Food & Drink

Inside Salford Rum’s new distillery, bar and rum school

From the markets to their own bar in just three years, Salford Rum is on the rise.

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 16th June 2022

This week the Salford Rum Company has opened its very first distillery, bar and rum school just off Chapel Street in Salford.

Aptly named The Dirty Old Town Distillery after The Pogues hit track from their 1985 album Rum Sodomy & the Lash, it’s located in an appropriately industrial setting – a former railway arch on Viaduct Street.

Inside, a bar and seating area put the focus on the rum that started it all – serving a range of simple (but delicious) rum cocktails and spirit mixers, alongside regularly changing beers from local breweries like Shindigger.

Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats

The brand’s iconic bottles, covered in hand-drawn historic maps of industrial Salford by local artist Dave Draws, line shelves behind the bar and on the walls as you enter, with a magnificent column still in pride of place on a stage at the back of the bar.

The walls are covered in more hand-drawn artwork from Dave Draws, this time depicting Salford in 2022 – with landmarks like Peel Park, Salford Cinema, the Ship Canal and Salford Lad’s Club all proudly nodding towards the area’s local history.

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Elsewhere, chunky wooden tables and black and white photographs pulled from Salford’s historical archives line the walls.

Image: The Manc Eats

Here, for the first time since the brand launched in 2018, locals have a place to sit down and enjoy the sweet spirit – be that on its own, as a sipping rum, or in simple but elegant mixers like rum and coke ice cream floats, or a classic rum and ginger beer, elevated by the addition of clementine puree and fresh ginger.

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It’s a big step up for the brand, which has come a long way from its early days on the Manchester Maker’s markets.

Created three years ago by two rugby-league-playing high school friends, James Harrison and Tommy Gaughan, Salford Rum has created two core expressions since its launch in 2018; a golden Salford Spiced Rum and Salford Dark Spice.

Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats

The pair learned about premium rum making on top of their day jobs, and with a small self-funded start up investment of just £8,000, created their first premium golden spiced spirit as a passionate celebration of the history, heritage and people of the Salford Docks

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Inspired by an era whereby the city’s Salford Docks grew to be the third-largest port in the UK, Salford Rum takes its flavour inspiration from the rums, fruits and spices from the Caribbean which were landing on British shores for the first time in that bygone time

Today, inside the brand new distillery and bar, the pair plan to innovate and experiment with new expressions to complement their core range – as well as host rum school experiences where guests can enjoy guided tastings and experiment with making their own rums too.

Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats

Speaking on the new opening Tommy Gaughan, one half of the duo responsible for launching Salford Rum, said: “The support we’ve had locally for Salford Rum is nothing short of incredible. When looking for somewhere to take the brand to the next level, it was always going to be in Salford, and always going to be a place whereby our supporters can come and feel like they’re part of the Salford family.”

Salford Rum co-founder James Harrison added: “It’s been quite a ride and our first step into hospitality feels surreal. It’s time for us to grow in Greater Manchester’s vibrant drinks scene and for the brand to have somewhere to develop and – of course – serve awesome drinks.

Read more: A live show devoted to reviewing crisps is coming to Manchester

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“We’re grounded in Salford and are wholly dedicated to bringing to life what the city has to offer – be it local talent, drinks and team members.

“We trialled a lot of offering over Christmas and have some brilliant ideas in the pipeline to truly bring to life how special Salford’s place on the Greater Manchester map is. The city has so much to offer, and where we can we’ll be championing it

Feature image – The Manc Eats

Food & Drink

Drinks prices revealed as Manchester Airport’s first-ever Wetherspoons pub opens inside T2

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

It’s official… Manchester Airport’s first-ever JD Wetherspoon pub has officially opened its doors inside Terminal 2.

The 300-seater pub – which welcomed its first customers earlier this week – is named The Belle Vue after Manchester’s historic showground.

Throughout the pub, you’ll spot design features that nod to the city’s sporting heritage – including vintage event posters and memorabilia, a ‘locker wall’ hosting trophies and other sporting exhibits, and a cricket-themed design in the carpets and bar panels.

Creating around 150 jobs in the process, The Belle Vue is the final planned new eatery to open in the airport’s redeveloped Terminal 2, marking one of the final steps in the super-terminal’s decade-long, £1.5bn transformation.

Manchester Airport’s first-ever Wetherspoons pub has opened inside Terminal 2 / Credit: Supplied

According to the MEN, pints are priced from £6.20 for Carling and Coors lager, £6.45 for Budweiser, £6.60 for Guinness, and £6.70 for Poretti and 1664 Biere.

Prosecco is £9.20 for 175ml glass and £37.10 for the full bottle, while spirts and mixers are £6.80 for singles and £10.20 for doubles.

There’s also the classic Wetherspoons tea and coffee machines, where you can refill as many times as you like for just £3.60.

“It’s a proud moment to see the final new retail unit opening in our new-look Terminal 2,” commented Richard Jackson, who is the Retail Director at Manchester Airport.

“To be rounding off this 10-year programme by adding such an iconic name as Wetherspoon to the terminal is particularly special and we know that it will prove extremely popular with passengers. We think they’ll love the nods to Manchester’s heritage in the décor and design – and of course the name.”

Read more:

The Belle Vue will be open from the first flight to the final flight each day, and food will be served from opening until 10pm.

Featured Image – Supplied

Food & Drink

The Manchester restaurant serving bottomless curry for just £20 during National Curry Week

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson The Manchester restaurant serving bottomless curry for just £20 during National Curry Week

One of Manchester’s leading curry houses is bringing back its bottomless curry offering very soon.

For just £20, diners can tuck into unlimited curry, rice and naan at Zouk Tea Bar & Grill, stuffing yourself silly on authentic dishes from from all over the Indian subcontinent. 

There’s nothing quite like getting the gang together for a proper curry, and Zouk is making it even easier to do exactly that this October.

They’ll be bringing back the £20 Bottomless Curry deal for National Curry Week 2026, running for five nights only, from Monday 5 October to Friday 9 October, with tables available between 5pm and 10pm each evening.

Guests can choose one curry from a daily selection of four, with meat, vegetarian and vegan options available throughout the week.

Once you’ve picked your curry, you can then order as many portions as you fancy during your 90-minute booking.

Rice and naan are unlimited too, so there’s no shortage of carbs to mop up the curry with.

The dishes on the menu include some of Zouk’s favourites, such as Chicken Karahi, Lamb Rogan Josh, Chicken Tikka Masala, Dall Makhani, Chicken Handi and Gobi Manchurian.

The Manchester restaurant serving bottomless curry for just £20 during National Curry Week

The exact four-dish selection varies by day, giving curry fans a reason to head back more than once during the five-day promotion.

And yes, you can go back for another helping.

Zouk owner Tayub Amjad said: “National Curry Week is always a great excuse to celebrate the food we love.

“Bottomless Curry has become a real favourite with our customers, so we’re excited to bring it back for five nights. It’s relaxed, great value and perfect for getting friends together for a proper curry night.”

Advance booking is recommended – you can book your table for the Zouk Bottomless Curry nights HERE.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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