A total of 500 free meals are set to be handed out to people in Manchester city centre this week to help combat Blue Monday and the old January blues.
If there’s one thing that always cheers us up, it’s free food.
The brand-new food-to-go brand Good Eats, from the same people behind YO! Sushi, is announcing itself to Manchester locals with an irresistible offer that’ll make sure you remember their name.
Popping up over at their own Good Eats kiosk in the Tesco Express on Market Street, they’ll be handing out free customisable deli trays every day from Monday, 15 January until Friday and all you have to do to grab one is simply turn up and say the right phrase. Easy as.
Credit: Good Eats (supplied)
With their customisable deli trays usually priced at £7.95 each being handed out for free, the new delivery and click-and-collect service is giving away nearly £4,000 of free food to us Mancs.
ADVERTISEMENT
From crispy chicken karaage tossed in a spicy Korean sauce with a side of sweet potato wedges and crunchy Asian slaw, veggie-friendly Moroccan ‘No ‘Meat’balls’ in a rich tomato sauce with Persian salad and customer favourite mac ‘n’ cheese on the side, they aren’t skimp on the selection or serving sizes.
Giving out 100 free meals per day throughout the week of Blue Monday from 11am until 5pm, you simply need to turn up at the kiosk and quote the code ‘DELITRAYTODAY‘ to secure some free scran.
ADVERTISEMENT
We’re feeling a bit more cheered up already.
100 free meals up for grabs per day from Manchester’s Tesco Express store on Market Street.
And the good news doesn’t stop there either. Good Eats will be extending the joy with some brilliant ongoing savings. Tesco Clubcard holders in Manchester will also be able to make the most of their new Good Eats kiosk with exclusive Meal Deals.
Customers can choose from any breakfast main and hot drink for just £2.95 every morning, including nourishing berry porridge or a naughty full English wrap, but things get even better at lunchtime when you can get a bowl, salad or wrap with a side and drink for a £5.95. Absolute bargain.
ADVERTISEMENT
Favourites include the flavour-packed peri-peri chicken bowl, smokey harissa chicken wrap, Persian salad and many, many more.
It goes without saying that once the word gets out, these free meals are going to be snapped up fast, but luckily you’ve got five whole days to try and get your hands on some and Good Eats has plenty of other offers running throughout January.
Free food is always a nice pick me up but here are some other resources in case you’re struggling at any point this month:
The 10 restaurant and bar closures that shocked Greater Manchester in 2025
Daisy Jackson
Greater Manchester has one of the most exciting and fastest-growing restaurant scenes on the planet – but that doesn’t make our city immune from hospitality closures, as 2025 has shown.
Given the economic climate and the increasing pressures on hospitality, it’s actually shocking (and a relief) that we haven’t lost even more beloved local spots.
In 2025, there have been some high-profile closures in Manchester that no one saw coming, as we bid a sad farewell to some local legends.
The good news is that the number of openings still outstrips the number of closures – you can see some of the biggest spots we welcomed last year HERE.
___
Almost Famous
Greater Manchester
Almost Famous / Credit: The Manc Group
It’s no surprise that this was one of the biggest stories in Manchester in 2025, because we simply could not believe our eyes when Almost Famous announced its closure.
The burger craze of the mid-2010s may have died down, but this spot had always felt like a Northern Quarter OG with a loyal enough following to stand the test of time.
Alas, it closed its doors very suddenly back in January, shortly followed by its sister smash burger brand Super Awesome Deluxe, with a staggering outcry and a lot of fall-out locally.
Thankfully, a short while later it was rescued by the team behind PINS Social Club.
___
Hip Hop Chip Shop
Ancoats
Hip Hop Chip Shop / Credit: The Manc Group
Another sad day for the Manchester food scene arrived in February, when Ancoats favourite The Hip Hop Chip Shop announced its closure.
Having first opened in 2014 as a street food stall, to opening their own site in Ancoats, the present financial pressures took their toll, and Hip Hop Chip Shop shut its shutters just a few weeks later.
We still fantasise about their battered halloumi.
___
Another Heart To Feed
Northern Quarter
Another Heart to Feed / Credit: The Manc Group
It felt like one of the Northern Quarter’s top brunch spots, and with queues around the block nearly all the time, seemed like a safe spot.
But the award-winning Another Heart to Feed’s popularity was not enough to overcome the challenges facing the industry.
In their statement, this lovely brunch spot and wine bar thanked customers and staff, past and present – you can read more here.
ADVERTISEMENT
___
Mother Mary’s
Oxford Road
Mother Mary’s / Credit: The Manc Group
One of Manchester’s newest Irish bars announced its sudden and immediate closure in November, citing financial pressures.
Mother Mary’s took over the old student haunt that was Font bar, just off Oxford Road, filling the venue with a state-of-the-art sound system for hosting live music and club nights.
It was much more than just an Irish bar and had become a safe space for so many locals – accessible, queer-inclusive, independent, and dedicated to championing local talent.
One of Manchester’s most legendary bars closed its doors after 13 beautiful years in the city earlier this year, shocking us and everyone who loved it.
Sandinista quietly shut down in October, throwing one final knees-up for loyal (and very sad) punters.
ADVERTISEMENT
The bar, just off St Ann’s Square, was famed for its menu of beers, tequila, and cocktails, including a pint of Zombie served on fire.
There’ll never be another one like it.
___
Bohemian Arts Club
Stockport
Bohemian Arts Club / Credit: The Manc Group
Stockport lost a good one back in September – Bohemian Arts Club, the stunning cocktail bar launched by Blossoms frontman Tom Ogden and his wife Katie, closed for good.
ADVERTISEMENT
It had been a much-loved addition to town, a real vintage-style speakeasy serving top quality drinks, and you could feel all the love the couple had poured into it (even down to the heart-shaped chairs handmade by Katie’s mum and dad).
Thankfully, it stayed in the family – Katie’s incredibly successful Bohemian Salon has expanded from downstairs to take over the entire three-storey building.
___
Feel Good Club
Northern Quarter
Feel Good Club / Credit: Supplied
After five incredible years in the city, brewing up some of the finest coffee, serving an all-day brunch menu full of all your favourite comfort food dishes, hosting countless events, and just generally being a wholesome community space for anyone and everyone who needs it, it’s the end of the road for Feel Good Club.
ADVERTISEMENT
Founders Kiera and Aimie sadly announced they would be closing the doors to their Northern Quarter cafe in the summer, after struggling to stay afloat this past year like so many other local indies.
They said: “We’ve had the time of our lives, and met the most incredible people along the way.”
___
Kala
Manchester City Centre
It was part of Gary Usher’s acclaimed group of restaurants, but Elite Bistros shut down one of its top spots earlier this year.
ADVERTISEMENT
City centre bistro Kala closed for good back in June, with a heartfelt and very honest statement.
Usher wrote: “Thank you to all the team past & present & I’m so sorry to all of you and all the guests that I couldn’t create something with longevity.”
___
Medlock Canteen
New Jackson
Medlock Canteen / Credit: The Manc Group
Just months after celebrating its first birthday, Medlock Canteen announced it was moving out of the Deansgate Square neighbourhood.
ADVERTISEMENT
The brilliant local restaurant served a really gorgeous menu that included rotisserie chicken, full English breakfasts, and quite possibly Manchester’s best Caesar salad.
It was all proper hearty food that you actually want to eat, with a stunning mid-century restaurant space and great drinks too.
___
Osma
Prestwich
Osma / Credit: The Manc Group | Osma
Prestwich’s burgeoning restaurant scene was dealt a major blow at the start of 2025, when Osma announced its closure.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Scandi-esque restaurant was a front-runner of Prestwich’s ever-growing food and drink scene since it opened in 2020, fronted by Manchester born Danielle Heron, who you might recognise from the Great British Menu and MasterChef: The Professionals 2024, alongside Sofie Stoermann-Naess.
You can still find their brilliant cooking at Exhibition in the city centre, but as for the restaurant itself, Osma said they ‘struggled to find experience staff, leaving us with little to no personal life’.
Sorely missed.
___
Featured Image – The Manc Group
Eats
One in six Brits would rather have a curry than a Christmas dinner, new survey reveals
Emily Sergeant
One in six Brits would apparently rather have a curry on Christmas Day in place of a traditional roast dinner, a new survey has revealed.
With the big day merely moments away, it won’t be long before we all sit down to tuck into what is always one of the biggest and heartiest meals of the whole year – but, if the results of a new survey is anything to go by, for a good chunk of Brits, this year’s Christmas feast won’t be the typical roast turkey that tradition’s always called for.
Instead, one in six would rather stray off the beaten track and opt for an Indian instead.
After a shocking survey by Next revealed last year that more than 12 million Brits think Yorkshire puddings belong with your Christmas dinner, around 1,000 UK adults have been polled by instatprint this time around to discover what’s making it on the festive feasting plate in just a few weeks time.
And, as to be expected, some weird and wonderful food combinations feature on the list, with over a third of Brits apparently planning on having sausages instead of the usual Christmas meats, and chips and beans also seem to be on the menu for the fussier eaters among us too.
One in six Brits would apparently rather have a curry than a Christmas dinner / Credit: Andy Hay (via Unsplash)
Chicken nuggets, eggs, caviar, goat’s cheese, haggis, and chimichurri were some of the other rogue choices given by some of the survey respondents.
Then, when it comes to the accompanying sides to the main event, 11% even revealed they plan on tucking into some macaroni cheese with their Christmas dinner this year, with another 11% sharing that mushy peas are a must on their plate too.
17% of Brits will be enjoying mustard, 13% will be squirting ketchup on their roast, and 7% will apparently be enjoying a dollop of mayonnaise too.
It’s all according to the results from a surprising new survey / Credit: Nicole Michalou (via Pexels)
But while some clearly like to freestyle their Christmas dinner and pop whatever they fancy on the plate, others are apparently ditching the norm all together, as the survey has revealed that only half of Brits are set on having their traditional Christmas dinner this year.
As mentioned, almost one in six would much rather tuck into an Indian curry, but not only that, 6% of us would rather have a Chinese, 5% would enjoy Mexican, and another 5% would opt for tapas if it was an option too.
Danny Jones -
15th January 2024 
