Sud, the pasta kitchen formerly known as Sugo, has announced a new chapter after saying it would be closing all four restaurants in their current guise.
The much-loved local Italian spot has said that Sud will cease to exist in Ancoats, Altrincham, Sale, and at Exhibition, from the end of this year.
But it’s not totally curtains for the restaurant group, with new plans for a brand new concept now confirmed.
The new restaurants will be called Rigatonti’s, and will serve hearty bowls of house-made Rigatoni from just £7.50.
The founders of Sud and Rigatoni’s say they want to bring ‘pasta to the masses’, with pasta made fresh daily at each site.
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The pasta will be extruded through a bronze die, lending it a rough texture for sauces to cling to, ‘asciutta’ style.
Sauces to go with the rigatoni include nduja meatballs in Amatriciana (£13.50), brown crab in vodka sauce (£12.50), and Fazool white beans with garlic, fresh chilli and parm (£9.50).
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Or to keep it cheap and easy, there’s a simple extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and parm rigatoni for £7.50.
For appetisers, there are dishes including a £6 fried mozzarella and pesto sandwich, salami and potato crocchette, and chickpea fritters, plus foccaccia toasts with toppings including Gorgonzola whip and hot honey, grated tomato and garlic, or black olive and caper.
Sud’s new venture in Manchester will be called Rigatoni’sSud’s new venture in Manchester will be called Rigatoni’s
The new restaurant will still be fronted by the Manchester-born brothers behind the original Sugo Pasta Kitchen, which launched in Altrincham way back in 2015 and expanded fast across Greater Manchester.
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Alex de Martiis, co-founder, said: “Change has been a regular thing for us recently – that stops with Rigatoni’s. We want to build a sustainable business that allows us to serve the customers in our communities for years to come.
“The next chapter in our journey is all about creating an accessible, uncomplicated menu that makes Rigatoni’s somewhere that people come to time and time again.
“Whether it’s a quick lunch on a Tuesday, or a Saturday night with mates, pasta shouldn’t just be for occasions.”
The launch dates for each restaurant will be announced on Rigatoni’s social channels, with bookings open in January. For more information or to sign up to hear more visit www.letsrigatoni.co.uk.
Inside Plere, Chorlton’s sunniest new bar with great wines and tinned fish
Daisy Jackson
Chorlton’s sunniest street has a new addition, with the arrival of wine bar and small plates restaurant Plere.
The new opening comes from couple Lee and Fiona, who’ve taken up a unit on Beech Road that’s been vacant for a few years and turned into a beautiful, light-flooded neighbourhood venue.
Plere takes its name from the Latin term ‘to fulfill’, and that’s exactly what this new spot has been doing ever since its arrival last month.
Plere’s menu is made up of easy small plates, including charcuterie and cheese plates, Portuguese tinned fish, and hummus, all served with quality bread from Holy Grain.
There’s a decent selection of craft beer too, including their own lager on draught in collaboration with Cloudwater, and tonnes of different wines available by the glass.
Inside Plere in ChorltonThe sunny terrace at Plere
There pavement terrace is a proper little sun-trap too, so it’s perfect for enjoying a pint or two in the Manchester sun.
With DJs spinning vinyls until late across the weekend and a solid team on the bar, this is a new opening you should get behind.
On launch weekend, Lee and Fiona wrote: “We are completely overwhelmed by all the lovely comments and amazing responses from you all on our opening weekend.
“Thank you so much for making us feel so welcome, we look forward to seeing you soon.”
The cosy Peak District pub serving a pick’n’mix sausage and mash menu
Daisy Jackson
There’s a Peak District pub that’s turned one of Britain’s most beloved comfort foods into a full-on pick’n’mix.
Tucked away in the postcard-perfect village of Castleton, Ye Olde Nags Head is serving up a fully customisable menu of sausage and mash dishes.
We’re talking near-endless combinations of proper pub grub.
You start by choosing your sausages from a daily rotating selection (not a sentence you hear every day, but we’re into it).
Expect classics like Cumberland alongside more adventurous options like venison and mustard, or even wild boar and orange, plus a veggie sausage daily.
Then it’s onto the mash – you can go for flavours like cheese and onion, wholegrain mustard, or even black pudding mash.
Classic cumberland, mustard mash, and mushroom sauceVeggie sausage with cheese and onion mash and classic gravyTucking in
To finish? A choice of rich, hearty gravies and sauces to bring it all together, whether that’s a classic onion gravy, a peppercorn sauce, or a creamy wild mushroom sauce.
And if that wasn’t enough, you can even upgrade your bangers and mash pick’n’mix by having it all served inside a giant Yorkshire pudding.
Ye Olde Nags Head is a historic 17th-century pub, with a roaring fire in every room and cosy bedrooms upstairs.
Inside Ye Olde Nags Head pub in the Peak DistrictYe Olde Nags Head pub is near Mam Tor
It’s one of those flagstone-floored, beamed-ceilinged, mismatched-furniture type pubs that welcomes everyone in every state, whether you’re caked in mud from a hike or popping in on a coach tour.
Another of the pub’s specialties is the Derbyshire Breakfast, a hearty plate of sausage, smoked bacon, black pudding, free range egg, grilled tomatoes, field mushrooms, baked beans and fried bread.
The pub also offers takeaway breakfast butties, so you can use it for both a pre-hike stop and a post-hike pint.
Given it’s just minutes from the ever-popular Mam Tor hike, this is one pub you’ll definitely want to add to your next Peak District day out itinerary.
Daisy Jackson -
20th December 2023 
