There is a bar in Manchester doing a bottomless brunch with paella and endless sangria and we are already obsessed.
Forget your bangers and eggs. Ninety minutes of non-stop sangria calls for something with a little more heft, and Abeja Tapas Bar has just the thing. We’re talking about paella, naturally.
First originating in Valencia, today the ever-popular Spanish rice dish can be found all over the country with different local variations on offer depending on whereabouts you go.
At Abeja, a southern Spanish kitchen run by chef Ana Villegas beneath Alvarium, you’ll find two different interpretations: a mixed meat and fish stock paella with squid, prawns, clams chicken, or a vegan-friendly offering with artichoke, red pepper, broad beans, green bean and mushrooms.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
Priced at £16 for the paella alone, or £32 to go bottomless with 90 minutes of non-stop sangria on the side, whether you’re on the sauce or not there’s still plenty of incentive to visit this Granadian gem.
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Paella is served in individual portions on beautiful crockery with tiny dollops of aioli on the side. Elsewhere on the menu, you’ll find a host of popular tapas dishes like charred padron peppers, juicy shell-on prawns, Spanish tortilla, bravas and a selection of Granadian meat and cheese.
Going beyond the well-known every day, there are also some more unusual dishes to dig into. Ana’s berenjenas fritas (aubergine fries with molasses, akin to vegan churros) are a must, as are the Iberico pork tenderloin pinchos.
Sangria options, meanwhile, are extensive with five different styles on offer. Alongside Abeja’s signature red and white sangria, you’ll also find tequile and rose, lemon and ginger and cherry blush sangria on the menu here too.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
With sangria by the glass usually priced at £8.50, and jugs costing £32, it’s well worth heading down to Alvarium on Sundays to make the most of the bottomless offer – essentially getting you a free paella and endless drinks for the price of a jug any other time.
Booking is required as the paella takes some time to prepare, therefore the deal will only be available to tables with advance bookings. Alvarium and Abeja’s bottomless sangria offer is available from 12.30 to 9pm every Sunday.
To find out more and reserve your table, visit the Alvarium website here.
Feature image – The Manc Eats / Alvarium
Manchester
The Pop Up Club – pop-up shop for independent retailers to return to Manchester this weekend
Thomas Melia
The Pop Up Club is coming back to Manchester city centre this weekend, offering a prime retail space to independent businesses and small creators.
Through providing this platform for these businesses, The Pop Up Club has managed to help its traders earn £1.5 million across all their previous events which run up and down the UK.
The brilliant pop-up retail space was previously on King Street in Manchester, but this time The Pop Up Club is moving into the Manchester Arndale.
Shoppers will be able to choose from the curated traders on offer, such as beautifully handpainted watercolour illustrations from By Tilly, celestial and nature inspired jewellery by Sian Mellor designs and beaded bracelets from That Wild Feeling.
It’s also helping to promote local talent as it shares the work of Manchester based unique printed homewares from Lydia Meiying.
Moonshine Prints, a trader who creates a variety of fascinating and eclectic wall art for everyone to buy and display in their homes, will also be at The Pop Up Club when it returns to Manchester.
The Pop Up Club will offer a chance to browse local traders who normally wouldn’t have a platform as big as this, while also supporting art and culture direct from the north.
Tillie Peel, creator and founder of The Pop Up Club.Inside the incredible retail space providing opportunities for small businesses.Peel, admiring works by small creators which are part of her small business initiative.Credit: Publicity Pictures
The businesses The Pop Up Club uplifts and works with may be small but the amount of traders definitely isn’t – they’ve shone a spotlight on more than 500 independent retailers since setting up the social enterprise.
It’s also nice to hear that creatives who have worked with them in the past would more than likely consider working with The Pop Up Club again as according to the statistic on their website, ‘100% of traders said they would return’.
The venture was founded by Tillie Peel, who says: “Manchester has always welcomed us with open arms, and the friendly Northern spirit was calling us back once again.
“Utilising an empty space at the Manchester Arndale is a dream come true for us, as it puts us at the heart of shopping in the city and with events such as the Christmas Markets returning, the footfall of the city centre will be highly welcomed by us and all our traders in our Manchester store.
“With over 5 million small businesses in the UK*, there are so many that deserve attention and shopping small can bring huge benefits to the economy as well as supporting local income. This Christmas is the perfect time to shop from small businesses and independent traders, where a purchase can make a real difference to that brand.
“Our network of independent businesses have found being in our stores offers real value, as well as allowing them to speak to customers, see the reactions in real time to their items and to get a taste of what the high street has to offer.”
Shoppers who just can’t wait to get on down to The Pop Up Club can browse the shop in person on 16 November at Manchester Arndale.
Doves announce first hometown gig for 15 years in Manchester on UK tour
Daisy Jackson
Doves have announced a massive homecoming show – their first Manchester gig in 15 years – on their upcoming tour, but without frontman Jimi Goodwin.
The Manchester-founded band are heading out on a full UK tour in support of their sixth studio album Constellations for the Lonely.
Doves will be heading to Aviva Studios for a huge show, along with dates in Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool and London, to name a few.
The new tour dates are in addition to the already sold-out intimate dates in Stoke, Birkenhead and Hebden Bridge.
Lead singer Jimi Goodwin will sit out the live tour to focus on his health – the band had previously cancelled their 2021 tour to protect his wellbeing.
He has said that his current circumstances are ‘not compatible with a mad, city-to-city schedule’.
Instead, Andy and Jez Williams will alternate on vocals and are promising a ‘one-of-a-kind experience’.
In a heartwarming statement about their Doves bandmate, they said: “This tour is incredibly special as Jimi is stepping back from live to focus on his well being.
“Mental health has always been central to Doves, and we fully support him in his decision.”
Doves announced their new album Constellations For The Lonely last week, shortly before confirming their UK tour and Manchester homecoming gig.
The band have recorded tracks, including recent Goodwin-fronted single Renegade, through a patchwork of in-person and remote recording sessions.
Doves UK tour dates in full
Tue 25 Feb – Glasgow, SWG3
Wed 26 Feb – Edinburgh, La Belle Angele
Thu 27 Feb – Newcastle, Boiler Shop
Sat 1 Mar – Leeds, Beckett SU
Sun 2 Mar – Sheffield, Leadmill
Tue 4 Mar – Liverpool, O2 Academy
Fri 7 Mar – Manchester, Aviva Studios, home of Factory International
Sun 8 Mar – Birmingham, O2 Institute
Mon 10 Mar – Nottingham, Rock City
Tue 11 Mar – Norwich, Waterfront
Thu 13 Mar – London, O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire
Fri 14 Mar – Bristol, SWX
Sat 15 Mar – Southampton, Engine Rooms
Mon 17 Mar – Brighton, Chalk
Tue 18 Mar – Oxford, O2 Academy
Tickets for all dates go on general sale on Thursday 21 November at 9.30am HERE.
Georgina Pellant -
15th September 2022 
