A restaurant that has always served a completely vegan menu has taken the decision to add meat to its offering in a bid to stay afloat.
Nomas Gastrobar has said that it will be adding a ‘thoughtfully curated selection of high-quality, responsibly sourced meat and dairy options’ as a matter of survival.
The family-run business stressed the financial challenges it’s been facing, stating that the limitations of a plant-based menu have shrunk its customer base.
Nomas even wrote an account of customers walking out of the restaurant after seeing that everything on the menu is vegan.
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They pointed out that vegan businesses across the country are closing at an alarming rate as appetites change – in Manchester over the last couple of years we’ve seen trend-setting V Rev shut down, we’ve lost Zad’s takeaway, and seen Frosts Burgers close after just months.
The move to start serving meat has sparked a fierce debate online, with some accepting that they need to make the move to stay operating, and others blasting them for ‘selling death and cruelty’.
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The restaurant said it’s been ‘really upsetting’ to see so much ‘nastiness’ in the comment section of their controversial post.
Food at vegan restaurant Nomas in Macclesfield, which has decided to add meat to its menu. Credit: Instagram
Nomas promised that their commitment to the vegan community ‘remains unwavering’, through a wide range of nourishing vegan dishes remaining on the menu.
In a follow-up letter, they wrote: “We understand that our decision to start serving meat on our menu may come as quite a shock to people, it certainly did to us.
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“However, daily, we witness people walking into Nomas Gastrobar seeing the vegan menu/offering and then walking out. Or even saying ‘Is it all vegan’ and then leaving.”
Nomas continued: “In answer to comments like ‘Is there no other way’, we promise, we have explored so many avenues.
“When the new menu does happen, the majority of it will still be vegan. There will be a few meat alternatives for those who would prefer them.
“We’ve seen a few comments like ‘I was planning to visit but now I won’t’. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean a lot. Right now we are not taking enough money to pay our wonderful team’s wages or rent to our landlord, people’s thoughts on visiting don’t help us pay these bills.
“We’ve found it pretty astonishing some of the nastiness in the comments. We have made this choice out of a place of survival for our family-run business and seeing people who are meant to ‘love all beings’ being awful to each other has really been upsetting.
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“We’re living in a climate where well-established plant-based businesses are closing. We moved to this county 6 years ago and this business is our only source of income, we need to make it work and therefore have to try whatever we can.”
Nomas was opened by Adonis Norouznia and his wife Fey after they moved from Greece in 2018.
Its current vegan menu features everything from Greek gyros to pizzas to burgers.
Family behind Salvi’s launch new concept, weeks after iconic restaurant closure
Daisy Jackson
Just weeks after the closure of its iconic, 16-year-old Italian restaurant in the Corn Exchange, the family behind Salvi’s have revealed a brand-new concept.
And this time, the reins are being handed over to the next generation.
Salvi’s founder Maurizio Cecco has helped to shape Amò, but it’s all the brainchild of his daughter, Sienna.
Sienna will run the business out of a unit up on Deansgate Mews, serving fresh pasta dishes, pizza sandwiches, tubs of tiramisu, and two-for-£10 spritzes.
The deli aspect of the original Salvi’s has been carried over to Amò too – you’ll find shelves almost to the ceiling filled with Italian pasta, wine, olive oils, pistachio spreads, and more.
Sienna has grown up in restaurants, with her parents launching Salvi’s when she was just two years old.
She said she wants the space to be a livelier, fresher version of the Italian restaurant that has been so loved by Mancs for so many years.
Sienna outside AmòFresh pasta dishesInside Amò by Salvi’sTheir viral frozen crema di caffeLemon granitaInside Amò by Salvi’sTiramisu pots
Amò, which is Neapolitan slang for ‘my love’, will have loads of fresh Italian dishes, including arancini, gnocchi, and hearty pasta plates.
At lunchtimes, guests can order from a £10 lunch menu, with dishes changing daily depending on the best produce the kitchen can get – it could be a pizza sandwich with proscuitto and tomato, a spicy pasta, or a gnocchi bake, always served with your choice of soft drink.
With its position on Deansgate Mews, Amò basks in the sunshine at lunchtimes.
And while it’s definitely a different concept to the original Salvi’s, Amò looks set to carry the family’s Italian food legacy into its next generation.
Award-winning Didsbury bakery La Chouquette reveals incredible new site
Daisy Jackson
La Chouquette is one of Greater Manchester’s top bakeries – an award-winner, with queues down the street every weekend for its authentic French pastries and loaves.
And now they’re ready for a new chapter, revealing a major expansion today.
Owners Catrina and Flo have painstakingly expanded the bakery into the unit next door, creating what feels like a true French bakery.
And in the midst of this huge renovation project, they’ve welcomed a tiny new baby boy – quite the summer for the couple.
Catrina and Flo launched La Chouquette in lockdown, and in a time where people could only get their hospitality fix from takeaways, immediately became one of the most popular spots in the region.
Their success has been so great, you’ll still consistently find queues down the street every weekend, for their top sellers like their authentic almond croissants.
Then in October 2024, they grew the business and launched Piqniq, a new deli in Didsbury village, serving freshly-baked baguette sandwiches, breakfast butties, toasties, tiramisu pots and their legendary pastries.
The new-look La Chouquette features beautiful details like mosaic floors, rich blue walls, wooden shelves, and brass light fixtures.
La Chouquette’s best-selling almond croissantsInside the stunning new La Chouquette in DidbsuryNew savoury bakesThe chausson aux pommesThe counter stuffed with artisan French bakesChocolate chip cookies and cinnamon buns
The huge new counter displays more pastries and breads than ever before, like a hearty chausson aux pommes filled with apples that will be perfect for autumn, plus seasonal treats like a rhubarb creme brulee pastry, and homemade quiche.
Speaking at the grand relaunch today, Catrina said: “The layout has changed, it looks so much more chic, it looks like a traditional French bakery. We’re really excited about it.”
As for what’s on the counter, Flo reassured fans that their beloved almond and pistachio croissants remain, but with some new savoury editions, like a truffle croque monsieur made with croissant dough.
La Choquette has reopened today, and will be open seven days a week from 7am until 5pm.
Daisy Jackson -
30th January 2024 
