For just one day only next week, both new and returning students can make the most of a whole host of unmissable offers – with over 120 stores inside Manchester Arndale and across the city centre dishing out discounts.
There’ll also be live entertainment, competitions and games to get involved in, and so much more.
Students who make their way into the heart of the city centre between 12pm – 7pm next Thursday 219 September can get their hands on up to 30% off in over 120 stores – including Levi’s, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, River Island, Monki, Pretty Green, Mango, Superdry, Kick Game, Jack & Jones, Office and Schuh.
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Attention all students… MCR Student Social is back!🔊
Head into Manchester city centre to enjoy an exclusive day of special discounts, live entertainment, competition, games and more🙌
Not only that, but if all the shopping has got you working up an appetite, then there’s also up to 50% off on food and drink at places like Döner Shack, Archie’s, Pizza Hut, Pan-n-Ice, Wolf Italian Street Food, and Slim Chickens.
The Cube, and Putters at Urban Playground are also offering up to 50% off too.
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And on top of all those incredible deals, there’ll be plenty of free entertainment to enjoy throughout the Arndale and city centre.
Here’s everything you can expect.
MCR Student Social is back for one day only on Thursday 29 September / Credit: MCR Student Social
Manchester Arndale
As the main hub of the MCR Student Social 2022, head inside Manchester Arndale to spin the wheel at the ‘Student Digs’ for a chance to win some prizes, both big and small, that are perfect for your new home – with everything from toilet roll, to gift cards up for grabs.
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You can also challenge your mates to a nerves-of steel ‘Giant Human Buzzer’ game, where the loser has to put the bins out for a month
Make sure to keep an eye out for the ‘Roaming Roulette’ team too, where you’ll need to stick your hand in the roulette box and guess what the weird and wonderful textures are for a chance to take home some more prizes.
Manchester’s student shopping event is back and “bigger than ever” next week / Credit: Jason Lock Photography (via MCR Student Social)
Play Zone
Exchange Square
If you make your way over to Exchange Square, then you’ll be able to try your hand at Foam Axe Throwing, Pong, Crazy Golf and Virtual Bowling with Printworks.
Plus there’ll also be a table football tournament, giant games, and more from Manchester BID.
New and returning students can make the most of unmissable offers / Credit: Jason Lock Photography (via MCR Student Social)There’ll also be live entertainment, competitions and games to get involved in / Credit: Jason Lock Photography (via MCR Student Social)
Party Zone, Info Zone & Food Zone
Market Street
Market Street is not only the city’s main shopping thoroughfare, but it’s also home to the MCR Student Social Party Zone, Info Zone, and Food Zone this year.
The Party Zone is where you’ll find Urban Playground’s The Cube, a chill-out area, free samples from Nordic Spirit, aerial performers, dancers, and games, as well as The Manc’s DJ Truck playing the finest hip-hop, funk and party anthems throughout the day.
Over at the Info Zone, you can tke on challenges from King Street Gym and Canal River Trust, sign up with MINT Hospitality & Events people, hear from the Manchester Science Festival, and chat to the team from Nationwide.
Then at the Food Zone, you can enjoy some free pizza from Franco Manca, giveaways from Döner Shack, prizes from Barburrito, and so much more.
Featured Image – MCR Student Social
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You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Manchester’s Deansgate
Daisy Jackson
There’s a brand-new menu of smokehouse-style BBQ dishes being served up on a sunny terrace on Deansgate.
Motley, the neighbourhood bar and restaurant on the corner of John Dalton Street, has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen.
That means they’ve got a whole load of new dishes, slow-cooked over hickory wood, that are bringing a taste of a Deep South BBQ to Manchester city centre.
The smokehouse-style meats are all seasoned in-house and cooked for hours, for a perfect fall-off-the-bone experience.
It might be an authentic American smokehouse menu, but it’s firmly British too, with most products locally sourced.
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Deansgate / Credit: The Manc Group
Motley are calling on local suppliers like Althams Butchers (established since 1856) for their meat, plus greengrocers R Noone and Son, and Cheshire Farm for their real dairy ice cream.
Signature dishes on the new menu at Motley include slow smoked brisket, seasoned in Motley’s signature rub before being slow-smoked for more than eight hours.
There’s also a beef short rib with a chimichurri sauce, and a pork belly strip that’s seasoned with sage and onion and finished with a panko breadcrumb crust.
And for the veggies, there’s a vegan smoked veg kebab with courgette, mushrooms, bell pepper, sweet corn and red onion drizzled with homemade BBQ sauce.
Motley has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen / Credit: The Manc Group
Prices across the board start from just £16, served with beef dripping fries, rainbow slaw, pickles and homemade beef gravy.
As for small plates, you can expect short rib bonbons, homemade corn bread, spicy chicken wings, bang bang cauliflower, mac and cheese, and frickles.
House favourites like steak, vegetable hash, salads, and burgers will remain on the Motley menu.
Victor Gonzalez, food and beverage manager at Motley, said: “Our new signature smoked dishes are all crafted and seasoned in-house then slow cooked for hours over hickory wood to create rich and smoky melt-in-your mouth flavours.
“From our slow-smoked brisket to our home-made sides, everything has been carefully crafted to bring an authentic taste of the deep south to Manchester and we can’t wait for guests to try it.”
Motley can be found at 2 John Dalton Street on the corner of Deansgate in the city centre.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
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Coffee Rules: The Greek-born cafe that’s gone on to become a beloved Greater Manchester brand
Danny Jones
It’s rare that you find a place in an already saturated food and drink scene like Greater Manchester’s that genuinely comes across like a local community cornerstone, but that’s exactly what we got when we visited Coffee Rules in Salford.
We went for a brew, one of those viral iced coffee we’ve seen on socials, and maybe a nice bite to eat – but we left with much more and the impression that these lot are onto something big.
Opened in Arta back in their home country (also up in the northwest, by the way), they’ve never struggled to get queues out the door, and it’s no different here. This one is run by two siblings, 23-year-old Thomas and his younger brother Marios, 30, who have been smashing it since 2023.
Since launching their growing UK brand in the likes of The Meadows neighbourhood – one of two they have in the city of Salford alone, the other being Swinton – they’ve brought the lines with them. With authentic Greek food and drink like this, it’s not hard to see why.
They’ve now expanded to more than eight sites total, including one still keeping their own local reputation alive over in Athens, and this looks to be just the beginning.
Having not only spread across the ten boroughs but further out into the region with their Liverpool locations as well as a Yorkshire stronghold up in Sheffield, there’s more to come from Coffee Rules, both in terms of premises and their plans to take on the rest of the brunch game and beyond.
Suburban Mancs may have already seen the regular midday and weekend crowds that pack out their Chorlton venue, the Rusholme one is often filled with fresh-faced uni students in need of their caffeine fix, and it’s an increasingly similar story for those based in Bolton.
Or maybe you’re one of the many people based in Manchester city centre, who nip to their quiet, tucked-away corner of Ancoats for a fresh bake or even to have your eye caught by some of their merch with that modern mythological-inspired logo.
Whichever one happens to be closest to you, you’ll have the same satisfying experience, from sipping on speciality coffee and the scran, to the service and all-around atmosphere.
They’re also about to start hosting board game nights over at their Salford site, where they’ll be making the most of their large terrace with plenty of seating, which also has the added bonus of a retracted pergola – perfect for sunny days or simply sheltering from the Manc rain.
One thing we also noticed was just how many locals not only popped in throughout our time there, but the sheer number that had chosen to start their day at this particular spot.
There’s a regular Greek crowd, of course, but there’s also the native Salfordian and those currently residing in and around the up-and-coming area, who were pulling up in the large car park and taking a pew, or even those just looking for quick and top-quality grab-and-go stuff.
In fact, it’s one of the quickest venues we’ve seen fill up that fast in a hot, Med minute.
Speaking of, whether it be one of their superb Spanish lattes, or the equally sweet, sultry and viral ‘Freddo Cappuccino’, or their traditional spanakopita, not to mention their many Mediterranean pastry variations, there’s a big call for pretty much everything on the menu.
We could go on at length in listing what impressed us about just this one Coffee Rules branch, and we’ve made many trips to their Chorlton one in the past already, but it’s probably best that we just urge you to give it a try sometime soon. Trust us, you won’t be disappointed.
This is one of the fastest-growing franchises in the UK, and it’s no wonder they keep pulling in plaudits and invites to bigger and better industry within the industry as time goes on events over the past few years.
Oh, and one more thing, there’s plenty of savoury stuff that you’ll likely fall in love with, but we highly reccommend ordering the red velvet. Wow…
Emily Sergeant -
22nd September 2022 
