Food & Drink

The ultimate cheese and wine party is coming to Manchester

Think six different wines, 5kg wheels of cheese and more prizes up for grabs

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 8th June 2021

Got what it takes to handle a 5kg cheese wheel? This one’s for you.

A huge cheese and wine party is coming to Manchester this summer, bringing free-flowing wine and mountains of cheesy goodness into the city.

There’ll be six different wines floating around for you to get stuck into and taste alongside various styles of cheese from around the world, ranging from creamy to crumbly, plus olives, crackers, capers, grissini and more.

A glimpse at one of the sample boards from Decent Drop who have organised the ultimate cheese and wine party

What’s more, there’ll also be some great cheesy prizes up for grabs on the night – including a massive 5kg cheese wheel, which one lucky guest will get to take home.

A must for all fans of the good stuff, you’ll be able to eat as much cheese as you like whilst sipping on fine wines from well-respected vineyards.

Promising to rip up the rule book and put a fresh new spin on the fusty pairing nights of old, ‘Chat Cheese, Get Wined’ takes place at Lever Street on 25 June,

A three-hour cheese-fest like no other, tickets are on sale now starting from £45 for one or £80 for two.

You can grab yours here.

Food & Drink

Northern Quarter favourite The Pen and Pencil announces massive 10th birthday party and huge offers

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Northern Quarter favourite The Pen and Pencil announces massive 10th birthday party and huge offers

The Pen and Pencil, an absolute staple for brunches and drinks in the Northern Quarter, is celebrating a major milestone this month with a huge party and some unbeatable deals. 

The bar and restaurant will be marking 10 years on Tariff Street in September – and it’s only right that we all pile in to celebrate with them. 

This spot is one of the city’s original bottomless brunch venues and is similarly famed for its happy hour offerings, and opened in 2015 to bring a taste of Manhattan to Manchester. 

Pen and Pencil took its name from the infamous New York City bar that was seen in Mad Men. 

And now as it turns 10 years old, it’ll be throwing one big party on Saturday 27 September, featuring 10 hours of DJs, free pints of Red Stripe at 10pm, and a special bottomless brunch offering. 

Those DJing on the day will include Drag Race UK’s Banksie, as well as Les Croasdaile, Mark Hogg, Danny Ward and A Deeper Groove.

Pen & Pencil has amazing deals for its 10th birthday
Pen & Pencil has amazing deals for its 10th birthday
Pen & Pencil is a Northern Quarter OG
Pen & Pencil is a Northern Quarter OG

The Pen and Pencil 10th birthday party will kick off from 2pm and run until late – but if you can’t make that one, there’ll be celebrations all week (and, indeed, month) long. 

On Tuesday 23 September, you’ll be able to play for double prize money in The Pen and Pencil quiz, as well as enjoying happy hour drinks all night. 

Then on Friday 26 September, it’ll be an all-night happy hour, with free tequila shots at 10pm and music from DJs Nev Johnson and Gareth James from 7pm. 

All September long, there’ll be 50% off food every Monday, two-for-£10 cocktails every Wednesday, £10 burgers every Thursday, happy hour all night on Fridays, 10 dishes for £10 and two bloody Marys for £10 on Sundays, plus DJs on Fridays and Saturdays. 

Northern Quarter favourite The Pen and Pencil announces massive 10th birthday party and huge offers

There’s a new colourful art installation outside the venue inspired by the bar’s New York roots.

Owner Kevin Connor said: “We’re really excited to be celebrating being part of the Manchester community for ten years! 

“New York’s Pen and Pencil was a classic steak and cocktail joint, and we’re proud to have created our very own iconic Northern Quarter hangout. We hope everyone will join us in celebrating ten years on Tariff Street.”

Walk-ins are welcome for The Pen and Pencil 10th birthday party on Saturday 27 September, but booking is encouraged – book your spot HERE. 

Featured image: The Manc Group

Food & Drink

Manchester restaurant to give out FREE katsu curries to people called ‘Kat’ or ‘Sue’

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

In what is a small stroke of genius, a restaurant chain has decided to give out free katsu curries to anyone called ‘Kat’ or ‘Sue’.

Throughout September, award-winning restaurant chain Banana Tree – which has a Greater Manchester site down at Salford Quays – is shining the spotlight on its popular katsu creations, and as a clever way of celebrating National Katsu Day on 27 September has announced a pretty unique giveaway. 

That’s right – the restaurant will be serving up katsu dishes to people called Kat, Sue, and every delicious variation of the names in between.

Anyone named Kat, Katie, Katherine, Sue, Suzy, Susan, Suzanne – or close enough to qualify, the list goes on – can head to their local Banana Tree restaurant, and all they’ll need to do is show proof of name and they can enjoy a free katsu dish of their choice, worth up to £16.75.

The chain’s kastu lineup includes three star dishes.

First there’s the much-loved Katsu Curry, as well as the all-new Katsu Burger, which is made from either a crispy chicken or veggie fillet, spicy mayo, puffed noodle crunch, and a drizzle of Katsu sauce tucked into a soft Shokupan bun with a side of salt n pepper chilli chips. 

Then there’s also the intriguing newcomer, the Katsu Carbonara – which is described as being a daring East-meets-West mash-up and ‘unapologetically’ Banana Tree.

Banana Tree is giving away 1000 free katsu curries to celebrate its launch in Salford
Banana Tree is giving away free katsu curries to people called ‘Kat’ or ‘Sue’ / Credit: Banana Tree

With each of these dishes usually priced around the £16 mark, the giveaway isn’t just a way of marking National Katsu Day, but it’s also a way to sample the some of the restaurant’s biggest crowd-pleasers entirely free of charge.

To avoid any confusion on who makes the cut, Banana Tree will reveal the full qualifying list of name variations on Instagram soon, so keep your eyes peeled.

“Our Katsu range is one of our proudest creations, so National Katsu Day felt like the perfect moment to have some fun with our fans,” a Banana Tree spokesperson said ahead of the giveaway.

Read more:

The free katsu offer is available for four days only from Monday 22 to Thursday 25 September, and you just need to head to the Banana Tree website to sign up to the Big Flavour Club here.

Featured Image – Banana Tree

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