World Cocktail Day is upon us, a global celebration of cocktails in all their shapes, sizes, and flavours – as if we needed an excuse to celebrate cocktails.
The annual event on 13 May will see people across the globe raise a toast to the wonder of mixology, and the whole experience of going out for cocktails.
Whatever your taste, whether you like a short and bitter beverage or a fun and flirty cocktail, you’ll find something to love inside the Corn Exchange in Manchester city centre.
The Grade II-listed building is home to more than a dozen brilliant restaurants, cafes and bars, many of which are ready to show off their drink-making skills.
Each one is created with a focus on ingredients, presentation, taste and experience.
So in honour of World Cocktail Day, here’s a guide to just some of the cocktails around the Corn Exchange.
Sit back and raise a glass to the creativity and innovation of bartenders and mixologists around the world, especially those here in our home city.
Chilli Mango Margarita at Mowgli
The most popular cocktail in the world, the margarita, is given a refreshing and spicy twist by Indian restaurant Mowgli.
They’ve added fresh mango and chilli peppers to the smoothness of tequila, with the zesty kick of lime juice.
Orchard Daiquiri at Riva Blu
Down at Riva Blu, the authentic Italian restaurant that faces out onto Exchange Square, you’ll find the refreshing and delicious Orchard Daiquiri.
It’s made with smooth El Dorado 3yr Demerara rum, and is the perfect balance of sweet and tangy with the addition of nectarine, apricot, green apple, and lime.
Eton Mess at Sixes
It just wouldn’t be summer without an Eton Mess – or without cricket.
And you can merge those two worlds at Sixes Social Cricket, who are serving up a drink that mixes Strawberry Havana Especial Rum, ginger foam, brûléed meringue, and fresh strawberries.
One of the best bits of cocktails is the theatre that comes with them, whether it’s a torched topping, a colour-changing liquor or – as in this case – a cloud of dry ice that releases a burst of aromatic flavours.
This is the Love Dose cocktail at Delhi House Cafe, considered one of the most Instagrammable picks on this list of the Corn Exchange’s best cocktails.
It blends Bombay Sapphire Gin, lychee and lime.
Zucker Floss at Garten Bar
The Garten Bar, located right in the centre of the stunning Corn Exchange, has created a playful twist on a classic bubbly drink.
It’s made with prosecco and violet, served with a cloud of candy floss that slowly melts into your drink, adding both theatre and subtle sweetness.
The best bit? 2-for-1 deals are available every day.
Phojito at Pho
It’s all about delicious slurping at Pho, the Vietnamese restaurant that serves steaming bowls of noodle soup and a belting twist on a classic mojito.
It’s made with white rum, mint, lime and soda, packing a punch of flavour that pairs perfectly with your favourite pho dish.
Black Raspberry and Vanilla Highball at The Cosy Club
Pitched as a ‘taste explosion in a glass’, The Cosy Club’s Black Raspberry and Vanilla Highball is made with Mount Gay Rum, Chambord, vanilla, apple, and soda.
The Cosy Club is always a popular spot for a cocktail in the Corn Exchange, with balcony views over the atrium lending for some excellent people-watching.
The Banyan Colada – Banyan
Fancy a trip to more exotic shores? Of course you do.
The Banyan Colada will whip you straight away to the Caribbean with its blend of Bacardi Cuatro rum, Discarded Banana Peel rum, coconut, kaffir, lemongrass, pineapple, and lime.
Singapore Sling – Tampopo
One of the world’s most famous cocktails is given plenty of time in the spotlight from long-standing local favourite Tampopo.
Their Singapore Sling is made to the original Raffles Hotel recipe, using gin, cherry liqueur, Cointreau, grenadine, and pineapple juice.
Aperol Spritz – Salvi’s
The holiday vibes continue over at Salvi’s, who serve arguably the best and most authentic Aperol Spritz in Manchester.
You can sit out on their sun-soaked terrace sipping on Aperol, prosecco and soda water – if you shut your eyes, you can almost feel the Amalfi coast sea breeze on your skin.
_____
Please drink responsibly. If you feel that you are concerned about your relationship with alcohol, you can find information and advice about alcohol, learn about its impact on your health and wellbeing and get support to cut back on drinking via the Drinkaware website.
Featured image: Supplied
Sponsored
Star of hit CBBC show Operation Ouch! to host live Q&A and meet and greets in Manchester this summer
Emily Sergeant
Little Mancs can meet the star of one of their favourite TV shows at the Science and Industry Museum this summer.
In case you hadn’t heard, Operation Ouch! is back in Manchester again with a fresh new experience for 2025, and this time around, visitors can journey through an ear canal covered in gooey wax, squeeze past sticky snot, and delve deeper into how our brains interpret the world.
Thousands of families from across Greater Manchester and beyond have already visited the city centre museum make the most of the new exhibition, and get stuck into the wide range of immersive and interactive activities it has on offer.
But for those who haven’t been able to pay a visit yet, this summer couldn’t be a more ideal opportunity to do so.
That’s because Dr Xand Van Tulleken – who is one of the presenters of the BBC showOperation Ouch! – will be at the museum in a couple of weeks time to meet visitors as part of his myth-busting mission to answer some of the public’s deepest questions about our senses.
The Science and Industry Museum has unveiled its ‘summer of senses’ programme / Credit: Science Museum Group
Dr Xand Van Tulleken will be at the Science and Industry Museum for one day only, and will not only join mini medics on their voyage through the senses, but will also be on-hand to answer brain teasers from the audience during a series of live Q&As.
Whether it’s banging on a super-sized eardrum, venturing into a massive eyeball, or even taking a whiff of a ‘smell library’, this world-premiere exhibition dives into the science behind hearing, sight, touch, taste, and smell – and Dr Xand will be there every step of the way.
Dr Xand’s visit comes amid a senses-themed summer programme at the city centre museum, where visitors can enjoy everything from silent discos and science shows, to a ‘bogie lab’, brain-boggling challenges, and loads more during six weeks of activities inspired by its latest exhibition.
Book your tickets to visit Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You on Tuesday 12 August, for any of the time slots between 11:30am – 1pm, and 2:45 – 4:15pm for the opportunity to grab a selfie with Dr Xand from inside the exhibition.
Tickets will cost visitors £10 each, with those under three going free, and a range of family discounts available.
Find out more about the exhibition and get tickets here.
Featured Image – Science Museum Group
Sponsored
Aspiring artists can get their work displayed on one of the biggest digital screens in Manchester
Danny Jones
Are you a budding artist looking to get your work seen or know some who is? Well, you might want to pay attention because there’s an opportunity to have your creation seen by countless passers-by and on one of the biggest displays in the entire UK over at the Printworks.
If you’ve passed through the much-loved hospitality and leisure complex over the past year or so, you’ll have noticed their roof is now no longer a roof at all, really; the striking ceiling is now a constantly moving image and the largest of its kind in all of Europe.
Meaning that anyone who got their artworks on there would effectively be securing one of the biggest displays and public installations on the continent.
As Printworks themselves put it: “This isn’t just a screen; it’s an artistic stage viewed by millions of visitors every year, with the power to turn a single artwork into a 360-degree sensory experience.”
With that in mind, they’re giving one lucky individual the chance to grab the spotlight and see their creative expression plastered on the 1,000m² wraparound LED canvas.
“Supporting emerging talent and seeing fresh, creative perspectives is always inspiring, and I can’t wait to see what these young artists bring to the table! It was so surreal seeing my artwork on the digital.”
Past installations have included the ‘Spaces Up-Above’ exhibition by world-renowned light artist, Rupert Newman, as well as an International Women’s Day showcase by Heitzman herself, as a fellow Manchester-based creative.
In case you need a better idea of the sheer scale of this screen and why this is such an exciting opportunity for up-and-coming local artists, here’s how they celebrated Oasis returning to Manchester for their Heaton Park reunion gigs this week:
Synchronised with sound and added motion effects, the competition is now open to students who are currently enrolled in college, university or art school.
Better still, you don’t even have to be from or based in the area to take part – this is a nationwide competition hoping to spotlight the best talents in the UK.
All you have to do to enter this exciting competition in Manchester is simply provide Printworks your details and upload your artwork of choice HERE by Sunday, 3 August.
Daisy Jackson -
12th May 2023 
