One of Manchester’s best-known breweries has announced its shock closure.
Alphabet Brewing Co. broke the news on social media on Friday after almost a decade of trade in the city.
The independent brewery was first founded in 2014, and was famed for its craft beers (and their pun-loaded names) like Juice Springsteen, A to the K, and Charlie Don’t Surf.
It also had one of the city’s best taprooms, ABC Taproom, on North Western Street, part of a stretch affectionately known as the Piccadilly Beer Mile.
Back in the days where street food was still a relatively alien concept, Alphabet and Grub teamed up to create one of Manchester’s most exciting operations.
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But they’ve now devastated long-time fans and customers with the news that the brewery and taproom are to be no more.
Alphabet posted: “Today we have to announce the end of Alphabet Brewing Co.
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“We’d like to thank everyone who drank a Juice Springsteen, popped down to the Taproom and supported us over the years. It’s been a wild ride.
“We love you all for making our dreams of having a lovely, independent brewery in Manchester come true. Cheers, Team ABC.”
It’s the latest in a string of devastating closures across Greater Manchester’s hospitality industry, which has included several other local breweries.
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Beatnikz Republic announced its closure last year (its Northern Quarter beer bar has since been taken over by Squawk), as did Beer Nouveau.
The latter has even kept a tally of all the breweries closing, totting up 28 this year so far alone.
Hundreds have sent messages of support and sadness to Alphabet since they broke the news, sharing fond memories of how they paved the way for the city’s craft Brewers.
Grub commented: “We have been so sorry to hear this today. Thank you for the memories.”
One person wrote: “Ah FFS this one hits hard. One of the best craft breweries in Manchester, I really loved them. Flat White still undefeated in stout game and thier the taproom was great too. Gutted.”
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Another said: “Terrible news. A big loss to not only Manchester, but the whole UK beer scene. Fingers crossed that the beers live on in some capacity, and the brewing team continue brewing too.”
Someone else tweeted: “A sickener seeing this place go to the wall. I’ve cried in here, got pissed up, listened to an excellent music playlist in here and drank some excellent beer. Sad times.”
Featured image: Alphabet Brewing Co
Eats
Lively Irish pub Nancy Spains set to open in Manchester for the first time
Daisy Jackson
An Irish bar famed for its live music is heading up to Manchester for the first time, and is promising £2.50 pints to lure us in.
Nancy Spains will be venturing out of London for the first time promising to bring the ‘ultimate traditional Irish pub experience’ to the Northern Quarter.
If you were to ask what the hottest trend in hospitality is right now the answer would, apparently, be Guinness. We’re drowning in the stuff.
This latest opening is more about Murphy’s, another Irish stout, than Guinness (they actually won’t serve Guinness at all) but the craic will be much the same.
Nancy Spains is actually set to open almost directly opposite the aforementioned Salmon of Knowledge, taking over the former Corner Boy unit on Stevenson Square in the heart of Manchester.
To celebrate its opening, the pub will be serving its first 5000 pints of Murphy’s for just £2.50, so that it can show off the atmosphere that’s established it as ‘one of London’s favourite pubs’.
They’re promising an array of Irish whiskeys behind the bar, live music performances, and a lively late-night setting.
Nancy Spains was set up by three brothers who travelled all over their home county of rural Kerry researching Irish pubs, before launching two venues down in London.
They want it to balance a traditional pub with the vibrancy of the city.
Peter O’Halloran, co-founder of Nancy Spains commented, “We’re so excited to be launching in Manchester, bringing Nancy Spains to the heart of the Northern Quarter.
“After the success of our two venues in London, it was only right to bring Nancy Spains’ infectious spirit and Irish pride to Manchester. Slainte!”
Nancy Spains will open its first Manchester pub on Saturday 15 March at 21 Hilton Street.
Lucky Mama’s – The Italian restaurant serving pasta in a dough bowl and ‘pregnant’ pizzas
Daisy Jackson
Lucky Mama’s is a local sensation, thanks to its slightly whacky but delicious Italian creations like pasta served in a bowl made of pizza dough and its latest offering, a ‘pregnant’ pizza.
What on Earth is a pregnant pizza, you ask? Firstly we should stress this is a nickname we’ve bestowed upon the dish, rather than Lucky Mama’s chosen branding.
But essentially it’s a helping of fresh pasta that’s folded into the bubble crust of the pizza, like a half-calzone.
Lucky Mama’s started life when founders Mamadou Dhiam and Gaby Santos set up a trailer in their backyard in Eccles in the depths of lockdown.
But thanks to a formidably loyal following that’s spread the word of Lucky Mama’s far and wide, it now has two pretty pink restaurants in Greater Manchester.
Back in 2022, they threw open the doors to their Chorlton restaurant, before returning back to home turf for spot number two in Monton in 2024.
The recipes are fresh and pretty authentically Italian up until the last step, when they throw a curveball by loading their pasta into unconventional vessels.
‘Pregnant’ pizzas at Lucky Mama’sTraditional Roman pizzasLucky Mama’s pink restaurant in Chorlton
Their pasta pizza bowls are what they’re best known for and they fly out of the kitchen – this is where pizza dough is placed around a metal bowl before being baked in an oven.
Then it’s piled high with freshly made pasta, with popular flavours like cacio e pepe, mushroom alfredo, and rasta pasta.
Pasta is available in a regular ceramic bowl too.
You’ll find Lucky Mama’s at 565 Barlow Moor Road in Chorlton; and 217 Monton Road in Eccles.
Daisy Jackson -
17th April 2023 
