The Blues Kitchen is teaming up with Manchester’s DevilDog Sauces to host a Flamin’ Hot Wing Eating Competition this month.
And if you’re feeling brave enough, you can stick your name down now.
For the fifty brave foodies who fancy taking part in the challenge, there’ll be five rounds of fiery heat in the path to crowning glory.
In each round, The Blues Kitchen’s infamous wings will be coated in one of DevilDog’s glorious spicy sauces, with a one-of-a-kind, fire-in-your-mouth sauce like you’ve never experienced before lined up for the grand finale.
The evening will be hosted by Manchester’s very-own Tilly Tillz, who will makes sure the audience are entertained while the competitors are tackling a range of chilli peppers.
ADVERTISEMENT
The first round sees competitors munch on wings coated in DevilDog’s ‘Mango, Scotch Bonnet & Lime’ sauce, which is a nice, light 400,000 Scoville units to start. Round two will be the ‘Reaper, Scorpion & 7 Pot Chilli’ sauce, which is a blend of Carolina Reaper (around 1.6 million Scoville units), Trinidad Scorpion Butch T (1.2 million units), and 7 Pot Primo (up to 1.3 million units), which makes for an extra hot sauce that will most likely cause competitors to break a sweat.
Credit: The Blues Kitchen x DevilDog Sauces
Round three is the lethal ‘Naga Viper’, a fiery combination of the Trinidad Scorpion, the Naga Morich, and the Ghost Pepper, with Asian spiced plum and raspberry.
ADVERTISEMENT
The legendary Caroline Reaper makes a comeback in round four, with a dash of blackberry, lemon and thyme. This pepper is red and gnarled, with a bumpy texture and small pointed tail – the devil embodied in the form of a pepper.
Not for the faint hearted, this one is super hot and the gateway to the last round.
Survivors will proceed onto the fifth and final round, and for this one, DevilDog Sauces have created a very special sauce especially for the occasion that’s made with Armageddon Chilli – clocking in at 1.3 million Scoville units, 400 times hotter than your average jalapeño – white vinegar and red bell peppers.
ADVERTISEMENT
Credit: The Blues Kitchen | DevilDog Sauces
What will the champion get once they’re crowned the winner? Well, first and foremost, they’ll receive the grand prize of eternal glory – but they’ll also get a nice £50 tab to spend on food and drink at The Blues Kitchen.
Don’t worry if you’re not up for the challenge, then you can just go along and watch for free, and tuck into some not-so-spicy wings too while you’re at it.
Think you’re brave enough though? You can sign up to the challenge here.
Manchester dessert hatch receives two-star review for ‘smiling too much’
Daisy Jackson
A dessert hatch in Manchester city centre has spoken out after receiving a two-star review – in which the main criticism was that they ‘smiled too much’.
Layr, a tiny tiramisu spot in Ancoats, has publicly addressed the review, which said the staff’s friendliness was ‘almost creepy’.
The reviewer wrote: “Came today, had alright tiramisu but the staff were smiling too much it was almost creepy. Also felt interrogated, just wanted to get my tiramisu and leave, don’t think ill be back.”
Layr – which was also the victim of ‘hostile hate messages’ earlier this year – has now shared a response to the new two-star review.
They’ve said that while they will always take feedback on board, they refuse to change ‘the warmth & smiles you’re greeted with’.
Layr posted: “We absolutely recognise, and know that every customer experience matters. We never want anyone to feel uncomfortable visiting us, and always take every bit of feedback on board.
“Smiling is just who we are. Layr was built to feel warm, welcoming, and to be a memorable part of your day, week or month. We all need that little pick-me-up no matter what.
“Our amazing team all work incredibly hard, GENUINELY enjoy meeting so many of you and hearing about your day.
“If being too friendly gets us two stars, we can live with that.
“We’ll always choose warmth, no matter what. Great tiramisu matters, so does good people and amazing energy.
“A message to our team. Please don’t stop smiling. Ever.”
Huge beer hall in ‘up-and-coming’ Manchester neighbourhood announces shock closure after two years
Daisy Jackson
A huge beer hall and rotisserie chicken restaurant that opened just two years ago in Manchester has announced its shock closure.
Trading Route was a joint venture between some of the city’s most established hospitality figures, including Trof, Manchester Union, and Wandering Palate.
The brilliant local business has described how difficult it has been to operate as the only independent business in St John’s, ‘an area that is still described as ‘up-and-coming”.
They said that not enough footfall has not come to the area to support what they were building, which – combined with rising costs in the industry – has made it too difficult to continue operating.
They added: “We’re proud of what we created at Trading Route and incredibly grateful to our customers and everyone who supported us over the past two years.
“To our team, we’re deeply sorry we couldn’t make it work for you. The friendships made over the past two years mean so much to us, and knowing the impact this closure has on you is especially hard.”
They then urged people to sign the petition to reduce VAT for hospitality, saying it could help to save your favourite places.
The Trading Route in Manchester has closed with immediate effectThe bar served great local beers and rotisserie chicken
Trading Route will close in Manchester with immediate effect.
Their full statement reads: “It is with a heavy heart that we announce the closure of Trading Route with immediate effect.
“Rising costs and stagnant footfall have made the business increasingly difficult to sustain, with trading conditions particularly challenging over the previous three months.
“We spent our first 12 months operating amid ongoing construction in an area that is still described as “up-and-coming”. As the only independent business in the area, we needed footfall to grow to support what we were building. Unfortunately, that growth hasn’t materialised quickly enough.
“We’re proud of what we created at Trading Route and incredibly grateful to our customers and everyone who supported us over the past two years.
“To our team, we’re deeply sorry we couldn’t make it work for you. The friendships made over the past two years mean so much to us, and knowing the impact this closure has on you is especially hard.
“It’s too late for us, but you could help save your favourite places by signing the petition to reduce VAT for hospitality to 10%. Independent bars, restaurants and pubs need your support to keep their doors open.
Emily Sergeant -
3rd November 2021 
