An award-winning independent bakery in Didsbury has shared a heartfelt plea for support as news of ‘yet another coffee chain’ opening around the corner broke.
La Chouquette is widely accepted to be one of Greater Manchester’s top bakeries, famed for its traditional French pastries, desserts and cakes.
The queues out the door every weekend speak for themselves – these are almond croissants worth travelling for.
Founded by Mairead Deignan and Florent Verove, La Chouquette has grown in size and gone on to open a second site, Piqniq, serving sandwiches on proper baguettes.
But now the team are concerned about the number of chain coffee shops moving into Didsbury village, saying these large businesses often gravitate towards ‘strong independent communities’.
ADVERTISEMENT
They stressed that their independent business doesn’t have shareholders or national marketing budgets, and that every penny spent in-store with La Chouquette goes to paying local wages, and keeping ‘character and originality alive in our high street’.
“If you love having independents in Didsbury, now more than ever your support really matters,” they wrote.
ADVERTISEMENT
La Chouquette said: “We need your support now more than ever!
Bread at La ChouquettePiqniq
“Five years ago we took a leap and opened La Chouquette here in Didsbury. We built this little space from scratch — early mornings, long days, pouring everything into creating something special for our community. And you showed up for us. You helped us grow. You made us busy. You made it worth it
“Now we’re seeing yet another coffee chain opening in Didsbury — and while competition is part of business, it’s hard not to notice that they often follow strong independent communities with loyal customer bases.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Independent businesses don’t have head offices. We don’t have national marketing budgets. We don’t have shareholders. We have you.
“Every coffee bought from an independent stays local. It pays local wages. It supports local families. It keeps character and originality alive in our high street. If you love having independents in Didsbury, now more than ever your support really matters.
“Thank you for five incredible years. We’re still here going strong, still passionate, still baking, still pouring — and still grateful every single day. We also have some exciting plans for the future, and we can’t wait to share them with you soon!!”
New pie shop with Indian-inspired fillings opens at Greater Manchester train station
Emily Sergeant
At long last, Patel’s Pies – the proper pie shop with Indian-inspired fillings – has got its very own site, and we couldn’t be happier about it.
The business is already a familiar name (to the blue half of the city, of course) thanks to its matchday spot outside the Etihad Stadium, but now, Patel’s Pies will be serving its delicious savoury bakes to the people of the Heatons too – with its brand-new pie shop now opene at Heaton Chapel train station.
Here you’ll find their legendary curry pies with homemade pastry – filled with the likes of keema, butter chicken, and beef madras.
You can grab hot and cold pies to take away, all setting you back an affordable £5.95 each.
Patel’s Pies is now open at Heaton Chapel train station / Credit: The Manc Group
From 11am-2pm, you can also get your hands on the lunch deal, which is any pie, masala mash, spiced mushy peas, and gunpowder gravy.
Patel’s Pies has teamed up with Manc legends Gooey, so you can grab the bakery’s famous cookies and doughnuts here too.
There’ll also be local beers and canned drinks up for grabs.
All pies will set you back an affordable £5.95 each / Credit: The Manc Group
Inside, the shop keeps things traditional, complete with classic pie warmers on the counter and hand-painted signage by Cactus Sign Painting, giving the space the feel of a proper old-school pie shop with a modern twist.
Announcing the new venture, Steve, the owner of Patel’s Pies has said: “We’d love for you to come down, say hello, and support our new venture. It’s our very first day, so please bear with us as we get settled in, we can’t wait to serve you all.”
Patel’s Pies is open now at Heaton Chapel Train Station on Tatton Road South.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
Eats
Trendy Ancoats wine bar Blossom Street Social to close after six years
Emily Sergeant
Trendy neighbourhood wine bar Blossom Street Social has announced its closure after nearly seven years serving the Ancoats community.
Blossom Street Social first opened its doors back in 2019, just months before the country – and the res of the world – was plunged into the COVID-19 lockdowns, but despite all the challenges during the early days, this wine bar went on to become a true staple of Ancoats life – hosting events, exhibitions, wine tastings, and everything in between.
But now, the owners have had to make the heartbreaking decision to close, saying they’ve ‘danced our last dance, played our last record, and poured our last glass of wine in Ancoats.’
Announcing the news in a statement to social media this week, Blossom Street Social said: “Blossom Street Social closes its doors after six and a half years at the heart of the Ancoats community.
Blossom Street Social has announced its closure after six years / Credit: The Manc Group
“When we opened in 2019, just months before the world changed forever, we couldn’t possibly have imagined the journey ahead. Through lockdowns, uncertainty and everything that followed, we somehow managed to build something that became far more than a wine bar.
“Wine was always at the heart of what we did, but so were the conversations, the music, the art and the community that grew around it.
“We’ve hosted tastings, exhibitions, launches, celebrations, social sessions and countless memorable nights. We’ve introduced people to wines they’d never tried before, watched friendships form and shared in some truly special moments.
“We’ve watched first dates become engagements, engagements become marriages, and couples return with babies in tow. We’ve celebrated birthdays, anniversaries, new homes and countless milestones alongside you. We’ve shared conversations, laughter, music and moments that mattered from our little corner of Ancoats. We will never forget them.”
The team then went on to thank ‘every customer, artist, DJ, supplier, collaborator and friend’ who became part of their story.
The owners also gave a special thank you to the staff members who stayed ‘to the very end’ and ‘showed up when it was hard’, admitting that they couldn’t have done it without them all.
Daisy Jackson -
8th March 2026 
