“If you’re not hungover at least one day of the weekend, you’re a boring person,” jokes Eunji Noh with a joyfully infectious giggle as she takes our order.
It’s early still, but at 5 o’clock on a wet Friday afternoon spent stomping around Chorlton I’m more than ready for a drink and speedily order a pint.
Ok, honestly it’s not my first, but it seems that Eunji and I are on the same page. My date, however, has already had enough. She asks me if it’s ok if she orders a Coke.
When I say yes, of course, Eunji laughs, then explains – saying I’m a good friend, and that all of hers would have flat-out refused to allow her to have a soft drink on a night out.
Considering this place is called The Thirsty Korean, I guess we should have both known what we were getting into.
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Straddling the line between bar and restaurant, drinking is, evidenltly, highly encouraged here – but the dishes are also substantial and well-worth coming in for on their own (if you can swerve the peer pressure, that is.)
Eyeing the menu eagerly, and almost instantly deciding that I want all of the kimchi, we opt for a pot on the side as well as one of Eunji’s spicy, thin fermented cabbage pancakes.
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Served with a dipping sauce littered with tiny sesame seeds, it’s hot, spicy, crispy, a little sweet, sour, and a little salty at once. Chunky slices of cabbage keep coming to the fore. It’s stunning.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
Perfect washed down with a pint of beer, after some enthusiastic slicing and dipping we move onto the main attraction: beef noodles and fried chicken.
The chapaguri noodles are relatively simple to make, famously comprised of two different packets of instant noodles – slightly sweet jjapaghetti and spicy neoguri – then topped with steak and, in Chorlton, a sprinkle of spring onion.
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Internaionally renowned thanks to their appearance in the four-time-Oscar-winning South Korean film Parasite, which took home Best Picturem Best International Film and Best Director in 2020, I couldn’t resist opting for a portion despite wondering if they had been a bit overhyped at the time. How wrong I was.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
Stir fried in a black bean sauce with hefty chunks of sirloin on top, it’s simple but effective with a mild spice.
As for the KFC? It’s a perfectly crisp and casual end to a rainy afternoon, served with a sweet and sticky chilli dipping sauce on the side.
Quite a few people, prior to my visit said that if you want to eat like a true Korean then this is the place to go.
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Its walls are decorated with Korean film posters, post cards and photographs of friends, whilst the furniture has something of a hodge-podge, thrown-together feel about it that merely adds to the bar’s charm.
The real highlight, food (and soju) aside, though, has to be Eunji herself – a bonafide bubble of positivity, with a friendly, jokey way about her that just makes you feel instantly at home.
If there was any doubt about her happy radiance, it was my trip to the ladies that really sealed the deal.
It’s not something you’d usually put in a food review, going to the bathroom, but this has to be mentioned.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
The walls, inside, are plastered with inspirational quotes dating back to 2019 and stretching all the way through the pandemic – a difficult time for many eateries, The Thirsy Korean included.
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En masse, they are overwhelming, especially after a few drinks, a long day and a belly full of fried chicken, kimchi and noodles.
One, dated to June 2019, reads: “You don’t inspire others by being perfect. You inspire others by how you deal with your imperfections.”
Another says: “Stop trying to make everyone happy. You’re not tequila.”
All signed ‘Your friend EJ”, it’s hard not to feel a bit emotional as we make our departure. Yes, part of that might be the drink, but even on our way out I find myself making plans to come back – just to bask in Eunji’s warmth.
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It’s easy to see why Chorltonites rave about this place so much, and after a visit I’m definitely joining their ranks.
Featured image – The Manc Eats
Eats
UK pub chain announces bottomless Guinness for the 2026 Six Nations
Danny Jones
As we all know, Guinness and the Six Nations go hand in hand, so pubs not only showing all of this year’s games, but also serving bottomless pints of the good stuff here in Greater Manchester, is an absolute match made in heaven.
With the 2026 Six Nations tournament kicking off this Thursday, 5 February – a France vs Ireland opener in Paris – Manc rugby fans are already nailing down their go-to spots to watch the fixtures.
However, we can’t think of many other places offering bottomless black gold in town, let alone anywhere else in and around Manchester.
So, if you were still unsure of where to watch this year’s tournament, the Social Pub and Kitchen group might have just made the decision for you…
That’s right, this widespread British chain is looking to keep the pints flowing throughout the duration of this year’s competition, thanks to a twist on their standard bottomless brunch format.
Running for every single televised meeting between the much-loved half dozen rugby union teams, all 103 of their locations across the country will be providing this impressive offer on pints.
Here in central Manchester, that includes Tank and Paddle in the Printworks, Crafty Pig on the edge of the Northern Quarter, The Beech Inn in Chorlton, and The Director’s Box right in the heart of the city – and dangerously close to The Manc office…
As well as these nearby venues, there are obviously plenty more around the North West for those slightly further afield, including the likes of Cheshire and Derbyshire.
With a new food menu too, which features several honey-based dishes like the sweet sriracha pizza, chipotle loaded fries, as well as honey chipotle chicken wings, the matchday scran is on point.
So too are the drinks, clearly, and if any of your party wants to stray away from the bottomless Guinness, there are series of special Six Nations-themed cocktails, such as the ‘Midnight in Dublin’, a ‘Peach on the Pitch’ margarita, Baby Velvet, and the bold ‘G-Bomb’.
Yes, we suspect it is as boozy as it sounds.
Running throughout February and March whilst the games are on, we imagine plenty of people will be making at least one Social Pub and Kitchen site their chosen destination for watching all the action.
Even if you happen to be reading this outside of Greater Manchester, you can find your nearest Social Pub and Kitchen and book your table right HERE.
And if you’d still like some other alternatives here in the city centre, you can do no wrong with our helpful little round-up.
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Publicity picture (supplied)
Eats
First Look | Grué Pastry – Alty’s real introduction to ‘entremet’, a.k.a one of our new foodie obsessions
Danny Jones
We might have a new sweet treat obsession, and it’s all Grué Pastry’s lovely fault: the small but pretty new pâtisserie and café over in Altrincham.
Located just off the busy Stamford Quarter, you’ll find Grué’s stylish little shop and already plenty of nosy passersby being seduced in by its pristine white counter.
While they do more familiar traditional desserts like tarts, cookies and tiramisu, their signature item is the wide range of ‘entremets’.
Even tinier than the venue, but packed full of different fillings, textures and layers (SO many layers), these picture-perfect treats almost look too stunning to eat, but of course, we did.
It’s not just a shiny little chocolate, nor is it merely a posh miniature cake with some clever decorations – this is quite literally an art form, and it takes time and precision – lots of it, in fact.
Requiring plenty of technique and patience, anyone who has the talent and persistence to pursue this very specific genre of pastry has our eternal admiration.
A rather painstaking process, split over a number of days, each carefully designed and layered entremet is a real labour of love.
For instance, not only is everything made from scratch right down to the most minute detail possible, but the inserts have to be mixed, assembled, frozen and then allowed to fully set before any of the finishing touches can be put on.
We’ve seen these kinds of ‘fake fruits’ and cakes with surprise interiors before, but nothing as delicate and nuanced as these.
Co-owner Wissam Jedar joked that they can’t exactly grow their own pistachios, but they can flavour and roast them themselves, control every how much sugar, spice, and everything nice goes into these perfect few bites.
He also told us about how many people have been surprised by just how filling these things are.
They’re not just a small mouthful or two, as some people expect; the various considered and contrasting layers of rich and varied textures inside an entremet are like biting into something entirely new each time, especially when the appearance can often be intentionally deceptive.
It’s also impressive how many of these aren’t as naughty calorie-wise as you might expect.
They rely almost entirely on all-natural sugars only, and the flavours come through fresh, clean, not too sweet and often super sharp. Picture biting into what you think is ‘obviously’ lemon dessert in a light chocolate shell shaped like an actual lemon, only to taste fresh, chilled and tart apple with fragrant mint…
Are you kidding? Incroyable.
But this is just the start. Wissam also told us that both he and his partner, Farah Bioche, have to try their hardest not just to create consistently uniform entremets, but also not to let their imaginations run too wild and come up with concoctions as crazy as some of those they think up.
He says that Farah, in particular – the master baker behind their incredible workshop in Salford and the in-house bakery in their new Alty kitchen – has some seriously BIG ideas, but they’re trying to drip feed and nail them before fully introducing them to the menu.
They cater for events, do larger-scale desserts and are perfect for Valentine’s Day. (Credit: The Manc)
Another example of this is when it comes to the hot drinks menu. There’s a simple but classic coffee menu too – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? – but they’re also planning to add coffees with special meringue and even tiramisu toppers. Yum.
With Wissam’s sister running the social media, word of mouth spreading fast, and locals quickly catching on to the buzz behind this new opening, we reckon it won’t be long before you see this place all over your timelines.
They’ve also noted that despite raising a few eyebrows over price points at first, once someone has tried one (however speculatively), it usually isn’t too long before they come back to hold their hands up and sample another one.
So, if you’ve a bit of a sweet tooth but don’t want to be left feeling like you’ve overindulged in something slightly too sickly, trying an entremet from Grué in Altrincham town centre might just be your ticket.
Georgina Pellant -
28th July 2023 
