It’s another great week for eating and drinking out in Manchester, with a host of new pop-ups, one-off events and new dishes to be getting stuck into.
Dare we say it – but there seems to be a general feeling of optimism in hospitality right now.
Launch parties are finally being thrown, residencies are being announced, and nature – as the meme goes – is finally healing.
Keep reading to discover our top food and drink picks for the week.
A hidden bar takeover with natty wine and french fries
Wine and fires have long been a perfect pairing, then add in the reopening of one of Manchester’s secret bars and you’re on to a guaranteed winner / Image: Vin De Bodega
Natural wine hustlers Vin De Bodega team up with Amsterdam-inspired Fry By this week – taking over the small cocktail bar hidden underneath The Corner Boy, formerly known as Double Down, for a night of top-tier natty wine and loaded fries.
ADVERTISEMENT
Wines, all handpicked favourites of the Vin De Bodega team, will be available by the glass or the bottle – as well as fries from upstairs, loaded with your choice of over 50 different flavour combinations. There will also be a special portion of fries available on the night to enjoy with a paired wine.
Find them underneath The Corner Boy, Stevenson Square this Thursday 12 August from 5 pm.
ADVERTISEMENT
“A gift from the pasta Gods” at Sugo
Sugo’s new Paccheri all’ Amatriciana is a simple classic based on guanciale (cured pork cheek), pecorino romano cheese, white wine and datterini tomatoes / Image: Sugo Pasta Kitchen
Such is the excitement around Sugo, a single new dish is more than enough to have us shouting from the rooftops.
Described by the team as “a gift from the pasta Gods,’ the new Paccheri all’ Amatriciana is a simple classic based on guanciale (cured pork cheek), pecorino romano cheese, white wine and datterini tomatoes. To be enjoyed with “at least” half a litre ofBarbera on the side, it looks and sounds absolutely divine.
Find Sugo at 46 Blossom St, Ancoats, Manchester M4 6BF.
ADVERTISEMENT
A new pop-up restaurant in the KAMPUS bungalow
Caramelised walnut cream with green strawberries, covered in frozen & shaved buttery Eccles cake / Image: Tine.
Fine dining fans, this one is for you.
Tine, the restaurant project by chefs Josh Shanahan and James Lord, is popping up in the KAMPUS bungalow with some gorgeous seasonally-inspired dishes until the end of September starting this Friday.
Calling on experience at Mana, Where The Light Gets In and Manchester House, the pair plan on serving a 5-course set menu of British flavours with their signature umami twist. Find them cooking up a storm on Thursday to Sunday evenings right through to the end of next month.
The lads are also working with Le Social Wine (KAMPUS’s other residents right now) to curate a wine list in tandem with bottles from their own cellar, so expect some really special pairings on the side.
Reservations are live now. Find Tine at KAMPUS, Aytoun St, Manchester M1 3DA from Friday 13 August.
ADVERTISEMENT
Indian chippy teas from a hidden Chorlton gem
The Indian-Scottish take on fish on chips: fresh Panga fried in Roti gram flour batter, fluffy masala potatoes and curried chickpea ‘mushy peas / Image: Roti
If you’d like to try a chippy tea with a twist, Roti in Chorlton has to be the spot. It opened just before the pandemic so hasn’t been given the shine it should – but we’re here to fix that.
Here you’ll find some great Indian Scottish fusions. Think a ‘chip butty’ roti, filled with curried aloo and chickpeas marinated in an aromatic pickle, or ‘mince and tatties’ Roti spiced pork with house chole potatoes.
That said, it’s the take on fish and chips that’s got us really excited. Made with fresh Panga fried in Roti gram flour batter, it’s then served with fluffy masala potatoes and curried chickpea ‘mushy peas.’ Enjoy with an Irn-Bru cocktail and for the ultimate naughty treat finish with a deep-fried Mars bar.
Find Roti at 559 Barlow Moor Rd, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester M21 8AN.
Focaccia sandwiches from Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria
Pulled beef with sage mustard, taleggio, rocket and balsamic served on Batard bakery focaccia / Image: Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria
Not busy enough with two kitchens on the go and the launch of a new packaged meal service in South Manchester, Lazy Tony’s has just added two new focaccia sandwiches to the menu to coincide with the fact that they’re now open for lunch as well as dinner at Radium Street.
ADVERTISEMENT
This weekend just gone, the Ancoats kitchen premiered two new butties using focaccia from Batard: one with pulled beef, sage mustard, taleggio, rocket and balsamic; another with buttermilk fried chicken, chilli marinara, garlic, mozzarella and parmesan.
They’re currently taking classic requests for this weekend – we see someone’s put ‘lasagne sandwich’ in the comments already, which we’re completely here for.
Find Lazy Tony’s new sandwiches at 23 Radium St, Ancoats, Manchester M4 6AY this weekend from midday.
Inside Voyeur, a mysterious new post-punk 80s-inspired cocktail bar
Daisy Jackson
A brand new cocktail bar is set to open in Manchester this week, with dark and mysterious interiors, 80s inspiration, and a raunchy theme.
Voyeur is opening in the heart of the Northern Quarter, and here it’s all about modern drinks in a post-punk 80s setting.
The walls are decorated with beautiful voyeurism photography from the 80s, including artists like David Hockney, Nick Taggart, and Malerie Marder.
Even the menus celebrate the artistic side of voyeurism, with drinks presented within a book of photography.
Those drinks include creative twists on drinks dating back more than a century, from the Kaleidescope of Lies (a two-in one cocktail inspired by a pina colada, with a strawberry daiquiri foam top) to The Voyeur (made with coriander-infused tequila for a savoury punch).
There’ll be monthly themed specials, kicking off with The Breakfast Club, where seasonal drinks take inspiration from Lucky Charms cereal, chai latte and an acai bowl.
Cocktails inspired by The Breakfast Club at VoyeurCocktails at Voyeur in the Northern QuarterInside Voyeur, a new Manchester cocktail barInside Voyeur, a new Manchester cocktail barVoyeur on Oldham StreetThe cocktail menu is presented as a photography book
The dark space is lit by marble table lamps and a glittering green disco ball (and not much else), perfect for an evening spent sipping cocktails into the early hours.
Between Thursdays and Sundays, Voyeur will have DJs spinning vinyls.
Voyeur is opening this week on Oldham Street and will be open from 5pm to 2am between Tuesday and Sunday.
A brand-new dessert, ice-cream and doughnut shop in a former Manc food spot
Thomas Melia
Sweet lovers and dessert connoisseurs alike, a brand-new dessert, ice-cream and doughnut shop is opening in Manchester city centre this month.
Titled ‘Baby Mayhem’, this sweet-filled shop has been teasing its arrival for the past month with videos showcasing everything from new instalments to their graffiti-style logo.
This brand-new opening will be located on Radium Street, not too far away from Chinese superstar Wing Yip and fellow sweet treat specialists, Flat Baker, right in the heart of Ancoats.
The interior has been given a very nice and bright facelift too, going from an all white four-walled site to a bold and distinctive baby pink-covered site.
Manchester seems to have quite the sweet tooth at the moment, as it was only last month that our Northern Quarter was christened by cake gods, Get Baked.
As for this new dessert shop, they’re starting from scratch, with a temporary wooden window frame with their branding spray-painted onto it fitted ahead of their soft launch later this week.
Baby Mayhem is taking up residence in the much-loved Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria shop, and it really is out with the old, in with the new, as the familiar neon ‘No Lasagne’ sign has been traded for a sweeter read of ‘Fresh Donuts’.
It may be Yank spelling, but this still feels Manc through and through.
Case and point: all their signage, stamps and stencils have been done by local laser cutting service and neighbours, Drawn By The Light – also on Radium Street.
Enough salt, let’s have a serious amount of sugar. (Credit: Baby Mayhem via Instagram)
Baby Mayhem are taking sweet treats to the complete extreme, serving up everyone’s beloved combo of coffees and cakes, while also creating our soon-to-be-favourite indulgence: doughnut sandwiches. 10/10, no notes – genius.
There really are no complaints here; what’s not to love?
Baby Mayhem is taking up residence in the former Lazy Tony’s site, 23 Radium Street in Ancoats, and will be serving up their sweet treats for all to try from this Saturday, 26 April.
Georgina Pellant -
9th August 2021 
