Manchester hospitality bosses to go head-to-head in DJ battle against food poverty
Charity fundraiser Too Many Owners will bring together owners from Flawd, Junior Jacksons, Common, Albert's Schloss, PKB and more for the ultimate hospitality soundclash.
A number of Manchester’s best-known hospitality bosses will go head to head in a DJ battle at Tariff and Dale next week to help raise funds for food poverty organisation Eat Well MCR ahead of Christmas.
Taking place on Wednesday, 17 November, Too Many Owners will see bar and restaurant owners from a number of popular venues in the city take to the decks – pulling out their ultimate party selections in a head-to-head battle.
The event will see the likes of Junior Jackson’s owner Lyndon Higginson face off against Ancoats wine bar Flawd co-owner Richard Cossins, Ramona and The Firehouse’s Andy Windsor, and Johnny Heyes of Nell’s / Common / Port Street Beer House.
Lyndon Higginson (Junior Jackson’s, WATD, Cane & Grain, Crazy Pedro’s, The Bay Horse Tavern etc) pictured with Eco Spirit Global’s Zdenek Kastanek / Image: nomadicecospirit
Also due to be taking part in the Dj battle is Mark Flanagan and Jon Wilkin (PKB), Neil Macleod & James Plant (Albert’s Schloss), Matty Farrell (Salt Dog Slims), James Bates & Dom Jones (Maray), Tom Coates / Jake Burger (Portobello Road Distillery), David Fox (Tampopo), and Nick De Sousa (Tariff and Dale / The Lead Station).
In previous years, the way the battle has works is there have been several rounds – the first focused on showcasing ‘skills’ in which each owner is given a ten-minute set in which they can play whatever they like. This is then followed by a face-off with the crowd, that sees each owner play single tracks in a bid to qualify for the final.
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Image: Eat Well MCR
In the ultimate final round, owners have then gone back to back as they try to show off their best mixing and selection skills. They’re not always very good, but the event pretty much guarantees everyone gets a good laugh.
It’s all taking place in aid of Eat Well MCR, which works with vulnerable residents in the city to eradicate food poverty and provide healthy, nutritious meals to people in need.
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Working with chefs in various restaurants around the city, Eat Well MCR brings in donated food that would otherwise go to waste, and from that partnering restaurants create top quality meals for people sidelined by poverty.
Image: Eat Well MCR
Image: Eat Well MCR
The collective of Manchester chefs and hospitality professionals has prepared and delivered over 50,000 meals to people facing challenging circumstances in Greater Manchester since April 2020.
Kicking off from 7 pm at Tariff and Dale in Manchester’s northern quarter and running until 11.30 pm, the event will be sponsored by a host of different drinks companies including Edrington Beam, Suntory, Bacardi, Hammonds / Naud Distillery, Mangrove, Ten Locks, Boutinot Wines, Brown Forman.
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Fingers crossed that means there’ll be some decent drink offers going around on the night.
Tickets are priced at £16.76 each, with all proceeds donated to Eat Well MCR and grab yours here.
Featured Image – Tariff and Dale
Manchester
Manchester may finally get a lido as part of plans for a new ‘woodland town’
Daisy Jackson
A lido may be on the way to Manchester for the first time in decades, as part of major plans to regenerate Holt Town.
The area just beyond Ancoats and New Islington could be transformed into a ‘woodland town’, with thousands of new homes and high quality green spaces.
The new town would ‘bridge the gap’ between the bustling city centre and major cultural venues like Co-op Live, the Etihad Stadium, and all the other facilities at SportCity and the Etihad Campus.
If it all goes ahead as planned, Holt Town will be home to a lido – something that’s been on a lot of Manchester wishlists for decades.
Plans include building around 4,500 new homes- including at least 20% genuinely affordable properties, family housing, apartments and age-friendly homes.
It’ll all incorporate high quality green spaces surrounding a 1km play street spine, provision of new local services, cultural opportunities, and significant affordable workspace, plus a focus on green travel rather than car use.
Around 15 acres of green space would be created, enhancing Holt Town’s proximity to the canals and rivers.
How Holt Town could look after its regeneration. Credit: SuppliedHolt Town’s regeneration plans include a lido for ManchesterHolt Town will be built along the canals and rivers near ManchesterThe new ‘woodland town’ will be built along the canal
Manchester City Council’s executive will be asked to approve the ambitious Holt Town plans at a committee meeting next week (22 January), following positive feedback public consultation last year, where 10,000 people viewed the plans and 411 formal responses showed strong support.
Cllr Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “Holt Town has huge potential and this is feeding our ambition to create a brand new woodland town – the first of its kind in Manchester.
“We have an opportunity to deliver a transformative programme of investment and we expect this area to be Manchester’s next urban regeneration exemplar, creating a neighbourhood that meets the needs of our city and our people – with at least 4,500 new homes, including significant affordable housing options.
“This neigbourhood will represent a people first focus around active travel, green spaces, new play spaces for young people – and a digital first approach that will better connect the community with local services.
“Following consultation, we are beginning to move to the early delivery phase for Holt Town – a new town within the city of Manchester – that will finally bridge the gap between the city centre, Sportcity and the Etihad Campus in east Manchester.”
A Manchester barbershop is offering a ‘pay what you can’ service this month
Danny Jones
Amidst the tidal wave of January deals on food and drink in Manchester, a local barbers is championing their own ‘pay what you can’ offer to help people along this month.
Jefe’s Barbershop, located in the heart of Manchester’s Northern Quarter, is one of the best barbers in the city centre, offering a wide variety of cuts and facial hair grooming services – they even offer a subscription service that helps people save money on regular trims.
That being said, they are well aware of those January blues and the mounting obstacles and anxieties that come with weeks of penny-pinching to make it to month’s end, as well as the general toll it can take on people’s mental health.
So this January, Jefe and his team are doing something different – as he puts it, “something special”: the barbershop is allowing customers to simply pay what they feel comfortable handing over and, in the case of those struggling, whatever they can afford.
It’s a simple gesture with a big purpose which helps ensure no one has to miss out on a feel-good moment or the confidence that comes from a fresh trim.
“All we do is laugh and joke about life—that’s why people come here,” Jefe explains. “I don’t want anyone to lose the chance to be present, to feel good, and to laugh with us.
“Men often need more help than they’re willing to let on and we want to be a helping hand they can rely on.” Now that’s a cause all of us can and should get behind.
Community support has remained at the core of Jefe’s Barbershop since the beginning when he swapped a basketball career for providing a much-needed service to Mancunian men.
From partnering with Manc sandwich shops and offering free haircuts for the homeless, to hosting street parties with local events companies and providing £5 trims to promote men’s mental health in 2023 when the cost of living crisis really kicked in – Jefe’s is always trying to make a difference in the area.
You’ve got to love businesses that go the extra mile.
If you want to make the most of this wholesome deal or just feel like you’re in need of a trim, you can book HERE or call them directly on 0161 818 7659.
The ‘pay what you can’ offer runs Monday to Thursday, 9am-7pm, subject to availability. You’ll find Jefe’s Barbershop on Stevenson Square
Because as the man himself puts it, “Everyone deserves to feel their best”.
Georgina Pellant -
11th November 2021 
