There’s a new neighbourhood bar in the Northern Quarter, with a pretty creative happy hour deal.
Public is the latest offering from the team behind institution Evelyn’s and its hidden basement bar The Daisy, and promises the same level of cocktails plus an easy menu inspired by New York City’s late-night bars.
Arguably the biggest selling point for Public is its huge outside space, with almost 300 seats on the sunnier side of Stevenson Square, sandwiched in between The Quarter House and the square’s new ice cream parlour, Sweet.
And when the weather inevitably turns, they’ve still got you covered, with special happy hour prices popping up every time it rains (so… all the time). You’ll be able to sip on £6 daiquiris when it’s drizzling, as well as £4 lager or wine.
When it comes to the menu, the new Northern Quarter spot has chosen food inspired by cravings – which turns out to be a very good thing.
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You’re looking at one of the city’s best beef burgers, served blushing pink with a potato bun, American cheese, disco pickles, white onion, burger sauce and house ketchup – and it’s one that you can actually fit in your mouth without ending up with a lap full of toppings.
Burger and chicken sando at Public, a new bar on Stevenson Square. Credit: The Manc GroupCocktails at Public – the buttermilk martini and Public Colada. Credit: The Manc GroupNoodles at Public. Credit: The Manc Group
There’s a buttermilk fried chicken breast sandwich too, layered up with iceberg lettuce, sriracha mayo, sesame, gochugaru, pepper mayo, and more disco pickles.
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Also on the menu are hot oil gun gun noodles, served in the takeaway box for maximum enjoyment with minimal mess, and glazed char sui sticky glazed pork belly skewers.
Drinks will play on classics, like a Margarita Seltzer, an ‘Aperol Spritz But Better’ (a frozen drink with orange wine), and the Public Colada.
There’s also a signature martini inspired by the food menu’s chicken sando, made with buttermilk-washed vodka and topped with drops of gochugaru oil.
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 July 2023 
