A new independent ice cream brand is bringing its beloved boozy ice cream on tour across Manchester and beyond this summer.
A Few Scoops – which specialises in alcohol infused ice-cream, sorbets and ice-pops – is bringing its showstopping pink tuk tuk, affectionately known as Jolene, and the shiny new ice cream bike, named after the icon herself, Dolly, to a handful of locations right across the region over the coming weeks.
A born and bred Manchester business launched in June 2019, A Few Scoops is the brainchild of Alanna Atkinson who wanted to create a way to blend her love of ice cream with her favourite tipples.
Both Jolene and Dolly will be serving a variety of alcohol infused ice cream flavours when they go on tour.
Flavours set to be scooped up by ice cream lovers include Espresso Martini, Old Fashioned and Pina Colada (vegan), Peach Bellini and Mojito sorbets, (both vegan) and non-alcoholic options including coke float ice cream and cherryade sorbet.
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Credit: A Few Scoops
That’s not all either as A Few Scoops will also take up permanent residence every Friday and Saturday from the 4th June at Stamford Square in Altrincham.
Stamford Square will include a Not So Secret Garden – a new community hub popping up in the heart of Altrincham.
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The new suburban oasis will have plenty of al fresco seating, a solar powered green pergola, deckchairs and a lush flower wall. Plus, there will be a programme of activities and workshops around values of sustainability, wellbeing and community – but more importantly, homemade ice cream provided by A Few Scoops.
Jolene and Dolly can be found at the following locations on the following dates:
Stamford Quarter
Altrincham
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Jolene (Friday 4th June, and then every Friday and Saturday onwards)
Stretford Foodhall
Stretford
Dolly (Friday 4th, Saturday 5th, and Sunday 6th June)
The shiny new ice cream bike, named after the icon herself – Dolly / Credig: A Few Scoops
Wilmslow Rugby Club
Wilmslow
Jolene (Saturday 3rd July)
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Foodies Festival at Tatton Park
Knutsford
Jolene (9th – 11th July)
Featured Image – A Few Scoops
Eats
Inside Plere, Chorlton’s sunniest new bar with great wines and tinned fish
Daisy Jackson
Chorlton’s sunniest street has a new addition, with the arrival of wine bar and small plates restaurant Plere.
The new opening comes from couple Lee and Fiona, who’ve taken up a unit on Beech Road that’s been vacant for a few years and turned into a beautiful, light-flooded neighbourhood venue.
Plere takes its name from the Latin term ‘to fulfill’, and that’s exactly what this new spot has been doing ever since its arrival last month.
Plere’s menu is made up of easy small plates, including charcuterie and cheese plates, Portuguese tinned fish, and hummus, all served with quality bread from Holy Grain.
There’s a decent selection of craft beer too, including their own lager on draught in collaboration with Cloudwater, and tonnes of different wines available by the glass.
Inside Plere in ChorltonThe sunny terrace at Plere
There pavement terrace is a proper little sun-trap too, so it’s perfect for enjoying a pint or two in the Manchester sun.
With DJs spinning vinyls until late across the weekend and a solid team on the bar, this is a new opening you should get behind.
On launch weekend, Lee and Fiona wrote: “We are completely overwhelmed by all the lovely comments and amazing responses from you all on our opening weekend.
“Thank you so much for making us feel so welcome, we look forward to seeing you soon.”
The cosy Peak District pub serving a pick’n’mix sausage and mash menu
Daisy Jackson
There’s a Peak District pub that’s turned one of Britain’s most beloved comfort foods into a full-on pick’n’mix.
Tucked away in the postcard-perfect village of Castleton, Ye Olde Nags Head is serving up a fully customisable menu of sausage and mash dishes.
We’re talking near-endless combinations of proper pub grub.
You start by choosing your sausages from a daily rotating selection (not a sentence you hear every day, but we’re into it).
Expect classics like Cumberland alongside more adventurous options like venison and mustard, or even wild boar and orange, plus a veggie sausage daily.
Then it’s onto the mash – you can go for flavours like cheese and onion, wholegrain mustard, or even black pudding mash.
Classic cumberland, mustard mash, and mushroom sauceVeggie sausage with cheese and onion mash and classic gravyTucking in
To finish? A choice of rich, hearty gravies and sauces to bring it all together, whether that’s a classic onion gravy, a peppercorn sauce, or a creamy wild mushroom sauce.
And if that wasn’t enough, you can even upgrade your bangers and mash pick’n’mix by having it all served inside a giant Yorkshire pudding.
Ye Olde Nags Head is a historic 17th-century pub, with a roaring fire in every room and cosy bedrooms upstairs.
Inside Ye Olde Nags Head pub in the Peak DistrictYe Olde Nags Head pub is near Mam Tor
It’s one of those flagstone-floored, beamed-ceilinged, mismatched-furniture type pubs that welcomes everyone in every state, whether you’re caked in mud from a hike or popping in on a coach tour.
Another of the pub’s specialties is the Derbyshire Breakfast, a hearty plate of sausage, smoked bacon, black pudding, free range egg, grilled tomatoes, field mushrooms, baked beans and fried bread.
The pub also offers takeaway breakfast butties, so you can use it for both a pre-hike stop and a post-hike pint.
Given it’s just minutes from the ever-popular Mam Tor hike, this is one pub you’ll definitely want to add to your next Peak District day out itinerary.
Emily Sergeant -
1st June 2021 
