There’s a bottomless pancake brunch happening in Manchester’s Northern Quarter on Pancake Day and it sounds absolutely brilliant.
Priced at just £12.50 for 90 minutes of unlimited pancakes and another £15 for non-stop drinks, if you think you can manage to eat your body weight in pancakes then this might just be for you.
Taking place at The Shack in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, pancakes will come loaded with everything from bacon and maple syrup to Biscoff, strawberries and cream, whilst drinks choices will include the likes of prosecco, mimosas, numerous beers, and a couple of different ciders.
Beer and cider drinkers can get stuck into a choice of Coors, Corona, Redstripe, Aspall or Shack fruit cider, and there’s also a cocktail upgrade option for those who want to go all-out.
Image: The Shack MCR
Image: The Shack MCR
Priced at £25 for the cocktail option, this will give you an hour and a half of bottomless pornstar martinis, frozen strawberry daiquiris, caramel chocolate espresso martinis and your choice of house spirit mixers.
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Further pancake topping choices include caramelised banana with caramel and Nutella, Lotus Biscoff and berries, or ‘OG pancakes with the option to add on buttermilk fried chicken for another £2.50.
Available at The Shack all day from 12-11pm or whilst pancakes last, you’ll need to book in advance in order to guarantee a seat there on the day.
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An independent sports bar a the corner of High Street, when it’s not slinging gout pancakes The Shack is known for its live sports screenings, massive burgers and games – like pool tables, ping pong, beer pong and darts.
Image: The Shack MCR
Image: The Shack MCR
Split over three floors, it is open from 10am daily and typically serves its brunch until 1pm (pancake day being an exception).
On the ground floor, it’s all about casual dining, booth seating and private screens showing all the live sport you could desire.
Then downstairs in the basement, the sports bar and club space typically has residents playing tunes every weekend to bring the party vibes.
To make a booking for the bottomless pancake brunch at The Shack, click here.
Feature image – The Shack MCR
Eats
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.
The hillside farm in the Peak District making its own ice cream
Daisy Jackson
Did you know there’s a 300-year-old farm in the Peak District serving up some of the freshest ice cream you’ll ever taste? And yes, you can meet the cows that made it while you’re there.
Welcome to Hope Valley Ice Cream, a family-run gem where things are kept refreshingly simple: happy cows, proper farming, and seriously good ice cream.
Set in the heart of the Peak District countryside, this place is about as wholesome as it gets.
The ice cream is made on-site in the farmhouse, literally just metres from where the dairy herd are out grazing.
You can watch the animals, wander around the farm, and then tuck into a scoop or three perched on a milk pail stool, or a picnic bench (or even a decorative tractor).
Hope Valley Ice Cream has some amazing seasonal ice creams, like lemon curd, elderflower, and blackberry, alongside all the classics and a rather delicious tiramisu.
You can grab a cone, sit down with a coffee (again, made with milk from the nearby cows), or go all in with a freshly-made waffle if you’re feeling fancy.
Takeaway tubs from Hope Valley Ice CreamYou can get a mini pail of ice creamMeet the newborn calves at Hope Valley Ice CreamTuck into your ice cream on a milk pail stoolHope Valley Ice Cream
And if you’re the type who really loves ice cream? You can actually order a full pail of it, with four huge scoops plus whipped cream and sauce.
The farm itself is run by the Marsden family, who’ve been working this land for generations. It shows in everything – they’ve created a place that feels genuinely welcoming, not just another tourist stop.
Beyond the ice cream, you’ve got plenty of reasons to stick around. There are calves (including the newest tiny arrivals), plus donkeys and pigs to say hello to.
Whether you’re heading out on a hike or just fancy a drive into the Peaks, this is one pitstop that’s absolutely worth it – and honestly, it’s worth the trip on its own.
Georgina Pellant -
9th February 2023 
