Famous bakery Gail’s has confirmed the opening date for its new cafe in Altrincham as it prepares to open its second bakery in the north of England.
Set to open in the Trafford market town this month, bosses have revealed the new bakery and cafe – famed for its artisan sourdough breads, pastries, sandwiches, and cakes – will open its doors on Shaw’s Road on Monday 27 March.
Already well known and loved by its customers in the south of England, the bakery recently opened its first northern site in nearby Wilmslow. Now, it’s gearing up to open in Altrincham with a third site planned for Manchester later this year.
The Altrincham bakery will open on Shaw’s Road, trading from 7am-7pm daily, followed by an opening on King Street in Manchester city centre later this year.
Image: Gail’s Bakery
Image: Gail’s Bakery
The bakery group already has strong ties with Manchester, having run its sister wholesale bakery The Bread Factory – which supplies bread to some of Manchester’s premium restaurants, cafes and bars – in Openshaw since 2017.
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First formed in the early 1990s as a wholesale-only operation, Gail’s opened its first cafe on Hampstead High Street in 2005.
Today the brand has over 70 sites spread across London, Oxford, Brighton and further afield, and is known more as a customer-facing cafe and bakery whilst The Bread Factory continues the company’s original wholesale legacy.
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Gail’s CEO Tom Molnar told The Manc: “What an amazing city Manchester is, I mean it’s so creative – I’d love London to be as creative as Manchester is.
Image: Gail’s Bakery
Image: Gail’s Bakery
“We’re really excited about opening up [cafes] in Manchester, we’ve been there for about six years now.”
Gail’s believes in supporting local charities in their neighbourhoods. Their bakery in Openshaw has been supporting FareShare as well as local schools, presenting and teaching students about the benefit of healthier craft bread.
A newly established partnership with Manchester-based EatWellMCR will allow the distribution of any surplus food to those in the region who need it most in Altrincham and the surrounding neighbourhoods.
Featured image – Gail’s Bakery
Food & Drink
This new app tells you the best sunny pub spots in Manchester
Thomas Melia
A brand new app has launched, which tracks the sun and tells you where the best sunny pub spots in Manchester are throughout the day.
No, you’re not dreaming: this is what heaven feels like. This all-new app, initially trialled in London and now covering Manchester, allows users to identify the best sun traps in our stunning city centre.
Designed and created by architect Mo Dawod, Sunseekr aims to show you the best pub, cafe and restaurant locations where you can take advantage of and soak up all the sun in real time.
As well as being a handy tool to use throughout the day, you can use this sun-centric app to pre-plan your day, as it lets you know all the sunny spots in advance for anyone who fancies chasing the sun.
The app shows you the best pubs, cafes and restaurants to catch some rays.You can easily chase the sun around Manchester city centre with this handy new app.Credit: Screenshots via Sunseeker
Of course, we don’t need an app to tell us all the best sunny pub spots in Manchester as locals and visitors alike know about our pride and joy, Stevenson Square.
However, this new technology will come in handy for organising your next beer garden trip and locating exactly where you’re guaranteed to sit down and possibly catch a tan.
Sunseekr had a trial run in London first, catching the attention of reputable publications like Timeout London and even got itself featured on BBC London.
It makes perfect sense why Dawod made this app; being a Battersea resident, his area of London is packed with plenty of amenities such as pubs and bars, perfect for sitting out and relaxing in the sun.
Now the sunny app has spread nationwide, including Manchester, meaning we Northerners can make the most of the precious sun while we have it.
Safe to say, here at The Manc, we know a lot of good places to soak up the sun while sipping on a class pint.Nothing beats a crisp pint and some gorgeous Manchester sunshine.Credit: The Manc Eats
The arrival of this sun-tracking pub-spotting app gives us the perfect excuse to drop everything and make our way to the nearest beer garden to put this to the test ourselves, it’s not like we needed any encouragement…
Sunseekr is available to download NOW and allows users to live-track the sun to see if any pubs, cafes or restaurants near you have been blessed by the sun.
We’re in the business of knowing about beer gardens galore, so this long-overdue app just made our lives a whole lot easier.
Stunning Ancoats favourite Street Urchin closes after ‘heartbreaking’ health emergency
Danny Jones
The stunning Ancoats restaurant and Manchester favourite, Street Urchin, has announced its sudden closure following a serious health emergency.
Opened by partners Kevin and Rachel Choudhary back in 2019, the inventive dining room has been a firm favourite among local foodies and those visiting Manchester for some time.
However, following the awful news that co-founder and head chef Kevin has recently suffered a heart attack, the city centre food spot has sadly had to close its doors, seemingly for good.
Informing diners and longtime fans online, Rachel confirmed, “We are unable to continue as a business”, adding that they are simply “heartbroken” by the turns of events.
Known for endless creativity and famous experimental dishes over the years, including a viral squirrel dish, Street Urchin has been one of the most envelope-pushing kitchens in the area for some time.
Writing in the caption, Rachel said: Thank you to our amazing team who supported us over all the years and continued to do so in these dark times. Thank you also to our suppliers, we never thought this would happen. We’re so sorry x”
Reacting to the news, local artist Painted By Courtney replied: “This is so sad, I’m so sorry to you both. Forever one of my favourite dining experiences in Manchester.”
Various names from across the Greater Manchester hospitality scene, including the likes of Tameside’s Cafe Continental, have joined in sharing their sadness and heartfelt support, with the Stalybridge spot simply adding: “Sending love. A remarkable place!”
Their menus boasted all the style, quality and flavour of a fine dining establishment without any of the haute cuisine pomp and traditional culinary trappings.
Put simply, they delivered great food served in an efficient market diner fashion. We, along with countless other Greater Mancunian foodies, absolutely loved this place.
It goes without saying that everyone at The Manc Group is shocked and deeply saddened to hear this news; we hope Kev makes a full and fast recovery, and our thoughts are with his friends and family during this difficult time.
Georgina Pellant -
15th March 2023 
