For those who’ve been watching I’m A Celebrity on ITV, it’s fair to say this season has already had some serious ups and downs – not least the controversial decision of producers to book former Health Secretary Matt Hancock (and for the princely sum of £400k, no less).
One group particularly affected by the start of the show included the Covid Bereaved Families For Justice, who have gone to great lengths to make their disapproval known in recent weeks; including flying a banner over the camp reading: “Covid bereaved say Get Out of Here!”
But amongst the criticism and controversy, there have been some light-hearted moments too – as we saw on Sunday night when campmate and Lionness legend Jill Scott’s Wythenshawe cafe got a namecheck during the ‘Partners in Grime’ trial.
As campmates were quizzed on details of others in the group, Jill was up first. Showered in a swarm of bugs that dropped onto her head, Ant and Dec then asked her how many haircuts Hollyoaks actor Owen Warner had a week.
Image: Boxx2Boxx
Image: Boxx2Boxx
Up next, Jill was asked to place her headphones over her ears whilst Owen was asked the name of her coffee shop, to which he correctly replied “Boxx2Boxx”.
It’s not the first time that the cafe’s name has come up on the show, with Jill previously apologising for making everyone hungry after revealing to campmates that she had opened a coffee shop with her fiancee Shelly Unitt during the lockdown.
Read more:The highest-paid I’m A Celebrity contestants, in order – and it’s not who you’re expecting
She told her ITV co-stars that she sells bacon sandwiches, paninis and cakes at her Greater Manchester coffee shop, alongside other items.
In a confessional, Owen Warner later told viewers to imagine going to a coffee shop and seeing the Lionness serving you a coffee – leading viewers eager to pay the shop a visit.
A quick look at the coffee shop’s Instagram shows that the customers are very much behind Jill’s jungle expedition, with posts encouraging fans to vote for her amassing tens of thousands of likes.
Scroll down further, though, and you’ll spy wholesome-looking pictures of cake, pumpkin spice lattes, smores cookies, bacon muffins, Biscoff and gold bar pies and plenty more.
Based at 375 Palatine Road, Northenden, Wythenshawe, the store takes its name in reference to Jill’s position as a box-to-box midfielder and receives regular visits from footballers.
Writing on the Boxx2Boxx website, Jill explained: “I’ve always loved coffee, travelling around with football, and it started to get to the point where if I had a bad coffee to start the day I would have a bad day so coffee has become very important in my life.”
She added: “It just all happened so quickly. Even now, I have to pinch myself, like as if we have our own coffee shop! I called it Boxx 2 Boxx because of the box-to-box midfield, I thought we could entice some of the players down.”
This summer the Lioness also hosted a Coffee Club podcast on BBC Radio 5 Live, offering an intimate glimpse into women’s football with all chats held over a good cup of coffee.
Feature image – The Manc Group
Food & Drink
Manchester tapas spot Maricarmen open second city centre site
Danny Jones
Affordable Manchester tapas spot Maricarmen has just finished launching its second site in town, doubling its city centre presence with the official opening on Thursday, 4 September.
Maricarmen launched on Great Ancoats Street back in June 2023 and quickly became a firm Manc favourite, famous for their £3.50 dishes
When it comes to their small plate approach, they serve up some of the best tapas in Manchester, and even the shopfront seats at their popular roadside location are regularly full regardless of passing traffic.
However, if there’s ever been one gripe we’ve had with the place, it’s that the outdoor area isn’t the most peaceful, even if it is a stunning suntrap on a warm day – that’s where the new restaurant comes in.
Ancoats…… vs NQNew but familiar (Credit: Supplied/The Manc Eats)
We’ve been semi-regular visitors of Maricarmen ever since it started out life as a pop-up just around from Cutting Room Square, and they’ve gained speed and reputation ever since.
Known not only for authentic, value-for-money tapas, but welcoming plenty of punters for a simple drink as one of the best places for a sangria in central Manchester, they’ve managed to stay relatively just not just when the weather is bright but throughout most seasons.
While the Ancoats restaurant is known for the aforementioned roving ‘El Tableo’ style of service inspired by southern Spain, the newest location will be slightly different, revealing not only lighter colours and Alicante beach influences with a focus on alfresco eating, but lots of new specials.
Created by Marian Diaz and Jose Nunez, who previously owned a tapas restaurant in Madrid, La Porcineria, which was sadly curtailed by Covid.
On the bright side, Manchester has been the greatest beneficiary of their fresh start, and we can’t wait to see what venue number two delivers.
Co-founder, Diaz, said of the new opening: “Maricarmen is about compassion, hard work, strength, reinvention, opening our minds & hearts and connecting with people. It’s more than just food, for us, it is the beautiful moment when we see our customers and our coworkers smile because they are here.”
She went on to add, “To us, Manchester signifies the ability to reinvent and grow. The people here support you without expecting anything in return. It’s really beautiful. I have never felt this before in my life. […] We’ve built up such a loyal customer base of locals – many have become dear friends.
“And to be in a position to open a second site within two years and share our love of good food and great times with Manchester’s Northern Quarter is quite unbelievable.”
There really is a Costa Blanca beach house vibe to this bright, new yellow-accented corner of NQ and having tried some of their dishes, we can’t wait to get stuck in.
Be sure to follow them on socials too, not only for more announcements and updates but because it’ll give you an even better flavour of the vibes over there.
Popular Manchester cafe and bakery Gooey brilliantly responds to ‘2/10’ TikTok review
Daisy Jackson
Gooey, easily one of Manchester’s busiest bakeries and brunch spots, has clapped back at a negative review on TikTok with a refreshingly honest statement.
The local business shot to fame initially with its chunky, gooey cookies, but has since expanded from its hatch to have its very own cafe, famed for its enormous French toasts and its sandwiches made with baked-in-house Shokupan bread.
Generally, Gooey gets an incredibly good rap, with queues that speak for themselves stretching from its doors down High Street.
But one TikToker has shared a less favourable video review of the business, slamming it as ‘one of the most disappointing food experiences I’ve ever had in my life’.
The reviewer in question specialises in finding places you could eat comfortably as a solo diner, and ranked Gooey an overall 8/10 – but slated the food at a 2/10.
And now Gooey has shared their side of things, defending themselves against the reviewer’s claims that the food is ‘expensive’ and ‘tastes like it could have been made at Greggs’.
“Not everyone is going to like what you do and that is absolutely fair enough,” they wrote in a statement.
Gooey continued: “We’re not usually in the business of responding to negative reviews.
Gooey clapped back at the review that said its sandwiches were ‘too expensive’
“What has made us respond to this review is how often I’m seeing local businesses like ours targeted on costs.”
The cafe then justified the £10.90 cost for a bacon and egg sandwich, pointing out the bacon is cured in-house and cut thick every day by hand; the bread is also baked in-house daily; even the ketchup and brown sauce are made from scratch.
“With all that said, yes, we do have to charge more than you would pay for a bacon butty at Greggs.
“Listen, I understand this criticism. I used to get a bacon and egg butty before college for £1.95 from my local butty shop.
“We cannot do that here. We are paying Manchester City Centre rent. We employ a team of chefs, bakers, front of house, and more.
“And we are trying to make the best version of a bacon sandwich that we could.”
Chunky cookies at GooeyThe Gooey French toast that the review claimed was ‘too sweet’
As for the complaints that the French toast is ‘too sweet’, Gooey clapped back: “Yes, our French Toast is sweet. It’s filled with dulce de leche and topped with maple syrup.
“We personally love it and it’s our most popular item but if you don’t like sweet things, you might not like it!”
Finally, in defence of rising prices across the hospitality industry, they signed off with this brilliant piece of insight.
“Every single independent cafe, restaurant and bar across this country is charging more than they would like to be doing for their dishes.
“In 99.99% of cases, this is not greed, or us being thick, or trying to rip people off. It is simply the only way to survive with the costs we are facing.
“Even then, many of us are struggling to make it work.”
Anyone fancy meeting at Gooey for a bacon sandwich later then?
The Manc -
22nd November 2022 
