Manchester’s original independent Pan Asian restaurant Tampopo turns 25 this year – and to celebrate, it’ll be giving away 100 katsu curries next week.
Next Monday, the restaurant will hand out one of its most popular dishes from a pop-up Katsu station outside its Corn Exchange site.
Katsu,a crispy fried cutlet of meat or seafood made flaky with Japanese panko breadcrumbs, is one of Japan’s most popular dishes – often served with a sweet and savory spiced fruit sauce called Tonkatsu.
Tampopo’s version comes as either crispy chicken or sweet potato served with the restaurant’s special house curry sauce, and has been a favourite at the restaurant for a quarter of a century.
Image: The Manc Eats
From 12pm on Monday 20 June, there will be a pop-up Katsu station offering the free Katsu curries out on a first-come-first-served basis.
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The free curry giveaway will kick off a summer of events, offers and rewards for loyal fans of Tampopo.
Diners can enjoy a special anniversary offer of 25% off click and collect at all of Tampopo’s restaurants across Manchester, The Trafford Centre and the East Street by Tampopo Kiosk.
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Tampopo will also be collaborating with Manchester Food and Drink Festival (MFDF) to launch a special foodie podcast series, chronicling the last 25 years of the Manchester food and drink scene with special guests from the wider hospitality community.
The podcast will launch with a big party at MFDF in September.
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Image: Tampopo
Tampopo first opened its doors in 1997 with its original restaurant in Albert Square. The first dining establishment of its kind back in the 90s, twenty-five years on it now has four Greater Manchester outlets and another site in Fitzrovia, London.
Tampopo has also welcomed some celebrity diners over the years, including Victoria and David Beckham, Ian Brown and Jason Donovan.
David Fox, founder of Tampopo, said: “I am proud to have been a part of the Manchester dining scene for 25 years – a time which has seen the city’s food and drink community develop almost beyond recognition.
“I’m happy to have played a small part in the lives of so many loyal customers and team members over the years too – those moments of happiness when family and friends can share food at our table is truly special.
“We even have five Tampopo team marriages, and six Tampopo babies including a set of twins! All in all it is the people that have made the last 25 years so special – so, here’s to the next quarter century with them too!”
Major headliner pulls out of Manchester Village Pride
Daisy Jackson
One of the Manchester Village Pride headliners has had to pull out of their scheduled appearance, just one day before the celebrations begin.
Nadine Coyle was supposed to be headlining the LGBTQ+ event on Friday 27 August.
But in a statement shared by Manchester Village Pride today, they announced that the former Girls Aloud star is ‘under the weather’.
Nadine will be pulling out of her headline slot to ‘rest and recuperate’, but added that she hopes to see Manchester for Pride again soon.
Thankfully, Manchester Village Pride has already found a suitably fabulous replacement for the main stage on Friday – B*Witched.
The iconic Irish girl group will be encouraging ticket-holders to dig out their double denim and dance to hits like C’est La Vie and Rollercoaster.
In the statement shared by Manchester Village Pride, Nadine’s team said: “Nadine is so sorry to have to step out of Manchester Village Pride this year. It was her very first Pride many years ago and she loves getting to spend time with you all.
“Nadine’s voice has been under the weather and she only wants to give absolute best to you all which sadly won’t be possible this weekend as she needs time to rest and recuperate.
“We hate to do it so near the day. Nadine was really hoping she was going to be well enough and hopes she can see you in Manchester for Pride again soon.
“Thank you for being so kind and understanding and we hope you have a wonderful weekend.”
Manchester Village Pride added: “We know how excited many of you were for a massive hit of 2000s pop nostalgia, and we promised you a party. We’ve been working around the clock, and we are beyond thrilled to announce that pop royalty B*WITCHED are stepping in at the eleventh hour!”
Chester Zoo announces return of its £10 tickets for limited time only with extended opening hours
Emily Sergeant
Chester Zoo has announced the return of its popular £10 tickets deal for a limited time only.
You may remember that earlier this summer, Chester Zoo invited people from across the North West to visit for just £10, and as the offer proved so popular, they’ve now brought it back again for a limited time.
For the past three years running now, Chester Zoo has officially been named the UK’s best zoo thanks to tens of thousands of positive TripAdvisor reviews, and now as the summer draws to a close, you’ll get to see exactly what makes it such a special place worth visiting for a cut price.
With the offer only applicable to afternoons this summer, Afternoon Tickets allow entry to Chester Zoo from 2pm onwards – with the last entry being one-hour before it closes.
Chester Zoo is offering £10 tickets to visitors this summer / Credit: Chester Zoo
Without this offer, standard admission tickets to Chester Zoo usually cost up to £38 for adults, £37 for students, and £28 for children, all including a 10% donation to the zoo’s conservation efforts, while babies and carers go free.
So it really is worth making the most of these limited-time £10 tickets while you still can – with the offer now running until 6 September.
The best bit about the offer returning? The zoo is currently operating its extended opening hours until 6pm too, so included for the bargain price of a £10 ticket, you’ll even get to see all the animals while the sun goes down.
Afternoon tickets are only available online and must be booked in advance to claim the £10 offer.
Tickets can only be purchased online before 4pm on the day of your visit, and standard admission tickets can be purchased from our ticket office at the main entrance.
Find out more and book your £10 tickets online here.
Georgina Pellant -
16th June 2022 
