A new underground tiki bar is opening in the Northern Quarter, it has been revealed.
Called Tiki Hideaway, it will move into the former District unit on Oldham Street alongside Deep South-inspired dive bar concept Mean Eyed Cat.
Brought to Manchester city centre by a group of Yorkshire operators, both Tiki Hideaway and Mean Eyed Cat have already proven incredibly popular over in Leeds.
Now, after 20 years of success in their hometown, bosses are trying their hand at entertaining a Mancunian crowd.
Below ground, Hawaiian-themed rum shack Tiki Hideaway will have a fun and friendly atmosphere with chilled-out Caribbean-inspired cocktails and its Flaming Zombie, which packs a punch.
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Image: Tiki Hideaway
The ‘Dead Man’s’ cocktail sharing chest. / Image: Tiki Hideaway
Upstairs, meanwhile, the new dive bar Mean Eyed Cat promises free pizzas and serious party vibes as it looks set to challenge the likes of Junior Jackson’s for the approval of the NQ’s late-night party crowd.
Known for its rebellious spirit, wild party games with free drinks and great cocktails, Mean Eyed Cat’s free pizzas are available with every drink, every day from 5pm to 9pm, and come topped with the likes of Cheeseburger, Chipotle Fajita and Buffalo Cauliflower.
Drinks, meanwhile, include several Johnny Cash-themed cocktails including I Walk The Lime, a Key Lime Pie inspired creamy classic with Absolut lime vodka, apple juice, sugar syrup, cream, lime curd and a sprinkling of lime zest, and Ting of Fire, a zesty, fruity, vodka number with watermelon liqueur and Ting grapefruit juice, creating an easily chug-able cocktail.
Both The Mean-Eyed Cat and Tiki Hideaway are open until late in Leeds, and plan to have the same opening hours in the Manchester venue.
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The venues are owned by independent hospitality firm Escapism Bars, which has bars in Leeds and Liverpool, and also plans to open venues in Birmingham, Nottingham, and Sheffield over the next two years.
Grant Dexter, Managing Director at Escapism Bars, said: “With many hospitality firms and venues feeling the pinch due to the energy crisis and cost of living, it’s exciting to be able to open these awesome venue, which includes not one but two incredible bars, in this popular area in Manchester which spans the NQ and Ancoats.
“We opened The Mean-Eyed Cat in Leeds back in 2004 and it has stood the test of time, attracting students, after work drinkers, party goers and anyone that likes to let their hair down. We can’t wait to see what Manchester’s legendary revellers make of the venues!”
Featured image – Tiki Hideaway
Eats
Shoppers fume as Lipton Ice Tea axes ‘best’ flavour
Daisy Jackson
Another day, another heartbreaking discontinued brand – and this time it’s Lipton Ice Tea letting us down.
The popular soft drink company announced yesterday that one of its best-selling flavours, which many fans argue is its best flavour full stop, will soon cease to exist.
There are a lot of unhappy ice tea fans out there today…
Lipton Ice Tea broke the news yesterday that its Peach flavoured drink is being discontinued, and gave absolutely no logical reasoning for it.
The summer staple, perfect poolside drink, hangover cure, sweet and fruity fix in a bottle, is leaving our fridges.
They wrote in a post titled ‘Rest in Peach’: “You may have heard that our iconic Peach Lipton Ice Tea flavour is getting discontinued. We know – it hurts (sorry if we’ve ruined your go-to afternoon chill bev).”
Lipton Ice Tea then continued: “But don’t worry, the rest of your faves are still here to keep you refreshed.
“And who knows? Maybe one day, Peach will make a legendary comeback. We appreciate your understanding during this period of adjustment and apologize for any inconvenience caused.”
One gutted fan commented: “how tf does a company discontinue arguably it’s best seller.”
Another said: “This is like Coca Cola discontinuing Coke.”
Someone else wrote: “PLEASE tell me this is a joke don’t play with my emotions like this xxx”
And one person said: “Please rethink this decision im going to throw up.”
On TikTok, someone said: “With Lipton Peach Iced Tea gone, a part of me feels lost. It was a comforting escape in this hectic world, and now every empty shelf reminds me of the void it’s left behind.”
New Almost Famous owners praised for ‘honest’ statement about burger joint
Daisy Jackson
The new owners of Almost Famous have released a lengthy statement addressing the legendary burger joint’s shock closure and sudden reopening.
The statement touches on everything from hiring back old teams to reopening those remaining venues that didn’t survive the takeover.
And this ‘transparent and honest communication’ has earned them a wave of praise from fans, who say it’s a ‘breath of fresh air’.
In their statement shared a week after reopening Almost Famous, D2 – the company behind PINS Social Club bowling bar in Liverpool – addressed plenty of the rumours and noise surrounding the high-profile closure.
“No, it wasn’t a publicity stunt,” they stressed, adding: “It wasn’t a pre-planned takeover – we saw the news at the same time everyone else and acted quickly.”
Addressing the staff who were made redundant when former Almost Famous operator Beautiful Drinks shut the brand down, D2 assured followers that they have ‘hired as many of the old team as we could’.
And as for their outstanding wages, they added: “We moved heaven and earth to get them a pay check in February as we knew they hadn’t been paid since December.
Food at Almost Famous since D2’s takeover of the legendary burger brand. Credit: The Manc Group
“It was really important to be able to reopen the venues quickly – we wanted to get staff back into their jobs and keep the existing suppliers -otherwise it wouldn’t have been the same brand we all loved, would it?
“If we hadn’t been able to reopen at the speed that we did – then the existing teams would have had to look at new jobs and we’d have risked losing brilliant people. If you don’t believe us ask them.”
When D2 took over Almost Famous, they had initially toyed with the idea of having it as the food operator in its PINS Social Club, but instead swiftly reopened the restaurants in the Northern Quarter and in Liverpool – though its Leeds and Great Northern sites never got back to slinging burgers.
On that, they said: “Leeds – we’ve not forgotten you. Ideally we’d have all four sites reopen now but the lease agreements were more complicated for Leeds and Great Northern. We had to prioritise the sites we knew we’d be able to save and we’re hoping that we’ll be able to look for new sites soon.”
Since sharing their statement on Instagram, Almost Famous has been flooded with praise from customers for their honest take.
One person wrote: “Great to read such an open and transparent statement about everything, especially regarding the old staff, and their pay, the staff at the NQ have always been one of the reasons I’ve kept visiting anytime I’m up in Manchester.
“I’m looking forward to making a visit at the end of the month when I’m up in the city for an overnight stay.”
Another commented: “This is awesome! I love how upfront and honest you have been with all of this. Taking the OG team back too – more businesses need to take this lead! Good luck with your amazing future, I’ll be bobbing in to get my AF fix ASAP.”
And someone else said: “This is honestly such a positive sign. The fact you’re being completely transparent is a breath of fresh air – I had no idea the previous owners hadn’t paid their staff. I really hope the Leeds branch opens again.”
Georgina Pellant -
21st July 2023 
