There aren’t many things we love more than meat and gravy wrapped in pastry, so when we heard that there was going to be an eight-course tasting menu revolving almost entirely around pie, we started salivating so much we practically had to wipe down our keyboards.
In what might just be the best food concept we’ve heard of in a while, the brand-new pie-tasting menu is the calorific lovechild of beloved Mancunian brands, Ate Days A Week and Baldy’s Pies, two of the best and most decorated pie-makers you’ll find anywhere in the region.
This is an idea that has never been done before as far as we can tell (certainly not in Greater Manchester, anyway) and is exactly what it sounds like: plates upon plates of pies, pies, pies, a.k.a. a Northerner’s gravy-soaked wet dream.
Popping up in the equally popular Deep South-inspired bar Notion over in Stockport, where Ate Days A. Week serve up pies week in and week out, the unique and exclusive dining experience is designed not only to fill bellies near to bursting but “elevate the humble pie to new heights”.
We’re drooling and these aren’t even the actual pies you’ll be trying — you’ll only get to see them on the night.
That’s the word of the event’s co-creator and Ate Days A Week founder, Andy James, who is promising to give diners a food memory “you never knew you wanted”, not mention “intrigue, delight and wow” customers some seriously interesting and even daring twists on a classic dish adored by all.
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But as if the SK and Wigan staples’ expertise wasn’t enough, the inaugural edition of ‘PieSessions’ boasts some an even bigger culinary calibre, as the two brands will also be joined by fellow Wigan-based favourites and this year’s Bake Off: The Professionals finalists, Harwoods Patisserie, as well as former MasterChef contestant, Scott Eckersley-Bell, who’ll be serving some signature Scotty’s Pies.
With the menu broken up into eight different courses featuring four pie dishes and four snacks, each team has come up with their own clever and boundary-pushing creations. Trust us when we say you’ll never have sat down for a pie like any of these before.
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Raise your hand if you’ve ever had a Japanese-inspired pie with katsu chicken curry, miso mash, furikake and a teriyaki bacon flake. Nope? Didn’t think so. How about a poached fish pie with curried cauliflower, spinach and mushroom soaked in a leek and cream sauce with a potato and chive rosti on the side?
The pie tasting menu for the first-ever PieSessions night at Notion Bar, Stockport
Of course you haven’t! Literally no one has ever tried any of these utterly incredible-sounding concoctions but we can’t wait to be among the first to try them — and so can you. You’ll probably beat us there though as our mouths are watering just typing this up.
As you can see, the selection of snacks and non-pie-related dishes are no joke either; we’d pay silly money for a beef short rib slider to start off a meal and those desserts look so devilish we’re not sure we’ll ever be absolved.
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Better still, since it’s taking place on an early mid-week evening at one of Stockport‘s best bars, we can’t think of many better ways to get you looking forward to a post-work treat.
To be honest, we’re pretty sure this is going to make our week full-stop.
Now, while securing a spot for PieSessions isn’t cheap, make no mistake: this isn’t just sitting down to scran any old pie you could order from the pub or a pasty shop — it’s an original dining experience celebrating one of the nation’s most iconic dishes and best-loved ways to devour meat and carbs.
That being said, costing £80 for admission per head, it’s still a very reasonable and competitive price compared to most high-end tasting menus and one thing we can guarantee is that you’ll feel much fuller than you would with most others.
Doors open from 6:30pm on 21 November at Notion; you’ll get a welcome drink upon arrival and there’ll be two bars serving drinks all night long. We honestly can’t wait for this and if you didn’t get excited by reading those menus alone, we’re not sure there’s help for you (sorry not sorry).
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There’s only a handful of tickets still left so grab yours whilst you still can HERE.
Featured Image — Supplied/Notion Bar (via Facebook)
Eats
Manchester’s Cat Café is set to reopen four years after its closure
Danny Jones
Feline fans, rejoice, because Cat Café Manchester looks like it is reopening more than four whole years after its unfortunate closure.
The city centre’s much-loved cat café – the only one of its kind in Greater Manchester and among just a small handful in the North West – closed back in 2021 following unavoidable economic struggles brought about by the pandemic
Despite being hugely popular before having to shut its doors, the business was unable to reach an agreement with their landlord at the time and the owners were left with no other choice than to close permanently – or so we thought…
Seemingly back from the dead and published their first post since 11 January 2021, the official Instagram page shared just one line along with a picture of their soon-to-be new premises.
Briefly teasing fans ahead of an official announcement, the post reads: “Manchester we’ve missed you! There’s only one thing this place needs…”
The shot taken across the road from Manchester’s historic Barton Arcade shows the large shopfront unit on the main Deansgate strip where the original Classic Football Shirts store used to be.
As you can see, although the vintage footy kit reseller’s brand and decals still remain plastered on the windows, the two-storey location has been vacant since October 2023 when CFS moved their flagship Manchester branch to Dale Street in the Northern Quarter.
We’ve personally been wondering what might take the old venue’s place for a while now, with the rest of the Grade II-listed Victorian shopping arcade populated by food and drink spaces, a barbershop and fashion retailers like The R Store, but after all this time the last thing we expect was the Cat Café.
This will no doubt come as wonderful news to the countless fans who were gutted to see it disappear just a few short years ago.
At the time, a fundraiser was set up in an attempt to rescue it and the pet-forward coffee shop format also paved the way for similar ventures like this one over Salford.
Although we’re still yet to hear any more details regarding a possible reopening date, we can safely assume their four-year hiatus will be coming to an end sometime in 2025.
When they were still up and running, the café had 10 resident cats at their original site on the edge of NQ, now home to one of two Gooeys in Manchester.
It is worth noting that there were some concerns raised around hygiene and animal welfare, though we’re sure steps have been taken to address these issues in the interim.
The Didsbury Dozen loses one of its best as The Dockyard confirms closure
Danny Jones
The Didsbury Dozen has lost one of its strongest stops as the much-loved Dockyard sadly closed for good this past weekend.
A favourite among those taking on the popular Greater Manchester pub crawl and a busy bar in its own right along the main Didsbury Village strip, The Dockyard has been a staple of South Manchester boozing for some time.
However, it’s time as part of the Dozen and in the heart of the community has come to an end, with the staff having completed their final service on Sunday, 19 January.
Sharing a short but heartfelt goodbye on social media, they welcomed customers to join them one last time “to raise a glass and say cheers!”.
An unreal beer garden too. (Credit: The Manc Group)
The post begins: “Right Didsbury… Thank you so much for your welcome and custom when we arrived here in the village, but the time has now come to say goodbye. We have had a blast over the last four years and we hope you have too!”
Although many relatively new to the area or at least its drinking scene will only know it as The Dockyard, the venue has actually been under a lot of names over the years.
Originally known as Times Square, it was then refurbished into a branch of O’Neills in 1996 before going on to re-open as The Stokers Arms in 2014.
Nevertheless, it maintained a regular and loyal following as The Dockyard and many will be “sorry to see it go”; one person commented: “Oh no! We had a fab time in here over Christmas and [were] hoping to return soon. Sorry to see you go and I will be visiting your other sites.
Thankfully, they did go on to confirm that the remaining pubs in Salford Quays and Northwich will remain open – as is the Left Bank location in Spinningfields overlooking the River Irwell. Better still, the building itself will still remain a pub and we already know what’s taking its place:
Although there is still no news on when we can expect to see The Salmon’s second venture launch, if it’s anything like the success the Northern Quarter one has seen then we’re in for a treat.
So don’t worry, The Didsbury Dozen may have taken a hit but it’s still intact and there are plenty of other pubs you can work into the crawl in the meantime.
For now, though, all we can say is rest in peace to The Dockyard Didsbury, you were a real one – we’ll always have the memories.
Danny Jones -
8th November 2023 
