobs - Retro drink makes return to Manchester Christmas Markets, but what is it?Hot Blobs - Retro drink makes return to Manchester Christmas Markets, but what is it?

It’s funny how we all turn a blind eye to the temperature outside when it comes to the Christmas Markets.

At a time of year where should probably all be hibernating inside, droves of us instead head out to brave the elements all in the name of the festivities.

Of course, the Manchester Christmas Markets sell all sorts of wares to take the edge off, and we’re not just talking about the stalls selling woollen mittens everywhere.

Our favourite winter warmers tend to take the form of a tray of piping hot garlic potatoes, or a mug of hot chocolate, or another boozy beverage that’s massively underrated.

The drink in question is a Hot Blob, which is listed on the menu at the Piccadilly Gardens markets as ‘legendary’.

A bold claim, but a lot of long-time Manc residents will understand why.

The Hot Blob is a jaw-clenchingly sweet concoction served piping hot at the Manchester Christmas Market, similar to a hot toddy.

It’s made with Australian fortified white wine, lemon, sugar, and boiling water.

Hot Blobs - Retro drink makes return to Manchester Christmas Markets, but what is it?
Hot Blobs - Retro drink makes return to Manchester Christmas Markets, but what is it?
Hot Blobs – Retro drink makes return to Manchester Christmas Markets, but what is it? Credit: The Manc Group

The drink was first invented by Yates, that well-known pub chain, which started life as Yates’s Wine Lodge up the road in Oldham.

According to Pubs of Manchester, the Hot Blob has a tendency to ‘speed up drunkenness to a young drinker’.

These days, it’s pretty rare to come across one on a menu, but back in 1990s it was a staple in a few pubs around town.

There even used to be a ‘Blob Shop’ on High Street, run by local legend Ged Ford (now in charge of the equally legendary Millstone pub), which found itself in a state of utter carnage when the IRA bomb went off.

The long-lost institution specialised in ‘cheap wine, cheap beer, and plenty of blobs’.

The old Yates Blob Shop on High Street, Manchester. Credit: deltrems@flickr

Ged sold 6,000 a week.

And while the drink may have fallen out of favour since then, there are still healthy numbers being sold at this time of year, even if they are a damn sight more expensive than they were in the 1990s (£6 a pop, plus a glass deposit).

Anyway. If you’re sick to the back teeth of the endless gluhwein being peddled across the markets, make a beeline for Manchester Winter Ale House at Piccadilly Gardens, where you can find Hot Blobs as well as boozy Vimto and cask ales.

The Manchester Christmas Markets officially end on 22 December.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

Eats

Where to find the cheapest drinks at the Manchester Christmas Markets, from beer to mulled wine

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Where to find the cheapest drinks at the Manchester Christmas Markets, from beer to mulled wine

The main gripe people seem to have with the Manchester Christmas Markets is the prices of food and drinks, blasting them every year like a broken record as being ‘overpriced’.

So we’ve done the hard slog for you, running all around the city centre to suss out exactly how much everything is costing in 2024.

From Piccadilly Gardens (rebranded as The Winter Gardens for the season) to King Street, there are wooden sheds and festive cheer absolutely everywhere.

There’s some brilliant food and drink to discover – you can see our top picks HERE – but as this is a huge visitor attraction, that can come at a price.

Once you factor in the deposit for a Manchester Christmas Markets mug, you can easily spend £12 just to get a mulled wine (though you will get £3.50 of that back when you return your mug).

There are also deposit charges on glassware – £2 for a pint glass, £3.50 for cocktail glasses and £7 for a stein.

You can see the full list of prices for food and drinks right across the Manchester Christmas Markets HERE, but below are where you can find the cheapest spots at the festive event.

Mulled wine

Mulled wines are priced at £5.50 almost everywhere across the Manchester Christmas Markets, though some stalls are offering bigger serves of this popular festive drink for a small price hike.

Then people are charging another £3 to add a shot of brandy, rum or amaretto, making an £8.50 total.

But the cheapest we’ve found is just £7 for mulled wine with a shot of booze, and that’s at Mamma Mia, an Italian stall on New Cathedral Street, right near St Ann’s Square.

Where to find the cheapest drinks at the Manchester Christmas Markets, from beer to mulled wine
Where to find the cheapest drinks at the Manchester Christmas Markets, from beer to mulled wine
Where to find the cheapest drinks at the Manchester Christmas Markets, from beer to mulled wine. Credit: The Manc Group

Beer

Again, prices for beers at the Manchester Christmas Markets are pretty consistent and average £6 a pint.

But you can get cheaper – at The Last Outpost, a Western-themed bar at Exchange Square, beers start from £5.50.

And at The Hip Hop Chip Shop at Piccadilly Gardens, they’re selling local craft beers, like Shindigger, Pomona Island, Manchester Union) for just £5.50. And you get bonus good vibes for supporting local breweries.

Wine

We’ve found a couple of glasses of wine for just £5 around the Markets this year, which is cheaper than most bars in town really.

The King Street Craft Bar, which has the bonus of having seating, has house wines from a fiver.

Christmas Alley at Piccadilly Gardens will also give you a wine for £5.

Prosecco

Prosecco works in every season and if this is your go-to of all the drinks at the Manchester Christmas Markets, we’ve found where you can save a few pennies.

Most places are charging between £6.50 and £7 per glass, but at El Gato Negro on King Street (yep, the same stall operated by the Michelin-recommended restaurant) are charging just £5 – that’s a whole £1.50 cheaper than most other stalls.

Hot chocolate

Basic hot chocolates are generally £3.50 everywhere, with a few very luxury upgrades (like a £7.90 creation from The Flat Baker that’s served in an edible cookie cup).

Once you add in a shot of alcohol, the cheapest as at the Apres Ski Bar at Piccadilly Gardens, which charges £2.50 for a spirit.

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That makes £6 for a boozy hot chocolate.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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