Just when you think Greater Manchester has nailed the modern-day takeaway, along comes a new contender – and this time, they brought French tacos.
You’ll find French Taco’o down on Chapel Street, not far past Salford Central and the People’s History Museum.
You’ll also find a fast food dish so weighty Ryanair would probably charge you extra just to carry it onto the plane.
This is the home of the French taco, otherwise known as matelas, which translates as ‘mattress’.
What you’re essentially looking as is what you’d get if you mixed together a gyros, a doner kebab, and a burrito – which is exactly what you want to eat at the end of a night out, on a severe hangover, or when you just want to chow down on some comfort food.
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At French Taco’o, they load flour tortillas with a variety of fillings, including grilled chicken thighs, sheesh kebab, falafel and beef patties.
Then in goes Algerian sauce (a spicy, tangy, mayo-based sauce), mixed vegetables, cheese sauce, and – very importantly – French fries.
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French Taco’o is a Salford takeaway that specialises in French tacos. Credit: The Manc Group
The whole thing is then flattened and pressed like a panini before being handed over to change your life.
When you cut the French taco in half, the cross-section is giving mosaic tiles, but with pure spud instead of ceramics.
This brilliant takeaway also serves all your usual booze-soaking stuff, like burgers, pizzas and loaded fries.
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And it’s not just for late-night – these may be calorific fast food items, but they’re made from scratch with a lot of love.
French Taco’o is not the first French taco establishment in town – there’s also an Airstream caravan up on Oxford Road that specialises in them.
These Greater Manchester French tacos are like a cross between a doner kebab, burrito and gyros. Credit: The Manc GroupYou’ll find French Taco’o on Chapel Street in Salford. Credit: The Manc Group
Robbie Reviews commented: “So so so good here. And the lads who work here are fantastic!!”
Someone else wrote: “I stumbled into this place last year after a night out. The guy is such a nice bloke I’m made up that he’s getting some love from pages like this.”
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And someone else posted: “The best French taco thank you Cedric.”
French Taco’o might be the best and most filling £7.99 you can spend in Salford.
Inside Manchester’s new padel club with a Pot Kettle Black cafe and courtside cocktail bar
Daisy Jackson
Padel is the fastest-growing sport in the world, and it’s really picking up speed in Manchester now too with another city centre club opening this month.
The Pollen Club is a little different to the others, in that it’s fully undercover and protected from Manchester’s less-than-favourable weather.
And another thing that makes it a must-visit is the cafe attached to it – a third site for the beloved Pot Kettle Black.
The Pollen Club and Pot Kettle Black have both taken over a prominent city centre spot just off Deansgate, at the foot of the recently-opened Treehouse Hotel.
There are two state-of-the-art padel courts inside, with a mezzanine terrace for enjoy Pot Kettle Black’s offerings.
In summer, there are plans to launch a bar downstairs too, where you can sip spritzes courtside from loungers and swing seats.
The exciting new Manchester padel club will host pop up events, DJ takeovers and an extended evening food offering.
Pot Kettle Black are part of the new padel clubInside Manchester’s new padel club, The Pollen ClubPot Kettle Black are part of the new padel club
And even if you’re not heading inside The Pollen Club, Pot Kettle Black has a grab-and-go hatch facing onto Blackfriars Street, making their delicious coffees, sandwiches and pastries (from their own bakery Half Dozen Other) even more accessible.
Commenting on the opening of the new site, Pot Kettle Black co-owner, Mark Flanagan said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to have opened our third Pot Kettle Black site at The Padel Club. This achievement is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the team.
“After ten years in the city we’ve been enjoying seeing some familiar faces stopping by for a coffee and we can’t wait to get started on our programme of summer events!”
Insomnia Cookies is giving away FREE cookies to anyone with these two names
Emily Sergeant
Manchester’s late-night sweet treat spot Insomnia Cookies is dishing out freebies this week… but there’s a catch.
You have to be called one of two specific names to get one.
With the long bank holiday weekend upon us, those in-the-know will also have noticed that this Sunday isn’t just Easter Sunday, it also happens to be 4/20… and that means Insomnia Cookies is back with its ‘blazing’ £4.20 deal, giving you the chance to bag a box of four warm cookies while saving nearly £7 at the same time.
But even better still, if you happen to have either the first or middle name ‘Mary’ or ‘Jane’, then you can also get yourself a warm tasty cookie for free.
To mark both 4/20, and celebrate the launch of its newest strain of mouthwatering cookie, the Mary Jane, anyone called Mary or Jane can pop into either of Insomnia Cookies’ two Manchester city centre sites – Cross Street and University Green – show their valid ID with their name on, and walk alway with a cookie free of charge.
If you want to try the new Mary Jane cookie, then this limited-edition special is made up of a cookies n cream dough base, packed with rainbow sprinkles.
The freebie deal has been running all week, and you have up until 3am on Monday 21 April to take advantage of it.
Customers will be limited to one free cookie per day.
Insomnia Cookies is giving away free cookies to anyone with these two names / Credit: Insomnia Cookies UK
If you aren’t lucky enough to be called one of those two names though, then thankfully you can still make some great savings on a classic four-pack of cookies over the spring bank holiday weekend, and for every four-pack sold, £1 will be donated to Groundwork – a charity helping make Manchester greener for nature and for local people.
“We’re calling for Marys and Janes to join us to live the high life with free cookies all week,” commented Millie Ralston, Head of Marketing at Insomnia Cookies.
Daisy Jackson -
21st August 2024 
