Brand-new ‘Hot Milkshakes’ and loads of tasty vegan options are just some of the things forming part of Costa’s 2024 winter menu.
The popular coffee shop chain is known and loved for its limited-edition menus every time a new season rolls around – and it looks like this year will be no different, as Costa has already decided to kick-off 2024 in style, just a few days into January, by announcing that a whole host of new and returning drinks and food options.
After waving goodbye to its much-loved festive favourites for another year, the new winter menu will be launching at Costa branches all across the UK from tomorrow (4 January).
And one of the stand-outs on the menu has to be the all-new ‘Hot Milkshakes’.
Costa has unveiled its new menu for winter 2024 / Credit: Costa
Already being described by the chain as “groundbreaking” and “game-changing”, the indulgent range of new Hot Milkshakes are exactly what it says on the tin, and are designed to “tantalise your senses and provide an unforgettable experience”.
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Available in three flavours – White Chocolate and Strawberry, Salted Caramel Coffee, and Chocolate Hazel – each Hot Milkshake is topped with Costa’s signature ‘Light Whip’, and depending on what flavour you’ve chosen, either a choice sprinkles, sweet caramel vermicelli, or chocolate brownie crumbs.
Another one of the highlights forming part of the company’s 2024 winter menu has to be the extensive lineup of new vegan food and sweet treat options.
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With the first month of the year now also synonymous with Veganuary – which is an annual challenge to promote and educate about veganism by encouraging people to follow a vegan lifestyle for the month of January – Costa’s lineup of new vegan options are ideal for anyone looking to cut back on their animal product consumption.
There’s a whole host of new and returning drinks, food options, and sweet treats to try / Credit: Costa
Thanks to Costa’s new collaboration with popular plant-based foodies, BOSH!, customers will soon be able to tuck into the new Plant-Based Saucy Chicken Fajita Wrap, and the new Plant-Based Smokin’ BBQ Chicken Panini.
Not only that, but the popular Plant-Based Crackin’ Ham and Cheeze Toastie, and the Plant-Based Smashin’ Sausage Bap, will also be returning with new and improved recipes.
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For vegans with a sweet tooth, there’ll also be the new Caramelised Biscuit Rocky Road, and the new Double Chocolate Cookie – which can even be served warm – to try out for size, on top of the beloved fan-favourite Chocolate and Pecan Slice, which is also making a comeback.
There’s loads of new vegan and plant-based options forming part of the seasonal lineup / Credit: Costa
For those who aren’t always looking for meat-free options though, Costa has also got you covered thanks to two new brunch options – the new Pork and Apple Sausage Roll, and the new Raisin and Almond Granola Pot.
A handful of customers’ favourite comfort food toasties are also returning for the colder months, including the Hog Roast Toastie, Heinz Beanz and Cheese Toastie, and Roast Chicken and Bacon Toastie.
The new and improved recipe Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake, and the all-new Banana Loaf Cake, and Orange and Raspberry Victoria Sponge are the three newbies to the sweet treats lineup, alongside a trio of returning muffins – Rolo Chocolate & Caramel Muffin, Blueberry Muffin, and Sicilian Lemon Muffin – and the cocoa indulgences of the Chocolate Cornflake Cake, and the Salted Caramel Brownie.
Costa’s new 2024 Winter Menu will be launching tomorrow (Thursday 4 November), and will be available at the chain’s over 14,500 branches all across the UK.
Featured Image – Costa
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Didsbury favourite Rustik has confirmed its will sadly be closing this month
Danny Jones
West Didsbury favourite Rustik has sadly announced it will be closing for food after a decade at the end of this month.
The beloved Burton cafe and bar has been a staple of the tight-knit foodie neighbourhood since 2015, but now the independent Irish eatery has confirmed that the business will be shutting down permanently in less than a fortnight.
Confirmed on Wednesday afternoon, 17 September, the casual Manc restaurant and hangout informed their loyal followers of the unfortunate news.
Unsurprisingly, their social media has been awash with condolences, collective sadness and support for the local institution.
Posting across all of their accounts, Rustik wrote: “After an unforgettable 10 years on Burton Road, the time has come to close our doors. It’s hard to believe how far we’ve come — never in a million years did we imagine Rustik would grow into what it became.
“From the bottom of our hearts, thank you to every single one of you who walked through our doors and supported us along the way. We poured everything we had — our time, our energy, our lives into making Rustik a space for everyone. And what a ride it’s been.
“From the chaotic, beautiful brunch shifts to late nights dancing on tables to ‘Wagon Wheel’, pushing through the challenges of COVID and helping our community with meals during hard times— we’ve done it all, together.
“To our amazing staff, past and present: thank you for your hard work, your dedication, and the love you brought every single day. You helped build something truly special, and we’ll never be able to thank you enough.
“To the incredible musicians who filled our space with life — keep doing what you do. The noise complaints? 100% worth the unforgettable nights.”
The team go on to detail that the official closing date is Tuesday, 30 September, reiterating that it is “business running as usual until then” and urging fans to “come down, grab your last Rustik fix, and raise a glass with us one final time.”
Signing off with an emotional farewell, they add: “Lastly, a message close to our hearts: please support your local cafes, bars, and independents. Hospitality is tough right now, and they need your support more than ever.
“Thank you for the most incredible decade of our lives. It’s over and out from us.”
It goes without saying that we’re gutted to see Rustik go and know how much it meant not only to the Burton Road community, but also to the Didsbury community, Chorlton and many other Greater Manchester natives.
Review | Villanelle debut: Liam Gallagher’s son’s band release their first track – here’s our review
Danny Jones
Liam Gallagher’s son, Gene, and his band Villanelle, have officially released their debut single to the masses, and since we’re still very much immersing ourselves in everything even remotely to do with Oasis, we thought we’d give this first track a review.
Now, if you’re expecting a familiar Britpop vibe like his dad and uncle used to bash out back in the day, you’d be very wrong…
It’s one thing to settle into something similar to what you’ve grown up around and try to continue a lineage if you’re from a successful family – especially with a legacy as important and influential as the one left by Liam and Noel – but we’re glad to report they’ve done something pretty different.
24-year-old Gene Gallagher and his bandmates Ben Taylor (guitar), Jack Schiavo (bass), and Andrew Richmond (drums) haven’t just tried to do an impression of Oasis; instead, they’ve found their own sound, and while it does give somewhat of an old-school flavour, it’s not what we expected.
It takes literally milliseconds for you to click into realising the vibe they’re going for.
‘Hinge’ is a simplistic but hard-hitting, grungey and dark debut from Villanelle, who, despite having played a number of in-progress songs live over the last year or so, have only just dropped their first studio single.
In fact, they’ve actually taken the admittedly bizarre and unorthodox first steps of having already played live with Liam Gallagher on the Definitely Maybe 30th anniversary tour before they actually released anything people can easily listen to outside of their live performances.
Nevertheless, the young four-piece introduces Villanelle as the latest post-punk outfit amidst the ongoing revival of the classic rock genre.
That is to say that punk is a tried and true classic style of music, not that these lads are trying to sound like The Rolling Stones…
Anyway, we’re getting sidetracked: Villanelle draw plenty of influences from both original and contemporary examples of this sonic subculture, and while it isn’t explosive per se, ‘Hinge’ is short, direct and hits the same formulaic notes.
It’s also fair to say you can hear a bit of the recognisable LG whine in Gene’s vocals at times, too. Listen to it in full down below and see if you agree.
Even the basic found-footage style video fits into the same category.
To call it straightforward isn’t intended as any kind of a diss, by the way – some of our favourite tunes and best artists spearheading the renaissance of the punk scene write like this.
What we will say is that it looks like bloody good fun to both play and listen to in a small, sweaty room, with plenty of pits and people bouncing off the walls.
Gallagher Sr. might be surprised to see his son going for a slightly heavier, more hardcore route with his sound, but he can’t accuse him of forgetting his roots as the child of a ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Star.’
The boys are actually hitting the road this winter, including a date at The Castle Hotel in the Northern Quarter, if you fancy grabbing a ticket.
You can grab your tickets to see Villanelle on tour HERE, and in the meantime, let us know what you think of their debut track down in the comments.
Emily Sergeant -
3rd January 2024 
