The 25th Manchester Food and Drink Festival (MFDF) makes its return this month, kicking off on Thursday 15 September as it returns to its home at Cathedral Gardens.
Following a long build-up to the 25th-anniversary event, organisers have today revealed the full programme line-up ahead of its opening.
Alongside a host of street food traders, an artisan food market, and a live music stage, this year will also see the return of the Manchester Beer Bar in The Festival Hub. Sponsored by local brewing magnate Joseph Holt, beer lovers will find a host of different local selections here, including a special 25th-anniversary beer created to mark the occasion.
Elsewhere, the festival’s Masterclass Kitchen will play host to some of Manchester’s hottest cheffing talent, with a line-up featuring renowned food journalist and author Felicity Cloake, Kate Humble, Lia Leendertz and Edd Kimber.
Image: MFDF
The Hub will also be bringing together a host of incredible and eclectic street food fit for an anniversary Festival including Bab K, Herbivorous and Hip Hop Chip Shop.
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Other highlights include the return of the smash-hit Curry Club happening at the Hub. Dishoom, The Little Sri Lankan, Aunty Jis, Nila’s Burmese Kitchen and Lily’s are just a few of the traders that will bring cuisines of India, Burma and Sri Lanka to the table.
The Festival Firepit, sponsored by Weber, will see some of the region’s best loved chefs cooking over fire for a first time festival feast on Cathedral Gardens.
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Chefs hosting the BBQ include Caroline Martins, founder of the Sao Paolo project, Robert Owen Brown and Francisco Martinez from Fazenda.
There’ll also be a big focus on budget cooking and how to spruce up any leftover food to get the most of your ingredients with Recycle for Greater Manchester.
Outside of the Hub meanwhile, the feast continues with activities programmed in restaurants and bars across the city including a £25 for 25 years menu extravaganza.
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Spread out over two massive weekends, the free-to-enter Festival Hub is open from Thursday 15-Sunday 18 September and then again from Thursday 22-Sunday 25 September.
Feature image – Supplied
Manchester
A popular Manc streetwear brand is hosting a big festival to mark their fifth birthday
Danny Jones
Popular Manchester streetwear and footwear brand, CLINTS Inc., is hosting its first-ever festival to mark five whole years in fashion – and it’s going to be big.
The highly sought-after clothing and sneaker make started out from a bedroom in Moston and is now a premium label in British urban, skating, UK grime and hip-hop culture, having been worn by many famous names and welcoming even more through the door of their Deansgate shop.
Located in the ABC Buildings on Quay Street next to Spinningfields, the flagship CLINTS store opened back in 2022 and is much more than a place to buy some new drip: it’s a place that showcases art, music, and a whole sub-sect of shopping beyond just skate silhouettes and trendy trainers.
As hack as it might sound to some, wearing this brand comes along with immersing yourself in the wider style and scene; the very same scene being celebrated in tandem with their fifth birthday.
Not to tease you more than the company already has, but as you can see, details are scarce.
There is no lineup or even location for this festival… only a date.
CLINTS Fest (the inaugural one, at that) will take place on Saturday, 6 September – presumably at or around the 21-23 Quay Street site, but who knows?
Fans of the brand can sign up for the mailing list for the latest details, and pre-sale tickets are also available now, with a couple of clicks on the website revealing that the event is set to start at 12 noon and wrap up around 10:30pm.
If you’re interested, you can register your interest HERE.
Credit: The Manc Group
While you can expect the festival to be packed to the rafters with die-hard followers of all things CLINTS and streetwear, they’re not the only local indie holding a special one-off this month.
In fact, this weekend, a fellow trainer specialist who is still just starting out life in the fashion game but is already making waves reminiscent of their contemporaries.
Here’s hoping this is just the beginning of the journey and they’re the next Manc brand to become a national success story.
Featured Images — The Manc Group/CLINTS Inc (via Instagram)
Manchester
This Manchester bar serves a bottomless cheese fondue with endless beer and wine
Georgina Pellant
There’s a bar in Manchester serving a bottomless cheese fondue with endless wine and beer, and it honestly sounds like the perfect treat.
While it might scream cosy winter night in, with a huge outdoor terrace, The Mews is also a firm favourite during the summer months.
Add in a board of melt-in-the-mouth charcuterie, springy pieces of garlic sourdough and a host of crunchy cheese biscuits, and you’ve got yourself the ideal afternoon if you ask us.
But there’s more. Alongside all that cheese and meat and bread, included in the price of The Mews’ bottomless fondue, cheese lovers can also enjoy 90 minutes of non-stop drinks.
Bottomless cheese fondue at The Mews on Deansgate in Manchester. (Credit: The Manc Eats)
Costing £37.50 each, included in the deal is a huge pot of melted Italian Fontina cheese served with homemade garlic croutons, sourdough crackers, and slices of British charcuterie.
You’ll also get to enjoy an hour and a half of endless pints of house pilsner and carafes of red or white wine to enjoy alongside.
Serving up to six people, the bottomless cheese fondue is available only when you pre-book, so make sure to get in touch ahead of your visit to let The Mews know that you’re coming.
If you’re not on the sauce, you can opt for the cheese fondue alone. Without the booze, it’s quite a bit cheaper at £25 for one, and £2.50 on top for any additional people who want to get stuck in.
Housed up on Deansgate Mews, just behind the main hustle and bustle of Deansgate, there’s plenty of space inside as well as a large, secluded terrace that is quite the suntrap (when the Manchester sun is shining).
The Manc -
7th September 2022 
