Eats

Blinker – The award-winning cocktail bar in Manchester serving retro Breville toasties

Just when you thought it couldn't get better...

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 14th June 2024

When the top cocktail bars in the UK were named earlier this year, Manchester absolutely shone.

Not only did our city scoop up the very top spot thanks to Schofield’s, but we also had another top 10 entry with the brilliant Blinker.

Blinker is a very proper cocktail bar, with table service, branded paper placemats, and some of the most skilfully-made drinks in the entire country.

It features an entire menu of martinis, plus another of old fashioneds, while the rest of the cocktail offering changes seasonally to champion local ingredients.

But alongside all those excellent drinks you’ll find a genius, very retro snack – a menu of Breville toasties.

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Because what could possibly pair better with a martini than a gooey cheese toastie?

This is not one of those trendy grilled cheeses you find on street markets everywhere, and there’s not a scrap of sourdough to be found – it’s a proper nostalgic sarnie flattened in a Breville toastie maker so that your snack comes out all scored and lined with grill marks.

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Having said that, they are a little more elevated than the toasties you were whipping up in your student halls.

Blinker cacio e pepe toastie
Blinker cacio e pepe toastie
A braised beef and red onion toastie at Blinker in Manchester
A braised beef and red onion toastie at Blinker in Manchester

Tucked away in the very back of the menu you’ll find Blinker’s list of (very affordable) toasted sandwiches.

One such toastie on the menu at Blinker is inspired by Italian pasta classic cacio e pepe.

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This posh sandwich features a three-cheese blend and masses of black pepper, then is served piping hot with a shower of Cora Linn cheese on top.

There’s also a braised beef toastie with caramelised red onion, and another with goats cheese, apricot jam and dried rosemary.

Inside Blinker Manchester
Inside Blinker Manchester
Inside Blinker bar
Inside Blinker Manchester

The most impressive thing is that its menu is priced in line with that at Frankie’s Toasties, a notoriously cheap novelty spot on Portland Street that makes toasties with your more nostalgic (read: cheap and cheerful) fillings.

With this snack menu, Blinker has tapped in to what the people really want after a couple of drinks – loads of cheese slapped between white bread.

And when it comes to sandwiches, sometimes the old-school ones are the best.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

Eats

Northern Quarter’s first alcohol-free bar opened up in a unique and unlikely location

Danny Jones Danny Jones Alcohol-free bar Hinterland opens in Northern Quarter

A brand new alcohol-free bar, just the second anywhere in central Manchester, has opened up in an unlikely spot over in the Northern Quarter.

Rather fittingly named Hinterland, NQ’s new zero-alcohol bar – the first of its kind to open in the bustling food and drink district – has found its home in the back or rather the basement of the Manchester Buddhist Centre on Turner Street.

Delivering an innovative space that provides a sophisticated and serene environment where the focus shifts from alcohol to authentic, meaningful social interactions, they’re stripping back the pretence of drinking to remind people that you don’t need a pint to feel comfortable engaging with one another.

Created by Stephen Jeffreys, who struggled with alcohol addiction for some time, he says that “Hinterland is about creating a space where people can develop meaningful friendships and have deep conversations without the need for booze”.

Taking cues from his own relationship with getting sober, the aim is to create a welcoming, inclusive environment that supports not only those in recovery but also anyone who just fancies a good time without getting intoxicated.

Reflecting on his personal journey to recovery, he was quick to note the scarcity of social options for those seeking to socialise without being surrounded by alcohol in the modern world.

“When I later on started struggling with depression and anxiety, I would resort to alcohol as an escape from these difficult emotions”, says Jeffreys. “Because alcohol was so socially accepted and ubiquitous, I didn’t realise how problematic my behaviour would end up being.”

“We’ve noticed that it’s not just people with a problematic relationship with alcohol who want to skip the booze. There are lots of people who wish they could have a space to hang out with friends on a Friday night without having to get wasted. Hinterland is there for all of those people.”

hinterland alcohol-free bar NQ
zero alcohol bars in manchester
Tucked away in a NQ back-alley, you’ll find a whole new approach to the bar experience. (Credit: Tom van Berkel)

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Although you can still enjoy wines, beers and cocktails only in an alcohol-free form, the new Northern Quarter bar is also serving up teas, coffees, cakes and various social events to come in the near future.

Hinterland is also a community interest company (CIC), meaning all of their profits are donated directly to charities and causes they care about, meaning that are not only offering an outlet to those looking for something beyond drink but are helping support the sober movement and local community even further.

They’re even hosting a launch party this Saturday (22 June) with “a night of conversation, drinks, and good vibes” to welcome in the new crowd, along with anyone hoping to cut out alcohol or that might be at the very least ‘sober-concious’. You can grab your tickets HERE.

Hinterland, Manchester’s newest alcohol-free bar, is open from 11am-11pm, Tuesday-Saturday and 11-5pm on Sundays – give a try.

alcohol-free bars in manchester
alcohol-free wine manchester
Other alcohol-free bars like Kampus’ LoveFrom are pioneering the sober drinking scene in Manchester.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Hinterland/Tom van Berkel (supplied)

Eats

The White Lion, Stockport’s oldest pub, reopens after 15 years

Danny Jones Danny Jones The White Lions, Stockport's oldest pub, reopens after 15 years

The White Lion, Stockport’s oldest and one of its most historic pubs has been reborn and is now officially open to the public for the first time in 15 years.

Brought back to life by the team behind Alfredo’s Pizza Social, which opened up just a stone’s throw away on Great Underbank last year, the newly reopened White Lion Coaching House is up there with the borough’s most storied and decadent buildings.

With a fascinating history which harks all the way back as far as the 15th century (when the location was said to have first been given its hostelry license to serve as a pub/inn), the building only became the impressive Edwardian structure we see today back in 1904, but it’s long been sat unutilised.

Now, though, The White Lion has been given a whole new lease of life and is set to serve not only as a bustling town centre boozer but also as a place to grab classic pub grub, book private functions and live sport. Perfect timing for the Euro 2024.

old pictures of underbank stockport
Back in the day (pre-1904).
white lion stockport reopening
Stockport’s The White Lion finally reopens on Underbank after 15-year absence.
Credit: Stockport Library/The White Lion Coaching House)

Having operated as a pub and coaching house throughout the Victorian era, The White Lion has served as everything from a post house for horseriders, a labour exchange, an auction house and even a coroner’s court at one point. It was given its distinct mock Tudor facade back in 1823.

The upper floors of the Grade-II listed building were turned into 11 luxury apartments back in 2020 after being acquired by Stockport Council in partnership with the Trafford Housing Trust (now London & Quadrant) as part of £7m local investment, but now the pub itself has been brought back to life.

In the heart of SK’s historic Underbank district and adjacent to the busy Merseyway Shopping Centre, which is also steadily being redeveloped, the latest iteration of the White Lion has all the character of its rich heritage but with all new fittings and fixtures like plush booth-seating, multiple bars, TVs and more.

The White Lion is also relaunching with a tried and tasted food menu of British pub classics like fish and chips, burgers; a proper Sunday roast and their soon-to-be signature ‘Lion Wraps’, which elevate the now-beloved Yorkshire puddings street food with pot of gravy for dipping to boot.

The interior has been lovingly refurbished.
Tiles and all.

Although the structure itself is made up of four storeys total, the newly opened pub spans across the entire ground floor and the fully converted cellar area, which promises to be perfect for live music, parties, meetings and popular live sporting events.

Being resurrected by industry veterans, Paul Astill and Jon Dootson – who between them have owned and run many Manc institutions including Cord, Centro, Thomas, the old Rampant Lion near Victoria Park and Tib Street Tavern over in the Northern Quarter, there’s plenty of pedigree behind this new opening.

Commenting on the relaunch, Astill said: “As soon as Jon showed me the building I just fell in love with it and I instantly said I want to be involved. The White Lion has an amazing history and everyone in the community has a story to tell about it.

“It’s taken us over four years to finally open the doors and we’re really proud of the result. It’s a beautiful building but it was an empty shell when we started. We feel like we’ve really achieved something when people comment on us keeping the original features but it’s actually all new with the exception of the
entrance.”

dootson and astill pubs manchester
stockport pubs
The White Lion sits on the corner of the Stockport ‘Old Town’ cultural hub. (Credit: Stockport Council/Supplied)

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With the pub already open to the public from 11am-11pm from Sunday to Thursday and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, Stopfordians are buzzing to have this important piece of their local history back open and restored to its former glory.

Paul went on to explain how they’ve “also created the ‘Lion’s Den’ and Boardroom in the cellars, which is a space that has never previously been used.” Lions, dens – get it?…

“It’s kind of a gentleman’s club feel that’s perfect for intimate gigs, parties or private functions”, he continued, adding: “It’ll also host the ‘Lion’s Den Sporting Club’ showing all sports starting with all the Euro games.”

What about you, Stockport locals – have you popped into the new White Lion yet and, if so, what are your first impressions?

The White Lion Stockport reopens
The main pub lounge.
how old is the white lion pub in stockport?
The old and the new coming together.
white lion coaching house stockport sporting den
The White Lion’s Den Sporting Club and Boardroom.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The White Lion Coaching House (supplied)

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