An event dubbed ‘the world’s greatest sandwich festival’ is coming to central Manchester, and if there’s one thing you need to know about us, it’s that we love things between bread.
Consider us already there.
Following a hugely successful showcase at Camden Town Brewery down in the capital, the butty bonanza known as ‘Sarnie Party’ is making its way from down in London all the way up to Manchester for the very first time.
Better still, it’s coming to the beloved city centre neighbourhood and ever-growing hospitality district that is Kampus next month, and it’s completely FREE entry.
Sarnie Party is the lovechild of seasoned festival curator Molly Hutchinson and Allie Behr of Hot Sauce Society, who have decided to bring together their passions and expertise once again in another ode to the most versatile and almost universally eaten foodstuff: sandwiches.
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Promising “big energy, good vibes and full bellies”, it’s already supported by some of the most recognisable brands you’ll find in Britain, including Heinz, Deliveroo, Kraken rum and more.
All of the above will be featuring at the inaugural Manc sandwich festival in some fashion, but most excitingly, some of Greater Manchester’s best and most beloved sarnie artisans will be taking part.
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In addition to the usual suspects like Bada Bing and Rack, Pollen, Madre, and OSMA will also be serving up sandwich specials, as well as Liverpool favourite Derek’s, and The Big Deal’s ‘Bodega’ from Norwich.
Each vendor will be building a unique, never-before-seen (or eaten) sandwich for the 2025 festival, looking to best impress the locals.
And you best believe we know a good butty around here…
Guests can also expect more food and drink specials from existing on-site Kampus businesses, plus an outdoor bar with cocktails from Kraken and Tito’s Vodka, as well as a selection of ice-cold beers.
While admission to Kampus costs nothing, these indie traders are, of course, hoping to cover their costs, so sandwiches will be able to be purchased via tokens.
A single token will cost you £8, or you can buy a three-token Sarnie Party bundle for just £22; let’s be honest, you’re not going to stop at just one, are you?
More importantly, it’s worth reminding you that the stocks won’t last forever, and once these creations are gone, they’re gone, so you’d better make quick work of this scran-fest.
Local radio station, Reform, will also be serving as the resident DJs and entertainers for the day, meaning you’ll have plenty of time and reason to try and burn off all those carby calories – before inevitably consuming more, of course.
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Credit: Supplied
Speaking ahead of the festival, Kampus’ general manager, Harriet Downey, said: “We’re looking forward to bringing Sarnie Party to Manchester and hosting so many sandwich lovers in our garden neighbourhood.
“We’re lucky to have some of the best independent food and drink brands in the city here at Kampus, and it’s exciting to have them joined by so many other great operators to celebrate all things sandwich!”
As for the organisers themselves, they have a simple mantra for you to follow: “Come hungry. Leave happy.” Love that.
Spread across a full weekend, Sarnie Party MCR takes place on 12-13 September, with day one getting underway from 4-10pm, and Sunday running from 11am-9pm. We’ll see you there.
And if this doesn’t quite satisfy your food and drink festival cravings, then you’ll be glad to hear that there’s another event dedicated entirely to pina coladas happening here in town, also.
Viral chicken shop Wingstop is opening inside the Manchester Arndale
Daisy Jackson
Wingstop, the chicken shop famed for its vast range of wing flavours and sauces, is opening another spot in Manchester city centre.
The brand will be taking over the old Yo Sushi site in the Manchester Arndale, which shut down just last month.
It’ll mean there’ll be two Wingstop locations within a few minutes’ walk of each other, with another takeaway already well-established on Piccadilly Gardens.
Wingstop UKI has found viral fame with people taste-testing its wide range of hand-sauced chicken wing flavours, ranging from garlic parmesan all the way up to the eye-watering ‘Atomic’.
As well as chicken wings, it serves delicious tenders and burgers, all cooked to order.
There are also a range of sides, including loaded fries, sweet potato fries, and cajun fried corn, plus dips like ranch, honey mustard, and blue cheese.
Wingstop is also famed for its thick milkshakes – which are a necessity if you order your chicken down the spicier end of the scale.
Established in Texas in 1994, Wingstop rose rapidly to become one of the fastest-growing restaurant chains in the US.
The brand launched in the UK market in 2018, and into Ireland last year, and now operates more than 85 locations.
Wingstop is opening in Manchester Arndale
Wingstop will be moving into the 5,928 sq ft unit upstairs in Manchester Arndale, just opposite Next.
Scott Linard, Portfolio Manager for M&G Real Estate, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Wingstop to our vibrant F&B offer; an addition we’re sure will resonate with our younger visitors.
“With the additions of popular restaurant chains like Wingstop, coupled with the arrival of new retailers such as Arc’teryx, Alo Yoga, Pro:Direct and Sephora, we are strategically creating a destination where people across the North West and beyond want to spend their time.”
Steve Gray, Head of European Retail Asset Management at Global Mutual, said: “Wingstop will join Manchester Arndale’s varied F&B mix, including Popeyes, Sides, Hotel Chocolat, Joe & The Juice and Café Nero.
“In-demand operators like this help create energy and momentum that allows the brands across the scheme to thrive, driving increased footfall, longer dwell times and a more compelling offer for visitors.”
The best cheese tasting party in the North is BACK at a new Manchester venue
Danny Jones
That’s right, one of the biggest and best cheese tasting nights in the entire land is returning to Greater Manchester at a brand new city centre venue.
Not to be over-the-top, but this isn’t just another experience sampling possibly the greatest foodstuff on Earth, it’s a fully-fledged cheese-lovers’ party.
Some of you may have come across Homage2Fromage before, but for anyone unaware of the Yorkshire-born event, it started out as a monthly cheese tasting club and went on to expand across the dairy-adoring North at large.
Relaunching here in Manchester for 2026, all you lactose-intolerant people better watch, because Home2Fromage is coming back with a vengeance and heading to the Northern Quarter. Here’s how it went down the last time we visited one in Leeds:
Leeds, Sheffield, Harrogate, Manchester and who knows where else next.
Posting up in a relatively recent addition to NQ‘s bar and restaurant scene, The Faraday – a pub on Lever St that replaces the old Seven Sins back in October – it looks set to be an ideal venue for the regular evening series.
Homage2Fromage will be making its Manc return this month, and better still, they’re holding a cheeky little giveaway to sweeten the pot.
As in the deal, we mean – not the inevitable bowls full of olives, chutney, oil and various other dips…
To welcome this celebration of all things cheese coming back to Manchester city centre, they’re giving away a bunch of free tickets: 20 pairs in total.
Worth over £50 a piece for each twin set of tickets, you’d be a fool not to at least throw your hat in the ring for this one.
As you can see, the competition closes this Thursday, 19 February, ahead of the full relaunch party next week (Wed, 25 Feb), and all you have to do to enter is fill out this super quick survey.
It really is as simple as that; a few quick words are all that stand between you and a potential mountain of cheese and more.
You can find all you need to know about the event right HERE, and in case you haven’t popped into The Faraday just yet, see more down below.
It’s still somewhat early days, but we can see ourselves spending a fair bit of time in this up-and-coming Manchester watering hole, especially when there’s cheese nights involved.
Danny Jones -
14th August 2025 
