Festa Italiana, the free-to-enter weekend-long festival celebrating Italian food, drink and culture is returning to Festival Piazza this August bank holiday weekend for its fifth year in the city.
Taking place from 26 to 28 August 2022 at Cathedral Gardens in Manchester city centre, it will bring together some of the city’s best Italian and Sicilian eateries alongside a host of live music, Italian bars and special chef masterclasses.
Featuring street food pop-ups from the likes of Pasta Factory, T’arricrii and Lucky Mama’s, to a dedicated Aperol Spritz bar and Airstream bar selling Italian craft lagers, and a special intimate chef’s dinner event, there is a lot for foodie fans to get excited about this year.
What is the street food line-up at Festa Italiana 2022?
Over the course of the weekend, foodie fans can enjoy sweet treats from Café Cannoli, wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas from I Knead Pizza and Proove, and ‘rasta pasta’ from Chorlton-via-Eccles favourites Lucky Mamas.
T’arricrii will bring along handbuilt arancini and fritto misto, whilst the Pasta Factory will be on hand with its authentic plates of fresh Puglian-style pasta dishes.
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Elsewhere, there’ll be sweet treats from festival founders Salvi’s, doughnuts from Destination Doughnut and grilled paninis, cakes, drinks and snacks from Kickback Coffee.
What bars are on offer at this year’s Festival Piazza?
The main festival bar will serve Italian favourites including fine Italian wine, Ponte prosecco, Luxardo, gin and tonics and other popular Italian spirits.
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An Airstream Bar from Birrificio Angelo Poretti will serve Italian craft beers, whilst an Aperol Spritz bar will be on hand serving up everyone’s favourite low-ABV aperitivo. Soft drinks and coffees will also be available on-site across the weekend.
Live music
This year, Compagnia Sole Luna will bring traditional folk music from Naples, revisited in a folk-rock style from southern Italy.
There will also be a full lineup of local artists and bands including the city’s best-loved opera singer The Manchester Tenor, while DJs will be spinning records each night.
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What events and masterclasses are taking place?
Festa Italiana Feaast – Dine with legendary Italian restaurateurs, authors, and UK TV favourites at the Festa Marquee
On Saturday 27 August an intimate chefs’ table dinner featuring top-class Italian TV celebrity chefs, Gennaro Contaldo, Giancarlo Caldesi, and Aldo Zilli, hosted and cooked by Salvis-owner Maurizio Cecco, with fresh pasta made from scratch by Carmela Serano Hayes. Guests and chefs will dine alongside one another, enjoying a four-course meal and drinks reception hosted by Gin Mare.
Carmela’s Kitchen – Carmela Sereno Hayes will be hosting ‘Carmela’s Kitchen’ across the entire weekend, with free drop-in sessions on the hour, every hour teaching pasta-loving adults and kids how to make the perfect pasta.
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Friday 26 August
1.30pm – Festival founder Maurizio Cecco hosts a cooking masterclass with his daughter Sienna.
2.30pm – The team from I Sapori di Corbara Tomatoes will be flying in from Naples and doing a talk showcasing the brand and their products
3.30pm – Giulia Martinelli of The Pasta Factory will be showyou how to be a pasta master
4.30pm – A drinks masterclass from the Luxardo Maraschino team, whose versatile cherries are used in desserts and drinks across the world.
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5.30pm – A drink making Campari masterclass.
Saturday 27 August
1.30pm – Maurizio Cecco hosts a pasta masterclass
2.30pm – Masterclasses and book signings from Gennaro Contaldo, UK brand ambassador for Parmigiano Reggiano, (Saturday Kitchen, Two Greedy Italians, Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast)
3.30pm – Masterclasses and book signings from celebrity chef and award-winning restaurateur, Aldo Zilli (The One Show, This Morning, Celebrity Masterchef)
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4:30pm – A drinks masterclass from the Aperol team, showcasing the methods behind some of the most loved Italian drinks
Sunday 28 August
1:30pm – Masterclasses and book signings from Giancarlo Caldesi (Return to Tuscany, Saturday Kitchen, Sunday Brunch
2:30pm – Gennaro Contaldo returns for a masterclass
3:30pm – A masterclass from Great British Bake Off 2021 winner Giuseppe Dell’Anno
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4:30pm – A very special pizza making masterclass by the team from Pizzeria Da Michele
When is Festa Italiana 2022 and what are the opening times?
Festa Italiana 2022 will take place from 26 to 28 August 2022 at Cathedral Gardens.
It will open across the weekend from 11am to 11pm, Friday to Sunday.
How do I get to the Festa Italiana festival hub?
Located opposite Manchester Victoria Station, the Festa Italiana festival hub sits in Cathedral Gardens. It can easily be accessed via tram, bus or train and is a short walk from Manchester Piccadilly.
Eats
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Manchester’s Deansgate
Daisy Jackson
There’s a brand-new menu of smokehouse-style BBQ dishes being served up on a sunny terrace on Deansgate.
Motley, the neighbourhood bar and restaurant on the corner of John Dalton Street, has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen.
That means they’ve got a whole load of new dishes, slow-cooked over hickory wood, that are bringing a taste of a Deep South BBQ to Manchester city centre.
The smokehouse-style meats are all seasoned in-house and cooked for hours, for a perfect fall-off-the-bone experience.
It might be an authentic American smokehouse menu, but it’s firmly British too, with most products locally sourced.
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Deansgate / Credit: The Manc Group
Motley are calling on local suppliers like Althams Butchers (established since 1856) for their meat, plus greengrocers R Noone and Son, and Cheshire Farm for their real dairy ice cream.
Signature dishes on the new menu at Motley include slow smoked brisket, seasoned in Motley’s signature rub before being slow-smoked for more than eight hours.
There’s also a beef short rib with a chimichurri sauce, and a pork belly strip that’s seasoned with sage and onion and finished with a panko breadcrumb crust.
And for the veggies, there’s a vegan smoked veg kebab with courgette, mushrooms, bell pepper, sweet corn and red onion drizzled with homemade BBQ sauce.
Motley has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen / Credit: The Manc Group
Prices across the board start from just £16, served with beef dripping fries, rainbow slaw, pickles and homemade beef gravy.
As for small plates, you can expect short rib bonbons, homemade corn bread, spicy chicken wings, bang bang cauliflower, mac and cheese, and frickles.
House favourites like steak, vegetable hash, salads, and burgers will remain on the Motley menu.
Victor Gonzalez, food and beverage manager at Motley, said: “Our new signature smoked dishes are all crafted and seasoned in-house then slow cooked for hours over hickory wood to create rich and smoky melt-in-your mouth flavours.
“From our slow-smoked brisket to our home-made sides, everything has been carefully crafted to bring an authentic taste of the deep south to Manchester and we can’t wait for guests to try it.”
Motley can be found at 2 John Dalton Street on the corner of Deansgate in the city centre.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
Eats
Legendary Hulme community pub The Old Abbey Taphouse to reopen
Daisy Jackson
The closure of The Old Abbey Taphouse was a real blow for Hulme – the community pub was a bit of a local institution thanks to its grassroots music and inclusive atmosphere.
But now it appears that the spirit of the venue will live on, under the new name of The Abbey.
Some of the city’s most experienced independent operators – who have been behind venues like YES and The Deaf Institute, and music promoters Now Wave – will be the new custodians of this beloved local landmark.
The pub, which closed early last year, is currently being carefully restored ahead of its big relaunch just next week.
The vision for its new chapter will be ‘Old Pub, New Music’, creating a new home for grassroots live music and emerging artists.
There’ll also be affordable, hearty pub grub including Pieminister pies, and a huge range of beers from local breweries and beyond.
The team bringing The Abbey to life are Ruth Hemmingfield, Wesley Jones, Jonathan Wickstead and Gareth Butterworth – Ruth, Jon and Wesley are co-owners of YES; Ruth previously launched and programmed landmark Manchester venues including The Deaf Institute, Gorilla and Albert Hall; while Wesley and Jonathan, through Now Wave, promote hundreds of independent gigs and live events each year; and Gareth is the founder of multi-venue festival Manchester Psych Fest.
The team behind The Abbey pub. Credit: Piran Aston
The rear of the site of The Old Abbey Taphouse will be extended to create a new dedicated live music and events venue, while the cherished beer garden is given a facelift with new decking and its own bar.
The Abbey has stood in Hulme since the 1890s, playing an important role in the area’s heritage – this is where activist Len Johnson managed to overturn the shameful ‘colour bar’ policies of the 1940s.
Its restoration and relaunch is part of the flourishing Manchester Science Park development.
Matthew Pazos, Senior Retail Commercial Manager at Bruntwood SciTech, said: “Ruth, Wesley and Jonathan are the perfect custodians to breathe new life into The Abbey.
“Their reputation for running independent spaces in Manchester, alongside their live music expertise, will ensure this much-valued pub once again becomes a beating heart for Hulme and the wider neighbourhood.
Glimpses of The Abbey’s refurb. Credit: The Manc Group
“The reopening of The Abbey will create an inclusive new hub that welcomes everyone – from the Hulme locals who have looked after the pub over the years, to the Manchester Science Park community, university students, and the many residents and workers across the Oxford Road Corridor.
“We are delighted that such a culturally significant and important pub is set to open its doors once again.”
Ruth Hemmingfield from The Abbey commented: “We love a good pub. With The Abbey, we’re excited about bringing a brilliant old pub back to life, protecting what people loved about it, and creating something special: a great local, alongside a vital grassroots music venue for the area. Honouring the pub’s history while building its future.”
Georgina Pellant -
17th August 2022 
