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Gino D’Acampo says he ‘kicked out’ Piccolino as he prepares to open new Alderley Edge restaurant

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 12th January 2022

Celebrity chef Gino D’Acampo has said he wants to address ‘a lot of cr*p’ that’s been written about his restaurants before launching his new Alderley Edge venture.

The TV star and restaurateur is set to take over the Piccolino site in the affluent village, which announced its shock closure at the end of 2021.

He said he has ‘kicked them out’ ready to turn the site into a new branch of his Luciano concept, named after his 19-year-old son.

The restaurant is set to open to the public on January 24 – but Gino had some things to address before then.

The chef took to Instagram to share a video from his kitchen shortly after returning from a break with his family in Sardinia.

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Gino D’Acampo wanted to ‘set to record straight’ in a video shared on social media. Credit: Instagram @iamginodacampo

He said: “When I got back, I saw a lot of cr*p being written about my restaurant.

“Apparently my restaurant has gone into liquidation. Now I don’t usually do stuff like this but let me set the record straight here.

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“About 10 years ago I opened a business called Pasta Bar, which is serving Italian food very fast, in the centre of London.

“We tried for 10 years and then Covid came around and I thought ‘You know what, we have to close, there’s no point to pursue with the idea’, which by the way I absolutely love.

“The pasta bar business has got nothing to do with my restaurant business, with my import business, or with any other business that I do.

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“It’s a stand-alone business that’s gone into liquidation, we have to move on.

“This is what business is all about, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.”

Luciano by Gino D’Acampo. Credit: Supplied

Gino went on to say that his restaurant business is ‘growing really well’, with three large sites to open this year alone.

One of those will be his second Luciano in the heart of Alderley Edge – the first is at the five-star ME London hotel in the West End.

Luciano will also expand to take over Chinese restaurant Yu, which announced a relocation back in June 2021 but has fallen silent since.

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Piccolino in Alderley Edge. Credit: Piccolino

Gino said in his Instagram video: “Finally I got it. Yes! I’ve always wanted to open a restaurant in Alderley Edge, and two days ago we did it.

“If you live around the area, the restaurant used to be called Piccolino, so what I did, I kicked them out and now it’s called Luciano, like my son.

“The menu is going to be amazing, I’ve invested thousands and thousands of pounds into the restaurant, brand new kitchen, everything all kitted out.”

Food at Luciano. Credit: Supplied

In a statement about his new site, he said: “I have many friends in Alderley Edge and the surrounding areas, it’s an amazing place and one in which I’m super excited to open. 

“The location on London Road couldn’t be any better, it’s a fantastic property. 

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“I’m looking forward to spending time here with the amazing team, and our incredible, loyal guests.”

Read more: 40-year-old scaffolding removed from Band on The Wall as it prepares to reopen ‘bigger and better’

Managing director of Luciano by Gino D’Acampo, Mat Cunningham, added: “We’re looking forward to bringing Luciano to Alderley Edge.  

“Gino’s influence in the kitchen is significant, not just in terms of the sourcing of ingredients and creation of dishes, but the impact he has on chefs who love to work with him and aspire to his talent and attention to detail. He’s incredibly hands-on.”

Featured image: Supplied

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Greater Manchester bracing for cold snap with temperatures set to plummet to -5°C this week

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Brits are being told to prepare for a cold snap across the country this week, with Greater Manchester set to see temperatures plummet to -5°C.

After what has been an uncharacteristically mild autumn for the UK, with temperatures so high for the time of year that 2022 is on track to be the warmest year on record, forecasters at the Met Office are now warning of a Arctic chill in the coming days – which is expected to sweep the country, and bring with it below-average temperatures for December.

As winter settles in and the cold begins to bite, easterly winds are expected to shift to the north this week, and a yellow snow warning has even been put in place for Wednesday, which is likely to just affect Scotland and potentially some of the northernmost parts of England.

The Met Office says this yellow snow warning may cause disruption to road, bus, and train journeys.

Across the Greater Manchester region though, while snow is not forecast, we are set to see sub-zero temperatures set in from Wednesday onwards.

Thursday is expected to be the coldest day of the week.

Speaking ahead of the cold snap arriving in a few days, Alex Burkill – Meteorologist at the Met Office – said: “At the moment we have an easterly flow and as such our winds are coming from the east and that is a cold direction, and it is cold out.

“However, from Tuesday onwards we are going to get a northerly flow, so our winds coming from the north, that is Arctic air leading to our temperatures, will be dropping even further as we go through this week.

“It’s going to turn even colder and feel even colder still, with temperatures well below average for the time of year, both by day and by night.”

While -5°C is the lowest temperature to expect across Greater Manchester, Mr Burkill added that in other parts of the UK, temperatures overnight into Thursday would drop to -7°C or -8°C, and maybe even colder.

Forecasters predict the cold weather could last for most of the week, as the northerly flow of cold air will linger.

There may be some showers, the Met Office says, but it will be largely dry and cold.

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It will be a few degrees above freezing for the rest of the country until the cold snap arrives on Wednesday, with daytime temperatures predicted to be around 8°C or 9°C, dropping to 5°C or 6°C as the week progresses.

Featured Image – Ian Schneider (via Unsplash)

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Manchester Christmas Markets slammed with negative reviews after doing exactly what people asked for

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

The Manchester Christmas Markets have been torn to shreds by several users on Tripadvisor this year.

Complaining about the huge festive event has become as traditional as the event itself for Mancs – too crowded, too expensive, too disruptive, etc etc.

Previous complaints have usually centred around the choice of traders working out of the market stalls, with people objecting to the repetitive pattern of bratwurst, mulled wine, ornament.

Many have also had a moan that too many traders travel over from Europe, and say that the markets take too much footfall away from the year-round local businesses positioned nearby.

So in recent years, the markets have started to go through a bit of a transformation.

The main one would be relocating down to Piccadilly Gardens, where a huge wooden festive village has been built, this year with live music stage, apres-ski-style bar, and a festive tipi.

Piccadilly Gardens Christmas Markets. Credit: The Manc Group

This is also home to a huge proportion of the food traders.

There’s even a secret bar here, hidden from view by a Narnia-like wardrobe entrance.

And as time goes on, more and more of the food traders are local to Manchester (this year including Parmogeddon, Oi Dumplings, Triple B and Yum Yum.

The Manchester Christmas Markets have listened to feedback and gone a bit more local overall, so you’d expect everyone would be pleased – but of course they’re not.

One scathing and lengthy review on Tripadvisor said: “Went on a day trip by coach to the Christmas Market, having been four years ago and LOVED it…sorry, but the difference between that experience and this year’s is like night and day.

@the.manc

If you try one thing today, make sure it’s Porky Pig’s battered pigs in blankets😍 find them on Exchange Square! #manchester #manchesterchristmasmarket #food #foodie #mcr #foryou #fyp #pigsinblankets

♬ original sound – The Manc

“First of all, whose daft idea was it to have the market scattered across nine different locations? People who aren’t familiar with Manchester won’t know where all these locations are!

“The first part of the market I came across was a collection of food stalls, the bulk of them not displaying prices – is that legal? – and the entire set-up looked like a building site. No festive atmosphere at all, and sadly this continued the further I walked.

“Gone was the wonderful variety of Christmas ornaments and gifts, replaced by food and drink stalls and, strangely, a stall selling wooden garden furniture. There is nothing remotely Christmassy about an overpriced Kingdom of Sweets stall, and when I came across a second one several minutes later I gave up and killed time in a Wetherspoons until my coach left to take everyone home.

Credit: Manchester Christmas Markets ( via Twitter )

“I wasn’t the only person let down by the experience, either; when an elderly lady boarded the coach on its way home, she was heard to mutter, “Well, I’d have been ready to go home three hours ago.” I’m writing this trip off as a learning experience – and what I learned is that I won’t be going to this market again next year.”

A parent who visited said: “Where to start. This was my families first and last visit to Manchester, The Christmas Market felt very poorly planned with stalls not in one area. People kept knocking into my children manners seem to be missing in Manchester as a whole.”

Someone else wrote in a one-star review: “Ridiculous prices, paid £6 for a hot dog for my son & was then charges £1 extra for tomato sauce, sorry but that is taking the mick.. usual stores have gone and replaced with food, drink or overpriced large goods. The Christmas feeling just wasn’t there this year :(.”

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Another person said: “I visited the Christmas Market at the weekend with a friend and it felt more like a food festival than a Market. No price lists displayed. Utter waste of time. Cheaper to go the ones abroad.”

One reviewer said: “Nothing at all Christmassy, pre-covid they was lovely stalls seeming Christmas ornaments ets, now it’s all good and drink mostly £15 for 2 mugs of hot chocolate, cocktails £9 for a snowball just pure greed, very disappointed, definitely won’t be back this year or in near future.”

Someone else wrote: “All about overpriced food and repetitive stalls. Nothing European about it and not what it once was. £10 for a sausage save your money and try a market in actual Europe.”

Featured image: The Manc Group

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