A bakery in Bolton run by ex-offenders has been left flying high after winning big at the 2023 British Pie Awards.
Proving that everyone deserves a second chance, the bakery scooped up two gongs at this year’s prestigious ceremony held inside Melton Mobrawy’s 12th Century St Mary’s Church, also known as the ‘Cathedral of Pies’.
Cleaning up, the team of ex-offenders impressively won two gold medals in the Pub Pie category for their Joseph Holts Classic pie with Lancashire, cheddar and mozzarella, onion and potato pie, and Joseph Holts steak and ale pie.
Sharing the news to social media, the team wrote: “We are delighted to say that a couple of our pies have won gold awards this week.
“We are so very proud of our team again and we will be sharing more details about the pies very soon.”
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Fans were quick to comment, with one person writing: “I remember when you were first starting out. Look how far you have come. So proud of you and your team. Congratulations mate.”
Image: HM Pasties
Image: HM Pasties
Another said: “A well deserved result. Well done Lee and all the team. X”
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HM Pasties, set up by former prisoner Lee Wakeham in 2018, offers a lifeline to those in need of work experience after leaving prison.
Using ingredients from local prison farms wherever possible, the bakery makes delicious Cornish pasties and pies.
They weren’t the only ones to win big, either, with a total of five different Greater Manchester pie makers taking home gongs this year.
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Awards also went to Ate Days A Week in Stockport, Baldy’s in Wigan, The Crown Hawk Green in Marple, Plau in Preston and Cheshire Pie Company in Sandbach.
Wigan favourite Baldy’s took home a gold medal for its Michelle’s chicken carbonara in the Chicken With Other Meat Pie category, as well as scooping up a bronze award for its chicken and pumpkin pie (aka Olivia Mai – The People’s Pie) – named after the eight-year-old customer who requested it.
Image: Ate Days A Week
Image: Plau Preston
After announcing its wins, Baldy’s shared a message from Olivia’s mother who said the bakery was ‘really on another level’ and had made her eight-year-old daughter ‘very happy’.
The message continued: “She was so pleased when you told her you were entering her pie into the competition but to win an award is something else!”
Baldy’s also scored bronze in the Chicken & Vegetable / Herb Pie category for its Gino De Pesto pie, and in the Lamb Pie category for its Uncle Joe’s mint ball lamb pie.
Other big wins for Greater Manchester pie makers included a gold medal in the Pub Pie category for The Crown Hawk Green’s chicken ham and leek pie, two silver medals in the Meat & Potato Pie category for Ate Days A Week’s lamb Pie Of The Tiger and ox cheek Pie of the Tiger, and a silver in the Lamb Pie category for Plau Preston’s Lancashire hotpot pie.
J McRobb Butchers Ltd in Chorley also won a bronze medal for its McRobb’s chicken, ham and leek pie, whilst further afield Macclesfield’s Treacle Town Pie Company won bronze for its chicken, pancetta and lemon thyme pie, and in Sandbach the Cheshire Pie Company took home a gold for its Christmas pie.
Cake Loves Cake in Greenheys, South Manchester took home a bronze medal for its meat and potato pie, whilst Wilmslow-based frozen meal company COOK won bronze in the Vegetarian Pie category for its roasted veg, lentils and kale pie.
In total, this year there was a record-breaking 976 entries from 179 piemakers at the British Pie Awards with 151 judges.
To see the full list of award winners from the 2023 British Pie Awards, check out its Twitter feed here.
Feature image – HM Pasties
Eats
Inside Voyeur, a mysterious new post-punk 80s-inspired cocktail bar
Daisy Jackson
A brand new cocktail bar is set to open in Manchester this week, with dark and mysterious interiors, 80s inspiration, and a raunchy theme.
Voyeur is opening in the heart of the Northern Quarter, and here it’s all about modern drinks in a post-punk 80s setting.
The walls are decorated with beautiful voyeurism photography from the 80s, including artists like David Hockney, Nick Taggart, and Malerie Marder.
Even the menus celebrate the artistic side of voyeurism, with drinks presented within a book of photography.
Those drinks include creative twists on drinks dating back more than a century, from the Kaleidescope of Lies (a two-in one cocktail inspired by a pina colada, with a strawberry daiquiri foam top) to The Voyeur (made with coriander-infused tequila for a savoury punch).
There’ll be monthly themed specials, kicking off with The Breakfast Club, where seasonal drinks take inspiration from Lucky Charms cereal, chai latte and an acai bowl.
Cocktails inspired by The Breakfast Club at VoyeurCocktails at Voyeur in the Northern QuarterInside Voyeur, a new Manchester cocktail barInside Voyeur, a new Manchester cocktail barVoyeur on Oldham StreetThe cocktail menu is presented as a photography book
The dark space is lit by marble table lamps and a glittering green disco ball (and not much else), perfect for an evening spent sipping cocktails into the early hours.
Between Thursdays and Sundays, Voyeur will have DJs spinning vinyls.
Voyeur is opening this week on Oldham Street and will be open from 5pm to 2am between Tuesday and Sunday.
A brand-new dessert, ice-cream and doughnut shop in a former Manc food spot
Thomas Melia
Sweet lovers and dessert connoisseurs alike, a brand-new dessert, ice-cream and doughnut shop is opening in Manchester city centre this month.
Titled ‘Baby Mayhem’, this sweet-filled shop has been teasing its arrival for the past month with videos showcasing everything from new instalments to their graffiti-style logo.
This brand-new opening will be located on Radium Street, not too far away from Chinese superstar Wing Yip and fellow sweet treat specialists, Flat Baker, right in the heart of Ancoats.
The interior has been given a very nice and bright facelift too, going from an all white four-walled site to a bold and distinctive baby pink-covered site.
Manchester seems to have quite the sweet tooth at the moment, as it was only last month that our Northern Quarter was christened by cake gods, Get Baked.
As for this new dessert shop, they’re starting from scratch, with a temporary wooden window frame with their branding spray-painted onto it fitted ahead of their soft launch later this week.
Baby Mayhem is taking up residence in the much-loved Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria shop, and it really is out with the old, in with the new, as the familiar neon ‘No Lasagne’ sign has been traded for a sweeter read of ‘Fresh Donuts’.
It may be Yank spelling, but this still feels Manc through and through.
Case and point: all their signage, stamps and stencils have been done by local laser cutting service and neighbours, Drawn By The Light – also on Radium Street.
Enough salt, let’s have a serious amount of sugar. (Credit: Baby Mayhem via Instagram)
Baby Mayhem are taking sweet treats to the complete extreme, serving up everyone’s beloved combo of coffees and cakes, while also creating our soon-to-be-favourite indulgence: doughnut sandwiches. 10/10, no notes – genius.
There really are no complaints here; what’s not to love?
Baby Mayhem is taking up residence in the former Lazy Tony’s site, 23 Radium Street in Ancoats, and will be serving up their sweet treats for all to try from this Saturday, 26 April.