It’s made a name for itself with its handmade pasta dishes, including (my personal favourite) the nduja vodka pasta sharer.
ADVERTISEMENT
Onda also went quite ridiculously viral last September when they shared a video of their tiramisu drawer – yep, a whole drawer, full of tiramisu, which they generously scoop out and plop onto plates to order.
It’s had more than 57 million views across Instagram and TikTok, with subsequent behind-the-scenes posts also hitting millions of views apiece.
ADVERTISEMENT
The pudding drawer even caught the eye of Hollywood a-lister Florence Pugh. Which didn’t help with the demand to get a table.
So now Onda is branching out, with its very own restaurant space in Manchester set to open mid-May.
They’ve today shared a photo of their brand new location, down at Circle Square on Oxford Road.
ADVERTISEMENT
It’s a brilliant new addition to the area, which is already home to Federal (another place prone to a big queue) and North Taproom – but which recently lost gig venue Canvas, and New Zealand brunch spot Tahi.
Onda has said that their new restaurant will have around 48 covers in the main dining space, with about 26 more in the bar area.
Those who had tables booked at The New Cross will be given priority access to tables for the new restaurant, with Onda apologising for ‘letting those down’ who have been waiting as long as October to dine with them.
They wrote: “This was a really tough decision to make, first and foremost because we had to let down those who have booked with us but also financially as a popup it’s a huge hit for us to lose a month of revenue.
“A lot of these bookings were made in October/November and we hadn’t foreseen this demand for Onda in a million years, in August/September we were touch and go each week and a month later we had bookings being made 6 months in advance.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Speaking of leaving The New Cross for their new ‘perfect’ site, Onda said: “A massive thank you to everyone who’s visited us since we moved to @thenewcross in August, and to Chris + Rach, the owners of the bar and their team here for all their help and support. I’m not sure either us or them ever anticipated it to go quite like it did. It went mad.
“At times trying to run a restaurant from someone’s else’s bar was chaos to say the least but the feedback has made it all worth it and we’re really excited to properly open our own space in May.”
Onda Pasta Bar will open at Circle Square on Oxford Road in mid-March.
Manchester’s viral sandwich shop Ad Maiora is selling HUGE butties for only 9p through Deliveroo
Daisy Jackson
Ad Maiora, the Italian sandwich shop that’s loved by Manchester City stars (and everyone else who’s sunk their teeth into one), is selling butties for only 9p this week.
The local business is famed for its authentic sandwiches filled with quality imported Italian ingredients, and for its super-sized versions of its delicious lunches.
And this week only, you’ll be able to pick up a hefty sandwich, called the Scran-wich, for only 9 English pence.
The limited-edition Schiacciata will have nine different components and weighs in at a whopping 500g (though it’s nothing on their 1kg beast we’ve tried before…)
Owners and couple Enrico and Daniela have spent weeks developing the perfect balance of flavours.
Each ingredient is sourced in Italy but inspired by places and sayings from Manchester.
So you’ll find spicy ‘supersonic’ salami, nowt better N’duja, mozzarella ‘footballs’, sliced Haçienda heritage tomatoes, ‘r kid Italian wild rocket, 0161 olives, lashings of mad fer it mayonnaise, ‘buzzing bee’ basil leaves and ‘let’s ave it’ red onions – all sandwiched between fresh homemade Scran-worthy Schiacciata bread.
The Scran-wich and its 9p sale have been created to celebrate Deliveroo’s ninth birthday, and there’ll be 300 available to order through Deliveroo.
The limited edition 9p ‘Scran-Wich’, available at Ad Maiora in Manchester through Deliveroo. Credit: Deliveroo/Dominic LipinskiAd Maiora is one of Manchester’s best sandwich shops and loved by celebs and locals
Enrico and Daniela, owners of Ad Maiora, said: “We’ve had so much support from the local community since we launched, so we were very excited when Deliveroo asked us to create a special Ad Maiora sandwich dedicated to the city of Manchester in celebration of their 9th birthday.
“We hope our customers love the limited-edition ‘Scran-wich’ – we’ve really enjoyed creating a sandwich that celebrates our city which makes this SUPER limited edition and special!”
Steffi Morel, Deliveroo city manager for Manchester, said: “It has been an absolute honour connecting Manc foodies to the best local restaurants at the click of a button for the last nine years.
“To celebrate, we’ve partnered with one of Manchester’s new local favourites, Ad Maiora, who’ve created the ultimate birthday ‘Scran-wich’, which pays homage to the city with every delicious bite! Deliveroo customers will need to be quick, as there are only 300 available!”
Ad Maiora’s Scran-wich is available for just 9p from Tuesday 30 April until Thursday 2 May through Deliveroo.
Medlock Canteen receives rave Guardian review from Jay Rayner just one month after opening
Daisy Jackson
Medlock Canteen, a new Manchester restaurant, has received a rave review in the Guardian just weeks after it opened.
National critic Jay Rayner has heaped praise upon the restaurant at Deansgate Square, describing it as ‘so special’.
The restaurant only opened its doors at the end of March, taking its inspiration from opposite sides of the pond – the laid-back style of American diners and the hospitality of Parisian bistros.
Rayner said it’s ‘a welcome haven for all’ and applauded its menu packed with ‘appealing, familiar dishes that are the best versions of themselves’.
Medlock Canteen comes from the team behind Madre (the Mexican restaurant at Kampus) and Belzan (one of Liverpool’s top restaurants).
But unlike those two restaurants, things are much simpler at their newest venture – this is a restaurant where you can order a fried egg with any meal, drink bottomless coffee, and even order the day’s ‘staff dinner’ for just a tenner.
Rayner dedicated almost an entire paragraph of his review to Medlock Canteen’s gravy (‘dark and sticky and deeply savoury’), which he said is so good you should just ‘order that and pour it over everything. Pour it over a friend’.
He also waxed lyrical about their rotisserie chicken (there are rows of the things rotating in the city’s first in-restaurant rotisserie chicken oven), of which he said: “It is everything those words promise and don’t always deliver. No special rubs or sauces. Just roast chicken, rested long enough for the meat to start shrugging itself off the bones. The skin is crisp and salty.”
Inside Medlock Canteen in Manchester, which just received a rave review in The Guardian. Credit: The Manc Group
Other dishes that were celebrated in the Guardian’s review of Medlock Canteen included a rhubarb pie, charcoal-grilled fish of the day, duck rillettes and pistachio frangipane tart.
The restaurant itself said there were ‘happy faces’ after the review was published over the weekend.
Medlock Canteen wrote on Instagram: “Manchester may be grey this Sunday, but let us tell you, there are a few happy faces both on and behind the scenes as we enjoy our morning brew, reading through the kind words of @jayrayner1 in the @guardian.
“Thanks go to our team and our guests for all the hard work, dedication, and pure passion that has made Medlock Canteen ‘a welcome haven for one and all.’
“Anyway, enough of that. Just another day. Just another ‘set of appealing, familiar dishes that are the best versions of themselves.’
“Caution: gravy jus may be thrown. Let Sunday service commence.”