A new Mediterranean and Middle Eastern vegan kitchen is opening above Stockport boozer Crown and Conspirator in Bramhall this month.
Brought to the area by vegan chef James Laving, the new venture will be called OTTO Vegan Empire – a nod to James’s role in former pop-up The Ottö-Men, the mezze street food favourite seen at the likes of Grub, Manchester International Festival’s festival hub and, most recently, Stretford Food Hall.
Dishes are all inspired by James’s travels through the Meditteranean and the Middle East, with some recipes – he confesses – having been ‘mithered’ directly from local elders he’s hassled along the way.
The concept has been created in collaboration with Cheshire Pub Co., and will be ‘the first of many sites’, said Managing Director Matt Parker, with the pub group seeking to expand the new Otto concept across the North West over the next few years.
The new ‘Sexy Pie’ – baklava pastry, wrapped around eight different roasted confit vegetables and super grains. / Image: OTTO Vegan Empire / The Cheshire Pub Co.
In a concerted move away from the vegan junk food trend popular in Manchester, dishes will instead take inspiration from the Ottoman Empire and celebrate salads, rice, legumes and grains alongside Arabic breads like Khbouz and Manakish, reports the Manchester Evening News.
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Dishes will span long-standing favourites like the Otto mezze with Khobez bread and the kitchen’s famous five falafel, alongside the likes of Adriatic-style tomato stew, ‘Sexy Pie’ – baklava pastry stuffed with eight roasted, confit vegetables and super grains – and Otto Veggie Kofta.
Elsewhere, diners will find’ black and wada Hummus’ – a Lebanese variation with toasted black sesame and black garlic, topped with wada batter crunchies and coriander – and a specially-chosen selection of vegan wines.
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The special spice blend, Ras el Hanout, made the OTTO way with Damask rose petals. / Image: OTTO Vegan Empire
In a Facebook post announcing the move, chef James said: “Our Otto menu showcases a groovy and modern take on the traditional.
“I’ve lost count of how many patient elders I have mithered for their homegrown recipes during my travels through the streets and homes of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern villages.
“Otto will offer a cornucopia of flavour, texture and good times to the village of Bramhall. Sustainable, seasonable and locally sourced will be at the heart of everything we do.”
Due to open at the pub from Wednesday 27 April, to find out more and book check out OTTO Vegan Empire’s Instagram here and visit the pub’s website here.
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Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
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Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool
Emily Sergeant
Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.
Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.
One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.
Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.
At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.
Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.
“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.
“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”
Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.
Georgina Pellant -
25th April 2022 
