Dream role alert: a new customer rewards brand is looking to recruit one lucky sod as a tester for their upcoming app and the job description is basically just eat a load of free food and drink around Manchester city centre.
This is one of those ‘I’d do and go to heaven’ opportunities that you simply have to throw your name in the hat for whenever they come up.
Brand new foodie rewards startup, Shuffle, is looking for a fittingly named ‘Taste and Tech Tester’ to put their new app through its paces.
The app is a pretty straightforward but super exciting concept: use it to score randomised rewards ranging anywhere from a minimum of 2% to a whopping 100% off their full bill at some of Manchester’s best dining spots and drinks venues – and you can be in from the ground floor.
Choosing Manchester as the flagship city to debut the new service, Shuffle quite rightly chose us because of our thriving hospitality scene, with the likes of Madre, Medlock Canteen, Trof, Bold Street Coffee and more already on board.
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The company is committed to investing an initial £2.5 million into the city’s thriving hospitality network during this testing phase ahead of their full launch later this year.
In support of phase one, Shuffle is advertising the dream job of being able to try out the app at all the current and future venues – meaning one very fortunate foodie will be able to eat and drink around Manchester for FREE in exchange for their invaluable feedback.
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To be in with a chance of winning, candidates must be over 18, live within commuting distance of central Manchester and complete a short application form explaining why they should be Shuffle’s first-ever official tester.
Applicants will be asked to provide examples of how often they eat and drink out, their favourite pub for a fun night with friends, the best bakery for a flaky croissant and a number of other key references. The full job description and application form can be found HERE.
Breakfast at MedlockCocktails at TrofSunday roasts at MadreJust a small sample of what you’ll get to eat. (Credit: The Manc Eats via The Manc Group)
Ollie Purdue, co-founder of Shuffle said: “Our mission is to revolutionise the hospitality game by providing much-needed up-front investment to operators while also rewarding customers for spending at their venues.
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“Our app offers the excitement of randomised rewards to customers and we can’t wait to launch in Manchester. That’s why we’re on the hunt for someone who loves the city as much as we do, and will provide us with the valuable insight to help Shuffle become the most-used app and go-to investor in the hospitality sector.”
You can apply now for your chance to score the dream job of eating wave after wave of free food and drink in Manchester and be sure to follow the Shuffle rewards app on Instagram for updates, as well download the rewards app for yourself – it’s just common sense at this point.
Best of luck to those going for it but, with all due respect, do know that we’ll resent you forever.
Featured Images — Shuffle (supplied)/The Manc Group
Eats
Chinatown restaurant pleads for help after dine-and-dash customer leaves staff member in A&E
Daisy Jackson
A brilliant restaurant in Manchester’s Chinatown has shared CCTV and a heartfelt appeal after one of its staff members was left in A&E.
Noodle Alley shared that one of its young staff members chased after a group of dine-and-dash customers who’d left without paying for their meal.
The restaurant then said that she was ‘assaulted’ at some point in the chase and ended up in A&E.
In their statement, Noodle Alley said that the staff member ‘had treated them kindly and never expected that kindness to come back to her like this’.
They wrote: “What has this world come to? A violent man sent our staff to A&E over an unpaid meal.”
The CCTV shows a group of three young men, all carrying Selfridges shopping bags, entering the restaurant.
They sit and enjoy a meal, before two of them slip out of the restaurant. The third man then exits but is chased by a Noodle Alley staff member.
It’s at this point – out of the range of the restaurant’s CCTV – that they said she was assaulted ‘after going beyond her duty to try and recover what had been taken’.
The family business said that she has been ’emotionally affected’ by the incident.
The police are involved and the restaurant has appealed for anyone who can help with their investigation to get in touch.
It’s also the second time they’ve appealed about a dine-and-dash customer in the last few months, but this incident went ‘far beyond’ previous incidents.
In their full statement, Noodle Alley said: “We’re a small family business, and lately it feels like small businesses are being targeted again and again.
“But this time, it went far beyond anything we have experienced before.
“One of our young staff members — a girl simply doing her job — was assaulted after going beyond her duty to try to recover what had been taken from our restaurant. She ended up in A&E.
“What hurts us most is seeing how emotionally affected she has been by what happened. She told us she had treated them kindly and never expected that kindness to come back to her like this.
“We work hard to look after our staff and our customers, and nobody should have to go through this simply for doing their job.
“We have reported the incident to the police.
“If anyone recognises these individuals or has any information that could help the police with their investigation, please contact us or the police directly.
“We’re sharing this because we believe our staff deserve to feel safe at work.”
Celebrity chef James Martin closes Manchester restaurant after more than a decade
Daisy Jackson
James Martin Manchester has closed its doors, bringing an end to the chef’s decade-long restaurant partnership with casino Manchester235.
Metropolitan Gaming announced on 1 October that its partnership with James Martin and his team had concluded, with the restaurant operation at the city centre venue ending on the same day.
The partnership dates back to 2012, meaning James Martin Manchester had been part of the Manchester235 experience for more than 14 years.
During that time, the restaurant became an established part of the venue’s food and drink offering, with Metropolitan Gaming describing the collaboration as ‘successful and valued’.
The company also credited James Martin and his team with contributing to Manchester’s wider food and dining scene, as well as providing high-quality dining for Manchester235 guests.
Maxine Gibbons, Venue Director at Manchester235, thanked the chef and his team for their contribution to the venue.
She said: “Our partnership with James Martin and his team has been an important part of Manchester235’s story since 2012.
“We would like to thank James and everyone who has been part of the James Martin Manchester team over the years for their commitment, hard work and the memorable experiences they have created for our guests.”
Gibbons added that the team had made a ‘significant contribution’ to Manchester235’s food and beverage experience and wished James Martin and his colleagues ‘every success for the future’.
The closure will not result in affected employees losing their jobs, with Metropolitan Gaming confirming that any employees impacted by the restaurant’s closure have been retained within the business.
Customers with existing restaurant reservations will also be contacted directly by Manchester235 regarding cancellations.
Danny Jones -
5th August 2024 
