The Oast House has already started getting into the Christmas spirit with the return of its famous winter tipi.
Arguably one of the most festive parts of the city centre each year and billed as a “winter escape in the heart of Spinningfields”, the Curious Tipi never fails to be a massive hit – with thousands of Mancunians and visitors to the city taking refuge from the cold and descending upon venue to enjoy a steaming mug of mulled wine and some good hearty grub next to an open fireplace.
And this year will be no exception.
After the much-loved event sadly had to be closed for a big chunk of the festive season last year, “Manchester’s original and most loved” tipi is back, and there’s plenty of exciting things lined up.
Manchester’s original and most loved tipi is back at The Oast House / Credit: Instagram (@theoasthousemcr)
In case you didn’t already know, The Oast House is currently celebrating its 10th birthday, and has been throwing a series of special parties to celebrate this big milestone.
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The venue is throwing 10 parties with the aim of raising £10,000 each for 10 worthy local charities.
The next party on the list is ‘Oastoberfest’ – the pub’s take on Oktoberfest, with Back Chat Brass, lots of bratwurst, and endless tankards of its signature lager, Budvar – which is happening this Friday 15 October, and then the week after that on 21 October, there’ll be a special ‘Hanging Kebabs Showcase’ the week.
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To round off this month’s busy events schedule, there’ll be a party celebrating both old and new Oast House staff members on 29 October.
The Curious Tipi never fails to be a massive hit, with thousands of people descending upon the venue each year / Credit: Instagram (@theoasthousemcr)
Speaking on the events taking place over the next couple of weeks, The Oast House’s Matt Lewty said: “We’re super excited to bring back Manchester’s original – and most loved – Tipi [and] I’m looking forward to seeing old faces from days gone by for The Oast House staff celebration on October 29th.
“If you’ve ever done a shift behind the bar, hung a kebab, greeted guests, played the stage or ran around the floor helping customers, we’d love to see you.”
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Throughout the winter, there will also be a number of Christmassy events taking place – including the iconic cinema nights, wreath making classes, and more.
The Curious Tipi will also be available to hire out for functions and staff Christmas throughout the festive period.
You can find more information about Christmas 2021 at The Oast House here.
Featured Image – The Oast House
Food & Drink
Live your Come Dine With Me dreams with this all-new dining concept
Thomas Melia
Across the world, one app has been uniting strangers in 235 cities, matching six lucky diners for an evening meal at a surprise restaurant table and now Manchester is the latest city to open its taste buds to this pseudo-Come Dine With Me concept. Only this one involves less cooking.
Guests are expected to partake in an evening of food, booze and plenty of interesting conversations between six total strangers, only with hopefully less drama than the hit Channel 4 show. Strictly no Jane’s spoiling anything…
The concept is being pushed by French entrepreneur Maxime Barbier and his company ‘TimeLeft’. He has a lengthy career in the nightlife industry behind him and now wants to further strengthen good food and good times via this app.
And it’s clearly working: according to the company’s official website, 96% of dining groups consider themselves compatible meaning their carefully selected pairings are pretty accurate.
All curious diners have to do is download Timeleft and take a personality test before they’re whisked away for a night of entertainment and lush catering picked out by the pioneering new app.
Fear not, there will be a ‘Break the ice’ game where you can get to know the like-minded and compatible strangers you’re spending the rest of the evening with.
Once the table fills up and the evening is well away, everyone round the table will receive a notification to continue the night at a nearby bar chosen once again by this new dining concept app.
This new mealtime experience is a really good way of making connections, especially for newcomers to the city who are looking to expand their friendship group and navigate Manchester with some similar fresh-faced companions. There’s crucially much less cooking involved too, by which we mean none.
Throughout their website, the company shares a range of blogs breaking down everything from ‘6 tips for smoothing over a heated conversation’ to ‘the ultimate guide to Timeleft’.
In a standout piece entitled, ‘The 10 types of strangers at your table‘, they discuss the different types of personalities that you may come across during your meal.
From the simpler and recognisable labels like the introvert and extrovert to the more complex like the contemplative and the humourist, these little excerpts are handy to anyone who may have any nerves ahead of the meeting.
So, anyone located in Greater Manchester who might be interested in this new dining concept can participate by downloading the TimeLeft app and seeing where the night takes them.
You might not go home with £1,000 in cash but you’ll certainly create some memories and come pretty close to living out your Come Dine With Me fantasy – there really is an app for everything.
The stalls causing massive queues at the Manchester Christmas Markets
Daisy Jackson
If you looked at our comment sections during the Manchester Christmas Markets you’d assume everyone hates them – but one look at the queues forming again this year proves that is FAR from the case.
The annual festive event is back with a vengeance for another year, with wooden sheds and pop-up bars all over the place.
Whether you’re after a traditional mulled wine and bratwurst, or a loaded mac and cheese and shimmery cocktail, you’ll find it.
And while the Manchester Christmas Markets always get busy, especially at the weekends, this year is looking especially lively.
Videos shared online show huge queues of gridlocked people on Market Street, in Piccadilly Gardens and on King Street.
The cause of one of the biggest queues is again The Flat Baker – the Ancoats indie debuted at the markets last year with huge croissants served with pots of dipping sauce including pistachio and dulce de leche.
For 2024 they’ve introduced hot chocolates served in an edible cookie cup.
It went viral last year, it’s gone viral again this year, and the queues have gone so wild there’s now actual fences, Disney-style, specifically to manage The Flat Baker crowds.
These wind all the way from their stall in Piccadilly Gardens to the outside of the markets, travelling along the Piccadilly Wall.
And while getting your hands on a Flat Baker croissant requires some grit and determination, it’s not the only spot where you’ll be facing a wait.
Molten dark, milk and even golden chocolate can be bought here in an edible chocolate cup, poured over brownies and strawberries, or used as a base for hot chocolates and affogatos.
The Flat Baker are at The Winter Gardens in Manchester Christmas Markets and causing big queuesWaffle Kart are back at the Manchester Christmas Markets 2024
The team here move fast but if you go at peak times you’ll still be looking at a queue.
Down on the King Street section of the Manchester Christmas Markets you’ll find Waffle Kart, a brilliant little business serving fun family recipes inspired by Hong Kong street food.
Expect fried chicken and waffles, waffle prawn toast and loaded waffle fries – and a bit of a queue that’s worth the wait.
And finally, the biggest queue of the lot is just Market Street in general.
This is Manchester’s main shopping street so ahead of Christmas it’s always busy, but now that there are stalls all the way down it luring shoppers in, it’s totally gridlocked.
Emily Sergeant -
12th October 2021 
