Coconut rum brand Malibu is launching a pop-up beach club at the Great Northern Warehouse, it has revealed.
Bringing palm trees, colorful deck chairs, beach holiday vibes and ‘Malibu moment’ photo opportunities, the new tropical terrace will officially move into the Great Northern Square next week.
Serving up frozen cocktails, fruity summer spirits and a large Malibu-inspired shot menu, it will open next week in collaboration with Manchester’s retro gaming bar Pong & Puck, taking over its large outside space.
Those heading down should expect live DJs playing breezy summer tunes on the terrace and a buzzing bottomless brunch on Saturdays and Sundays featuring 90 minutes of frozé cocktails, selected house cocktails and more.
With an undercover, heated terrace that will keep guests warm and dry no matter the weather, ‘must try’ cocktails include the Piña Colada (of course!) and Miami Vice amongst many other delicious fruity and fun serves, including a coconut twist on the classics.
Happy hour will take place Sunday to Thursday from 5 to 7pm, and there will also be pizza to enjoy with toppings ranging from mushroom and truffle to the ever-controversial Hawaiian.
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Inside at Pong & Puck, meanwhile, revellers will find retro games like shuffleboard, beer pong, prosecco pong and table tennis alongside a host of 80s, 90s and 00s party tunes on the stereo.
Filled with neon signs, graffiti and murals, with decor inspiration from across the globe, beer pong tables are priced at £10 for an hour, with four-pint beer towers sold for £21 – or you can switch to prosecco pong at the same table price, and £30 for the bottle of fizz.
Set to open this May and run until September, the Malibu Beach Club will officially launch on 5 May and end on 30 September opening Wednesdays and Thursdays – 3-11pm, Fridays and Saturday 12-11pm, and Sundays 12-8pm.
Featured image – Supplied
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Family behind Salvi’s launch new concept, weeks after iconic restaurant closure
Daisy Jackson
Just weeks after the closure of its iconic, 16-year-old Italian restaurant in the Corn Exchange, the family behind Salvi’s have revealed a brand-new concept.
And this time, the reins are being handed over to the next generation.
Salvi’s founder Maurizio Cecco has helped to shape Amò, but it’s all the brainchild of his daughter, Sienna.
Sienna will run the business out of a unit up on Deansgate Mews, serving fresh pasta dishes, pizza sandwiches, tubs of tiramisu, and two-for-£10 spritzes.
The deli aspect of the original Salvi’s has been carried over to Amò too – you’ll find shelves almost to the ceiling filled with Italian pasta, wine, olive oils, pistachio spreads, and more.
Sienna has grown up in restaurants, with her parents launching Salvi’s when she was just two years old.
She said she wants the space to be a livelier, fresher version of the Italian restaurant that has been so loved by Mancs for so many years.
Sienna outside AmòFresh pasta dishesInside Amò by Salvi’sTheir viral frozen crema di caffeLemon granitaInside Amò by Salvi’sTiramisu pots
Amò, which is Neapolitan slang for ‘my love’, will have loads of fresh Italian dishes, including arancini, gnocchi, and hearty pasta plates.
At lunchtimes, guests can order from a £10 lunch menu, with dishes changing daily depending on the best produce the kitchen can get – it could be a pizza sandwich with proscuitto and tomato, a spicy pasta, or a gnocchi bake, always served with your choice of soft drink.
With its position on Deansgate Mews, Amò basks in the sunshine at lunchtimes.
And while it’s definitely a different concept to the original Salvi’s, Amò looks set to carry the family’s Italian food legacy into its next generation.
Award-winning Didsbury bakery La Chouquette reveals incredible new site
Daisy Jackson
La Chouquette is one of Greater Manchester’s top bakeries – an award-winner, with queues down the street every weekend for its authentic French pastries and loaves.
And now they’re ready for a new chapter, revealing a major expansion today.
Owners Catrina and Flo have painstakingly expanded the bakery into the unit next door, creating what feels like a true French bakery.
And in the midst of this huge renovation project, they’ve welcomed a tiny new baby boy – quite the summer for the couple.
Catrina and Flo launched La Chouquette in lockdown, and in a time where people could only get their hospitality fix from takeaways, immediately became one of the most popular spots in the region.
Their success has been so great, you’ll still consistently find queues down the street every weekend, for their top sellers like their authentic almond croissants.
Then in October 2024, they grew the business and launched Piqniq, a new deli in Didsbury village, serving freshly-baked baguette sandwiches, breakfast butties, toasties, tiramisu pots and their legendary pastries.
The new-look La Chouquette features beautiful details like mosaic floors, rich blue walls, wooden shelves, and brass light fixtures.
La Chouquette’s best-selling almond croissantsInside the stunning new La Chouquette in DidbsuryNew savoury bakesThe chausson aux pommesThe counter stuffed with artisan French bakesChocolate chip cookies and cinnamon buns
The huge new counter displays more pastries and breads than ever before, like a hearty chausson aux pommes filled with apples that will be perfect for autumn, plus seasonal treats like a rhubarb creme brulee pastry, and homemade quiche.
Speaking at the grand relaunch today, Catrina said: “The layout has changed, it looks so much more chic, it looks like a traditional French bakery. We’re really excited about it.”
As for what’s on the counter, Flo reassured fans that their beloved almond and pistachio croissants remain, but with some new savoury editions, like a truffle croque monsieur made with croissant dough.
La Choquette has reopened today, and will be open seven days a week from 7am until 5pm.
Georgina Pellant -
26th April 2023 
