Hatch, the indie street food market nestled underneath one of Manchester’s busiest ring roads, has long been a popular choice amongst foodies on the hunt for something new.
With traders selling everything from perfectly-formed traditional Sicilian arancini, to Teesside parmos and a glittery crumble stall with unlimited custard refills, it has a well-earned reputation for housing some of the city’s most interesting food traders.
This month, the kitchen teams have put their heads together to launch a host of globally-inspired breakfast dishes which means we’ve now got another reason to get ourselves down Oxford Road.
With choices spanning Ethiopian and Eritrean-inspired fry-ups, sweet and savoury focaccia breakfast butties, and a special deep-fried French toast from the team at Parmogeddon, there are some really interesting new dishes to dig into here.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
Of its more than thirty independent businesses in the village, a total of seven food traders are involved with globe-trotting dishes spanning the regions of North Eastern Africa, Brazil, Texas, Teeside, Australia Sicily, and Mexico.
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As for this weekend, breakfast is now being served every Saturday and Sunday with quality steak shop Block dishing up steak and eggs on sourdough toast with avocado and chimichurri from 10am.
Parmogeddon, meanwhile, is putting its signature chicken tenders on deep-fried French toast with crispy bacon and hot honey for the mother of all breakfasts.
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House of Habesha is delivering its very own twist on the full English complete with scrambled eggs, lamb sausage, fava beans, fried tomatoes, hash brown, and brioche toast, as well as traditional Etrian breakfast Fata (a shredded pitta stewed with berbere spices), Turkish eggs, and egg frittatas.
Meanwhile, T’arricrii has put together a line of breakfast sarnies that sound so good it’s silly. Made on home-baked bread, these new Sicilian butties comprise sweet options like Nutella and pistachio as well as the likes of Caprese and Caponata.
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Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
Elsewhere, you’ll find breakfast tacos, burritos and Mexican Breakfast Bowls, classic Mexican brunch dish Huevos Rancheros and buttermilk pancakes courtesy of the excellent Caroline Martins (ex-MasterChef and Great British Menu) and her Rio Mex team.
Add to that fresh and vibrant vegan breakfast bowls made using refreshing coconut water and super nutritious goji berries, as well as overnight oats and cacao smoothie bowls, and nourishing plant-based breakfast options from Herbivorous, and you really are spoilt for choice.
Starting on 19 August, Hatch will now be rising and shining at the earlier hour of 10am every Saturday and Sunday for breakfast.
The new Hatch morning experience is rounded off with a new collection of breakfast cocktails served at the Hatch Bar, alongside soft drinks, coffee, tea, and a selection of pastries and cakes courtesy of ASAP Coffee.
Featured image – The Manc Eats
Eats
The Greater Manchester book café serving literary afternoon teas and build-your-own bouquets
Daisy Jackson
If you like your afternoon tea with a side of good books, there’s a Greater Manchester café where you can quite literally have your cake and read it too.
Tucked inside this charming bookish spot, afternoon tea arrives with an unexpected twist. Rather than being presented with the usual three-tiered stand, you’re handed a stack of heavy hardback books.
But don’t start worrying that you’ve accidentally wandered into a very niche library club. The books are hiding something.
Lift the covers in Peony & Parchment – or, more accurately, open the book-shaped boxes – and you’ll discover a full afternoon tea concealed inside.
There are dainty sandwiches to get stuck into, including tiny egg mayo, herby chicken salad, ham and mustard, and cheese and tomato focaccia, alongside a little quiche.
Then comes the scone – classic, fluffy and ready for the obligatory dollop of clotted cream and jam. And, because no afternoon tea should leave you feeling like you’ve been short-changed in the cake department, there are five miniature slices to work through.
Afternoon tea concealed in a stack of booksSome of the other bakes on display
There’s a Victoria sponge with a dreamy vanilla cream, lemon drizzle, rich chocolate cake, a Bakewell slice and a pecan pie, all sourced from a local bakery just across the alleyway.
It’s all served with a pot of tea or coffee, with the option to add a glass of prosecco.
And the bookish theme doesn’t stop at the afternoon tea.
Downstairs you’ll find shelves packed with books, including the intriguing ‘blind books’. Instead of judging a book by its cover, you’ll be given clues and a short summary of what lies inside before taking a gamble on your mystery read.
Downstairs in Peony & Parchment‘Blind books’A role playing village for kids
There’s also plenty here to keep younger visitors entertained, thanks to a children’s area complete with a mini role-playing village.
And if books and cake weren’t enough, there’s another string to this café’s bow.
The Bloom Bar lets you build your own bouquet. Choose the size you want, then wander around selecting your own stems and foliage to create something that’s uniquely yours.
You can build your own bouquetThe Bloom Bar at Peony & Parchment
Of course, you don’t have to be visiting specifically for the afternoon tea. The wider menu includes tapas, full breakfasts and sandwiches, making it just as suitable for a leisurely brunch, lunch or coffee-and-cake stop.
So whether you’re there to discover your next favourite novel, assemble a bouquet, entertain the kids or simply eat your way through five different miniature cakes, this is one café where there are plenty of chapters to explore.
Major pop star crowns humble rice and three cafe as ‘Jewel of Manchester’ ahead of sold-out gig
Thomas Melia
A beloved city centre takeaway has been given the title of ‘Jewel of Manchester’ by chart-topping UK singer Sam Smith.
Known for hits like ‘Stay With Me’, ‘I’m Not The Only One’ and more recently ‘Unholy’, UK pop-ballad act Sam Smith also likes to drop a food review every once in a while.
Currently on the road with a run of shows in Manchester and London for their ‘To Be Free’ live shows, Sam Smith is stopping off at some of our city’s much-loved spots.
On their food-reviewing account titled ‘Sam Served’, where they adopt the aptly-fitting nickname ‘Ham Smith’, Sam has visited restaurants across the globe – and most recently turned their attention to Manchester’s own This & That.
Smith decided to pop in and grab a cheeky rice and three from long-standing backstreet food business This & That, and it certainly went down a treat.
After sampling their amazing selection of meat, vegetable and vegan curries, the musician crowned this family-run Indian takeaway a ‘Jewel of Manchester’.
The hitmaker described this Northern Quarter Indian eatery as ‘Everything food should be’ and definitely enjoyed all the curries on offer ‘leaving belly and heart full’.
This & That prides itself on affordable and comforting food with its ‘Rice and Three Curries’ starting from just £6 – not bad for a city centre foodie spot.
Sam has racked up an impressive 490k followers via their ‘Sam Served’ profile, with famous faces like Lily Allen, Denise Welch and CMAT all wanting to know the superstar’s foodie thoughts.
After enjoying a curry or three, Sam Smith also made sure to feed their soul to by venturing down to Afflecks and getting lost in the music at Mars Tapes.
Recognised as one of the UK’s only cassette and tape shops, Mars Tapes lets you flick through their crates of physical media and even preview tracks before you buy with its dedicated listening areas.
It’s safe to say that Smith has ‘Latched’ onto Manchester’s independent business scene and we’re here for it.
The London-born artist has just released their latest album Hazel Eyes and is currently amid a UK residency tour with two dates in Manchester’s Albert Hall and eight shows set for London Coliseum.
Georgina Pellant -
14th August 2023 
