Stockport is set to get its first retro gaming bar this winter as the former Mama Sanctuary spa on Princess Street is transformed into an arcade haven.
Spreading across two floors, it comes from partners Joseph Patten and Amy Fletcher and will.
Already established in the local hospitality scene. Joseph has already made a name for himself in Stockport with venues including Cracked Actor, The Glass Spider and Dr Feelgood.
Now, he and Amy are workig together on a new venture that will celebrate some iconic arcade games from their childhoo,d including Super Pac-Man, Space Invaders, and Donkey Kong – all playable using tokens that can be collected from the bar.
Called Glitch, in an interview with the Manchester Evening Newsthe pair described the new gaming bar as an “interactive museum for vintage arcade lovers”.
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However, they also revealed that it won’t just be about retro games here.
The modern crowd of gamers will be equally well catered to, with 11 different high-tech gaming booths – all bookable by the hour – kitted out with 40 inch screens, Xbox, PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, SEGA Mega, and Nintendo 64.
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Elsewhere, the team is working on creating an experiential Star Wars ‘duelling room’ with light sabers available to rent. Although it doesn’t sound like this will be ready before its pre-Christmas opening, it’s something we’re happy to wait for.
Drinks-wise, gamers can expect to find a wide array of themed cocktails that nod to Glitch’s playful theme alongside a selection of local beers from Siren Brewery.
The pair also said that they hope the bar will “change the lay of the land massively for more bars of this type to invest in Stockport Town centre.
They continued: “It’s certainly the first of its kind in Stockport but it’s where the bar world is heading.
“We believe it’s the next big push needed to bring immersive interactive bars to Stockport, in the same way they do in the cities. It’s a chance to provide more than just a sit down with a beer, people want more of an experience when they hit the town now. GLITCH provides that.
“It’s a hit of nostalgia like a interactive museum for vintage arcade lovers, whilst also offering the look into the future with all the latest consoles for groups to book out. I think it’s the perfect time of year to be opening with Christmas around the corner.”
Feature image – Google maps / Slackers
Food & Drink
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Manchester’s Deansgate
Daisy Jackson
There’s a brand-new menu of smokehouse-style BBQ dishes being served up on a sunny terrace on Deansgate.
Motley, the neighbourhood bar and restaurant on the corner of John Dalton Street, has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen.
That means they’ve got a whole load of new dishes, slow-cooked over hickory wood, that are bringing a taste of a Deep South BBQ to Manchester city centre.
The smokehouse-style meats are all seasoned in-house and cooked for hours, for a perfect fall-off-the-bone experience.
It might be an authentic American smokehouse menu, but it’s firmly British too, with most products locally sourced.
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Deansgate / Credit: The Manc Group
Motley are calling on local suppliers like Althams Butchers (established since 1856) for their meat, plus greengrocers R Noone and Son, and Cheshire Farm for their real dairy ice cream.
Signature dishes on the new menu at Motley include slow smoked brisket, seasoned in Motley’s signature rub before being slow-smoked for more than eight hours.
There’s also a beef short rib with a chimichurri sauce, and a pork belly strip that’s seasoned with sage and onion and finished with a panko breadcrumb crust.
And for the veggies, there’s a vegan smoked veg kebab with courgette, mushrooms, bell pepper, sweet corn and red onion drizzled with homemade BBQ sauce.
Motley has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen / Credit: The Manc Group
Prices across the board start from just £16, served with beef dripping fries, rainbow slaw, pickles and homemade beef gravy.
As for small plates, you can expect short rib bonbons, homemade corn bread, spicy chicken wings, bang bang cauliflower, mac and cheese, and frickles.
House favourites like steak, vegetable hash, salads, and burgers will remain on the Motley menu.
Victor Gonzalez, food and beverage manager at Motley, said: “Our new signature smoked dishes are all crafted and seasoned in-house then slow cooked for hours over hickory wood to create rich and smoky melt-in-your mouth flavours.
“From our slow-smoked brisket to our home-made sides, everything has been carefully crafted to bring an authentic taste of the deep south to Manchester and we can’t wait for guests to try it.”
Motley can be found at 2 John Dalton Street on the corner of Deansgate in the city centre.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
Food & Drink
First-ever JD Wetherspoon pub to open at Manchester Airport
Danny Jones
In news that we feel many Mancs and travellers all-round have been waiting on for a long time, the well-known British chain, JD Wetherspoon, will be opening its first-ever pub at Manchester Airport.
That’s right: soon that first airport pint of the holiday could actually be a relatively cheap one.
While Wetherspoons are no strangers to popping up in terminals across the UK and Ireland, they’ve never done so here in Manchester despite having three, yes THREE, in Gatwick alone.
Not for much longer, though, as soon T2 will be lending more than 3,000 square feet of its prime leisure and retail real estate to a new Greater Manchester ‘Spoons’.
Posting on social media, the airport wrote: “Wetherspoon comes to Manchester Airport this September! The pub will be located in the Terminal 2 Departures lounge and will have more than 300 seats.
“This will become the final major food and drink venue to open its doors as part of our decade-long £1.3bn transformation of Terminal 2. It will be named ‘The Belle Vue’, in a nod to Manchester’s historic showground [now a sports complex and leisure hub].
“It was a focal point for social life in the city from the Victorian period up until 2020, when the final event was held at Belle Vue stadium. The design of the pub is inspired by the history of Belle Vue and the sporting culture of the North West of England. We look forward to welcoming you all in September!”
While a lot of money has been pumped into T2’s refurb as a whole over the past few years, it remains unclear just how much this particular new addition will cost; we do know that great sums were set aside for the launch of the Great Northern Market last year.
The inaugural Manchester Airport Spoons is just the latest in a series of major renovations.
As mentioned, the company already operate several up and down the country – 10 airport pubs, to be specific – but this will be the first in the North West.
Speaking on the news, JD Wetherspoon chief executive John Hutson said in a statement: “We are looking forward to opening at Manchester Airport. We believe our new pub will prove popular with travellers of all ages and be an asset to the new terminal.”
With Manchester Airport adding a dozen new routes to its roster this summer, you can expect to see even more people flying in and out than ever – no doubt having already polished off a cut-price pint or two beforehand.
Georgina Pellant -
4th October 2022 
