McCain has just announced Ru Paul’s Drag Race Superstar Baga Chiz as its new creative director.
Taking a leaf out of Pretty Little Thing’s book, the creators behind the nation’s favourite potato brands have brought on the superstar drag queen to oversee its creative output online.
Having already awarded herself an MBE for “contributions to the Potato Arts”, it sounds like she’s pretty well qualified for the role to be honest.
The self-proclaimed “Queen of Chips” will be getting involved with all the various creative outputs of the McCain business, starting with those all-important midweek meals.
Image: Supplied
Serving us delicious potato realness, she’s set to share her own fabulous take on British classics – including the beloved potato smiles and beans, and the ultimate UK favourite, the chip butty.
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Styling things up with her very own personalised diamante oven glove, Baga will be on hand to give the nation ideas and inspiration on how the dishes can best be enjoyed – .kicking things off with a livestream from her personal Instagram account this Thursday 2 June.
Baga originally hails from West Bromich but spent most of her career working in East London before competing on the first series of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK in 2019.
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Image: Supplied
She instantly won fans on the show for her hilarious portrayal of Margaret Thatcher on The Snatch Game (a celebrity impersonation challenge), and whilst she didn’t win the show she went on to appear on numerous others – including RuPaul’s Drag Race: UK vs the World 2022.
She’s also appeared on Celebrity MasterChef and The Celebrity Circle.
Speaking on the announcement, Mark Hodge, Marketing Director at McCain, said: “We’re delighted to finally be able to unveil Baga as our first ever Creative Director – her iconic and fearless attitude perfectly encapsulates our ‘Anything Goes’ philosophy.
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“With Baga’s support, we really want to highlight that any meal can be exciting when you invite McCain onto the plate – through our new series of social videos.”
Feature image – Supplied
Food & Drink
Two Greater Manchester gems named in Good Food Guide’s 100 Best Local Restaurants 2026
Emily Sergeant
Two of Greater Manchester’s best-loved eateries have been featured in a prestigious new ranking.
The Good Food Guide’s 100 Best Local Restaurants for 2026 have been named, celebrating the independent restaurants that define their neighbourhoods.
Rooted in reader nominations and rigorously inspected by the Good Food Guide team, the awards shine a light on the most exciting, accessibly priced places to eat across Great Britain.
Each year, tens of thousands of nominations are submitted by readers championing their favourite local restaurants, from bustling city dining rooms to small-town gems and rural hideaways, and then inspectors narrow it down to 100 of the best.
Inspectors visit anonymously, book like any other guest, and always pay their own bill.
Across Greater Manchester, we’re incredibly lucky to be home to thousands of independent local restaurants, but two of the very best have been featured in this year’s list – Lupo in Prestwich, coming in at a very respectable number 19, and The Spärrows in the Green Quarter at number 58.
Tucked away on a rather unassuming industrial estate, Lupo opened its doors back in 2015 with owner Nico Pasquali at the helm, and has been serving up a slice of Rome in Manchester ever since.
Speaking on Lupo and what makes it such a local gem, the Good Food Guide said: “Even though this homely little all-day trattoria is in the incongruous setting of an industrial estate, it attracts a steady flow of customers drawn by the unfussy, unpretentious vibe, the chequered tablecloths, the soft hum of Italian music, and the precisely cooked traditional dishes – from perfectly crisped Roman-style pizzas, to richly sauced hand-rolled pastas.
“To drink, there’s a modest collection of artisan Italian wines, as well as cocktails and Italian beers. The expertly brewed coffee also receives rave notices.”
Two Greater Manchester gems have been named in the Good Food Guide’s 100 Best Local Restaurants for 2026 / Credit: The Manc Group
A beloved resident of Manchester’s Green Quarter, The Spärrows is a modern continental restaurant which opened up in 2019 offering traditional Swabian Spätzle, as well as hand made dumplings an pasta of Central European origin.
“Not the least reason The Spärrows has been such a firm local favourite is that there is so much going on here, from winemakers’ lunches to sake tastings, it’s in those perfectly rendered little parcels of happiness, though, that the culinary energy is focused,” the Good Food Guide commented.
“Spätzle or gnocchi come with a range of sauce options, before the menu heads east for pierogi and pelmeni, with lashings of sour cream and garlic breadcrumbs to complement their richly meaty fillings.”
Outside of Greater Manchester and looking at the North West as a whole, there are also some other impressive inclusions in the top 10 – including the number one spot being given to La Laconda in the Ribble Valley village of Gisburn, and Almanac in Glossop taking ninth place.
Read the Good Food Guide’s full list of the Best 100 Local Restaurants for 2026 here.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
Food & Drink
Meet the team that reimagined The Horse and Jockey into a gastropub masterpiece
Lydia Mastrolonardo
The Horse and Jockey is a historic neighbourhood pub that has forever been a cornerstone in the heart of Chorlton, with its iconic Tudor exterior and outdoor seating looking out onto The Green.
Since the team behind the well-known and loved The Black Friar and Leo + Roobs in Salford, headed by Managing Director Neil Burke and Executive Chef Ben Chaplin, reopened the pub in October 2025, we have since seen some significant changes.
Positioning themselves as Chorlton’s first-ever proper gastropub, they’ve expertly balanced maintaining the pub’s character and restoring the cosy indoors while catering for Manc foodies, with an ever-evolving menu consisting of fresh local produce as well as a wide selection of Joseph Holt award-winning beers.
They’ve even helped spearhead the Boddingtons revival across their sites.
Credit: Bigger Boat Hospitality
We’re not the only ones who have noticed the hard work these two have put in – the transformation has led to the Horse and Jockey being crowned as one of the best local boozers at the Pub and Bar Awards.
Today, we had a chance to talk with Ben, who is the mastermind behind their delicious dishes and makes it all possible…
For anyone who doesn’t know you, give us a little bit of background on your career as a chef thus far?
“I started in the kitchen when I was 15 and worked my way up through different kitchens. Ended up working for Aiden Byrne, who remains the youngest person ever to achieve a Michelin star at 22. I worked for him for about nine years, ran one of his pubs for him and helped develop Manchester House.”
“I then went off and worked as head chef at Australasia for two years and 20 Stories for another three years before meeting Neil. Together we opened The Black Friar in 2021, Leo + Roobs in 2024, now the Horse and Jockey and are 100% looking for more venues.”
How would you sum up the Manc food scene at the minute?
“Very diverse. Within the industry side of it, it’s difficult with a lot going on with VAT and wages, but there are some great venues doing some great food even just in Chorlton alone, and there is a lot of choice – I actually think it rivals London.”
This has become a staple of their annual calendar of events. See more from this year’s edition HERE.
We already know you’ve worked wonders bringing The Black Friar back to life and taking it beyond just a pub – what lessons have you taken from that experience to the Horse and Jockey?
“I think not just the Horse and Jockey but one of our values as a company for Bigger Boat is we are ‘yes people.’ So trying new things and not just saying no to something because we don’t want to do it, saying yes first and trying to find a way to achieve it.”
“It’s something that we don’t just do here, but we do it at the cafe, The Black Friar, and we’re going to do it going forward, opening more and more places.”
If you could describe how the approach is different between the two venues, what would you say?
“The spaces in The Black Friar allow us to do a lot more events; we obviously have a bigger outdoor area, so that leads to us being able to sell different areas for different events. We don’t have that as much here, and this is more of a neighbourhood, local pub, serving gastro-style food.
“The Black Friar we can go from events to weddings pretty seamlessly – we do a lot more there as there’s space for it and even more to come.”
They’ve even started doing a picnic basket offer. (Credit: The Manc Eats)
What is your favourite dish on the menu?
“We change the menu so often here (the Horse and Jockey) following the seasons, often changing a dish a week. However, right now my favourite is probably our lamb rump with a red pepper and harissa hummus with a hazelnut and sesame seed dhukka.”
And if you could sum up the food in three words, what would they be?
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“Evolving, tasty and bold.”
These two truly know what they’re doing with these restorations, and we can’t wait to experience what else they take over in the future.
Don’t believe us? Go on down and try it for yourself.
You can read our full review of the food and drink from when they first reopened the gorgeous suburban, village-style spot down below.
Georgina Pellant -
1st June 2022 
