A stand-up dining experience with no chairs is coming to a Manchester Italian restaurant, bringing a new take on eating out to the UK for the very first time.
Taken straight from the heart of Northern Italy, Apericena (a mix of aperitivo and cena, meaning dinner) does away with the traditional formal dining setup to inject a little bit more fun into your suppertime.
A concept born in Piedmont, this sort of happy hour-meets-dinner blends the bar and restaurant together – encouraging friends and family to share good food and drinks, without the restriction of being plonked in a corner.
Now, it’s coming to Manchester courtesy of premium Piedmont Alpine Birra Menabrea, which is giving diners the chance to experience the growing trend for themselves with a series of exclusive Apericena evenings hosted across the UK this September.
Italian restaurants in Manchester, London and Glasgow are removing low tables and chairs for the first time, recreating the sort of buzzy, social atmosphere you’ll find down on the continent.
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Set against the buzzing backdrop of DJ sets, attendees will enjoy delicious Piedmontese-style small plates served up alongside ice-cold Menabrea Birra brewed from the very region where the concept was first born.
Haunt MCR on Portland Street will host the Apericena event this September in partnership with Menabrea. / Image: The Manc Eats
Menabrea Birra has partnered with chef and food writer Nina Parker, who will be authentically bringing the concept to life through bespoke menus. / Image: The Manc Eats
Apericena is predominantly focused on food, using the finest quality ingredients from the Northern Italian region.
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Bringing the Italian flavour, Menabrea Birra has partnered with chef and food writer Nina Parker, who will be authentically bringing the concept to life through bespoke menus.
With a passion for Italian cuisine, Nina will prepare mouth-watering and bitesize traditional Piedmontese dishes, drawing inspiration from the meticulously sourced ingredients used to brew Menabrea – Italy’s finest Alpine Birra.
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Diners will also have the opportunity to learn how to recreate Apericena meals in their home.
Speaking on the event Antonina Parker, chef and writer, said: “I can’t wait to bring these unique events to the UK with Menabrea. I have a personal tie to Italian cuisine through my family heritage, so collaborating with one of Italy’s most renowned beers was an opportunity I couldn’t resist.
“I look forward to welcoming guests to the events to discover one of Italy’s best kept secrets where they can enjoy a more social and connected experience while sampling tasty food, award-winning Italian beer and music.”
Menabrea has been brewed in the Piedmont region, at the foot of the Italian Alps for more than 175 years in Italy’s oldest continuously producing brewery – now in its fifth generation.
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Angus Lawrie, spokesperson at Menabrea, said: “Taking inspiration from the incredible cuisine and engaging culture of its home region, our Menabrea Apericena series will be an evening like no other.
Image: Haunt MCR
Image: Haunt MCR
“Delicious small plates will be served alongside Piedmont’s most famous Italian Alpine Birra, Menabrea, brewed with passion using only the finest quality ingredients at the foot of the Alps for five generations.
“We are so excited to bring guests a true taste of Northern Italy at the UK’s first-ever standing dining experiences across Manchester, London and Glasgow this summer.”
With no ‘tables’ to book, those wanting to experience the limited-edition Apericena evenings will need to secure a spot online to enjoy evenings across Manchester, London and Glasgow.
Electrik Bar in Chorlton is giving away 100 FREE frankfurters to celebrate their latest kitchen collab
Danny Jones
We all love a freebie, so we thought we’d spread the good word of the scran lords by letting you know that Electrik over in Chorlton is giving away 100 free frankfurters to celebrate their newest menu takeover.
The popular neighbourhood bar and kitchen on Wilbraham Road in the South Manchester suburb has had a couple of different foodie collaborations over the past couple of years, with local residents Paramogeddon and Four Side Vegan Pizza being the most recent, but now they’re doing hot dogs.
Welcoming their latest vendors Tisch Und Teller, Electrik will be giving away a total of 100 free frankfurters to the first century of people there this evening.
Bringing a taste of Berlin, Bavaria, Frankfurt and more (with a Manc twist, of course) to the popular pub for the Thursday launch party, all you need to do is order a drink upon arrival to get your hands on a free frankfurter sandwiched between a lovely fluffy roll.
Who doesn’t love a hot dog? Especially when they’re giving them away.
As for Tisch Und Teller (TuT), they’ve been serving up German-inspired favourites from the likes of The Shakespeare in Manchester city centre and Nip and Tipple in Whalley Range since September last year, including some very impressive brunches and Sunday roasts.
But the brand just keeps gaining more traction and now they’re setting up shop in Electrik, we’re sure the word will continue to spread – and fast.
Better still, as advertised on the promo poster, not only will TuT now be serving up their delicious food from Electrik every Thursday-Sunday for the foreseeable but the launch party will also live music by local legend and DJing veteran, Abigail Ward of Ghost Assembly.
Free food, pints and top tunes – what more could you ask for on a random weeknight?
The offer will be available from 6pm tonight and, once again, you have to be among the first 100 people to buy a pint to be eligible for a free frankfurter.
Manchester’s new Instagrammable coffee shop is giving away FREE drinks tomorrow
Emily Sergeant
One of Manchester’s newest Instagrammable coffee shops is giving away free drinks tomorrow ahead of the bank holiday weekend.
With another long weekend right around the corner, and much of Greater Manchester and the UK fortunately looking set to bask in the springtime heat, popular coffee chain, Blank Street – which is one of Manchester city centre’s newest residents, with two sites in Piccadilly Gardens, and on the corner of King Street and Cross Street – has decided it wants to help the country “beat the 3pm slump”.
Ahead of the upcoming bank holiday weekend, the chain is inviting Mancs to “meet for matcha” tomorrow afternoon (Friday 3 May).
The exciting freebie offer is all said to be “inspired by data” that shows that almost half of office workers aren’t taking a break from their desks during the day, even despite research showing that this can boost productivity.
Hundreds of iced matcha lattes will be served up at Blank Street‘s Manchester branch on the corner of King Street and Cross Street between 3pm and 4pm tomorrow.
Manchester’s new Instagrammable coffee shop is giving away free drinks tomorrow / Credit: Blank Street
For anyone “ice cold pick-me-up ahead of the long weekend”, but keen not to tip their employers off, the coffee shop chain has created an online tool to allow workers to discreetly add a matcha moment to their diary.
The brand-new online tool will apparently help to “distract calendar snoopers” by creating a cleverly-named meeting and adding it automatically to Outlook, Google, or Apple calendars – with potential meeting titles that include plenty of corporate jargon to “provide the perfect alibi”.
So, all matcha fans need to do tomorrow afternoon is show the Blank Street team at their chosen branch a meeting in their calendar, and in return, they’ll receive a free small iced matcha latte of their choice from the chain’s delicious spring menu.
Blank Street’s popular matcha offering includes the Classic Matcha, the viral Blueberry Matcha, the silky-smooth White Chocolate Matcha, and the brand-new sumptuous Golden Matcha, so there’s something to “inspire every matcha lover to take a little time out”.
As matcha allows a slow release of caffeine, Blank Street says it’s the “perfect drink” to keep energy levels up throughout the afternoon when you’re stuck at your desk on a Friday.
Georgina Pellant -
12th September 2023 
