Popular Cumbria-based craft beer brand Fell Brewery is set to take over an independent Manchester pub in the Northern Quarter and former Squawk drinking spot.
The company based in Grange-over-Sands on the southern coast of the Lake District was founded back in 2013 and has become a much-admired name in the region, with a total of five different locations across the North West, including their live music and events space, Glisky.
Now set to take over the Pelican on NQ, formerly operated by Manc beer experts Squawk Brewing Co. who reopened the venue as the successor Beatnikz Republic, they will retain the existing name for now but are set to carry out a rebrand in the coming months.
This comes as a lifeline for the pub after Squawk announced back in January that they were calling it a day after a decade of brewing some of the area’s most beloved and world-renowned craft beer. Luckily, they announced they were back up and running earlier this month but Pelican will be changing hands.
This is actually the second Greater Manchester spot they have taken over, with the Cumbrian brewery having also acquired an old clothing shop back in 2020 and opening under the name Fell Chorlton, as we’re sure many of you have already sampled in the years since.
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Promising to continue instilling their principles of ‘independent and local’, ‘sustainable and small’, the brand is hoping to keep Pelican’s ever-growing crowd of regulars coming through the door whilst also attracting new customers with their own take on craft ales and the beerhouse experience.
As detailed in the announcement, the plan is to “incorporate [their] branding and venue look and feel” and they’ll also be announcing a lot more over the next few weeks.
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We also applaud the person who was first to respond underneath the announcement post with the comedic but convenient suggestion, “So you’re calling it Fellican right?” Well played.
Fell Brewery lays down more roots in Manchester. (Credit: The Manc Eats)
Although it’s still unclear as to when the first raft of changes will begin, for now, you can still head in and enjoy Pelican’s wide range of lagers, ales, IPAs, stouts, sours and more.
It really is a great boozer and we’re glad Fell Brewery is helping keep Squawk‘s legacy alive in pub form over at the Dale Street site, even if it’s not quite as we know it.
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Better yet, with Fell Chorlton having already grown a strong local following, it’ll be no time before the regular punters catch the tram into town to try the new gaff.
Independent Chinese street food favourite Little Bao Boy announces closure in Manchester
Daisy Jackson
Little Bao Boy has shared ‘sad news’ this week, announcing its departure from Manchester.
The Chinese street food favourite has been serving freshly-made bao, plus contemporary Asian dishes like loaded katsu fries, tofu bites, and spicy slaws.
But now this much-loved indie, originally from Leeds, has announced it’s baoing (sorry) out from our city for good.
Little Bao Boy has said it has just over a week left in Manchester, where it’s been operating as part of the North Taproom at Circle Square.
The team said it’s been a ‘tough decision’ as they’ve ‘had a blast’ at the new development off Oxford Road.
Little Bao Boy wrote: “I’m afraid to say we’ve got some sad news…
“As of the first of February we will be coming out of Circle square taproom in Manchester. It was a tough decision as we’ve had a blast there the last couple of years but sometimes you need to take one step back to take two more forward.
Credit: The Hoot LeedsCredit: Instagram, @littlebaoboy
“We want to ram all our focus into making Leeds as good as it can be and that’s what we’re going to do moving into this year.
“We just want to say a massive thank you to everyone from Manchester who has come down to support us over the years it really does mean a lot!
“Maybe one day you’ll see us pop back up in the M1 postcode but for now it’s see you later, thanks for having us and the always welcome to come see us in Leeds. James & JB.”
Manchester’s Cat Café is set to reopen four years after its closure
Danny Jones
Feline fans, rejoice, because Cat Café Manchester looks like it is reopening more than four whole years after its unfortunate closure.
The city centre’s much-loved cat café – the only one of its kind in Greater Manchester and among just a small handful in the North West – closed back in 2021 following unavoidable economic struggles brought about by the pandemic
Despite being hugely popular before having to shut its doors, the business was unable to reach an agreement with their landlord at the time and the owners were left with no other choice than to close permanently – or so we thought…
Seemingly back from the dead and published their first post since 11 January 2021, the official Instagram page shared just one line along with a picture of their soon-to-be new premises.
Briefly teasing fans ahead of an official announcement, the post reads: “Manchester we’ve missed you! There’s only one thing this place needs…”
The shot taken across the road from Manchester’s historic Barton Arcade shows the large shopfront unit on the main Deansgate strip where the original Classic Football Shirts store used to be.
As you can see, although the vintage footy kit reseller’s brand and decals still remain plastered on the windows, the two-storey location has been vacant since October 2023 when CFS moved their flagship Manchester branch to Dale Street in the Northern Quarter.
We’ve personally been wondering what might take the old venue’s place for a while now, with the rest of the Grade II-listed Victorian shopping arcade populated by food and drink spaces, a barbershop and fashion retailers like The R Store, but after all this time the last thing we expect was the Cat Café.
This will no doubt come as wonderful news to the countless fans who were gutted to see it disappear just a few short years ago.
At the time, a fundraiser was set up in an attempt to rescue it and the pet-forward coffee shop format also paved the way for similar ventures like this one over Salford.
Although we’re still yet to hear any more details regarding a possible reopening date, we can safely assume their four-year hiatus will be coming to an end sometime in 2025.
When they were still up and running, the café had 10 resident cats at their original site on the edge of NQ, now home to one of two Gooeys in Manchester.
It is worth noting that there were some concerns raised around hygiene and animal welfare, though we’re sure steps have been taken to address these issues in the interim.
Danny Jones -
27th June 2024 
