The Blues Kitchen is still launching in Manchester on 20th May
The Blues Kitchen Manchester will open on the 20th May 2021, bringing a flavour of the Deep South to the city and enriching the music scene with an incredible live programme, seven nights a week.
It’s still happening, The Blues Kitchen Manchester will open on 20th May 2021, bringing a flavour of the Deep South to the city and enriching the music scene with an incredible live programme, seven nights a week.
The two-storey venue comprises of a restaurant and bar on the ground floor and a stunning concert hall on the first floor. The concert hall will also open temporarily for Friday and Saturdays from the 20th May for seated entertainment experiences, until the 21st June (subject to further guidelines) when the hall will welcome guests for standing gigs and club nights. More information on the sensational music programme will be revealed in the upcoming months.
The expert team behind popular London venues XOYO and Jazz Café will launch the music venue, club, bar and restaurant, which celebrates their life-long affair with Blues music alongside a passion for rare Bourbon and obsession with Southern Barbeque food. An admiration for Manchester’s buzzing music scene cemented the city as their next destination for The Blues Kitchen, which has existing locations in Camden, Shoreditch and Brixton. This will be their first venue outside of London, and their largest to date.
The Blues Kitchen will occupy 13 Quay Street, a two-storey site originally built to house a Victorian Eye Hospital. The site is currently undergoing renovations with the team working to restore some of its original features as well as install new additions. With the sounds, smells, styles and tastes of Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi & Texas on offer, guests will be transported to the Deep South.
The restaurant and bar, located on the ground floor, will specialise in serving up American Soul food and rare and vintage bourbon. Open all day for brunch, lunch, supper and dessert, its southern inspired menu features barbecue classics and proper comfort food. Come hungry – their stacked-up burgers, creamy mac n cheese, buffalo hot wings and smoky ribs will leave you more than satisfied.
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The bar will boast over 80 bourbons and a dedicated menu of cocktails, beers, wine and spirits. Their extensive whiskey menu covers all bases, offering Single Barrel – aged 12 years -, Rye, Corn & Wheated, Small Batch, Tennessee, Rare & Vintage as well as whiskeys from around the world.
The Blues Kitchen will proudly present a curated live music programme every day of the week on their ground floor. From 1930’s Delta blues, gritty southern soul, funk, acoustic, rock n roll and roots music, sit back and enjoy some spectacular live music while you tuck into food and drinks. Head upstairs to the concert hall, which will occupy the first floor. Holding up to 500 guests, the space will host concerts with international headliners as well as in-house gigs and club nights with Manchester based resident musicians and DJs encompassing a variety of genres.
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Steve Ball, CEO of The Columbo Group, which owns Blues Kitchen, said, “We’ve been looking for the perfect site in Manchester for years and have finally found it. We’ve taken a great deal of pleasure in restoring the building over the past year, and we’ve managed to get hold of some incredible vintage features from The States so it’s really going to be quite something. We’re really excited to reveal it all soon along with our entertainment programme once restrictions have lifted.”
Sign up now to theblueskitchen.com/manchester for exclusive access to the live music programme as well as restaurant bookings and to keep up with the latest news follow The Blues Kitchen on Instagram @blueskitchenmcr.
What's On
BBC Radio 6 Music Festival is returning to Greater Manchester next month
Thomas Melia
The BBC Radio 6 Music Festival is coming back to Manchester once again, and they’re bringing yet another phenomenal lineup with them.
National radio station and overall upcoming music connoisseurs, BBC Radio 6, are back with their music festival, and just like years previous, it’s taking place across Manchester.
Over the years, the festival has brought some of music’s biggest names to lots of local venues, putting on an array of brilliant live performances.
Last spring saw the arrival of rock band Gossip and Irish singer CMAT, both taking up residency in O2 Victoria Warehouse, Lily Fontaine of English Teacher at Band On The Wall, while DJ Seinfeld went B2B with Salute in Depot Mayfield.
Leading this glowing roster of performers is Ezra Collective, a Mercury award -winning band known for their brilliant jazz productions, and then from one Mercury-winning band to another, Lily Fontaine won’t be riding solo this year, instead she’s bringing all the crew with her, as English Teacher are set to perform at this huge festival.
Fat Dog, whose debut album is titled ‘Woof’, are joining in on the fun with Scottish band Mogwai also making a feature too.
There’s even a chance for an exclusive first listen too, as Kae Tempest will be debuting new material right here in Manchester.
All performances will be taking place at a multitude of venues, like the previously mentioned O2 Victoria Warehouse, Depot Mayfield, and Band On The Wall, as well as loads of other events at entertainment bar, Yes.
Every highlight, alongside live and recorded live performances, will be taking place at MediaCityUK in Salford, in order to keep everything Manchester central.
BBC Radio 6 Music Festival is happening from 26 – 29 March 2025, with tickets going on sale from 6 February at 10am here.
Where to watch the Super Bowl in Manchester
Danny Jones
Game day is fast approaching and with the NFL scene getting bigger and bigger in the UK each year, more and more Mancs are left wondering where to watch the Super Bowl in Manchester.
The excitement’s really starting to build as we’re just days away from the clash between current holders, the Kansas City Chiefs and their familiar foes, the Philadelphia Eagles – but, first things first, you’ve got to pick where you wanna be in time for kick-off.
Luckily, there are a whole host of sports bars in the city centre that will be showing Super Bowl LIX right through till it finishes around 3am BST.
Oh yes, it’s a long old night but that’s why love it and if you’re still undecided as to where to go, here are a dozen places you can hunker down with some good grub and plenty of pints to watch it.
12 of the best places to watch the Super Bowl LIX in Manchester
First up on our list is the place we spend the Super Bowl pretty much every year: Blues Kitchen just off Deansgate, which promises big screens, live music, American BBQ favourites and more from 9pm.
With food and drinks served until late to keep you going throughout the long night, you’ll have an absolute ball. Book HERE.
Arguably the epitome of the American sports bar vibe here in Manchester, Shooters Sports Bar in Printworks’ Bierkeller is practically an institution at this point. Hosting NFL games for years, their various matchday packages make this one of the best places showing the Super Bowl in the UK full stop.
They’ve even had the Sky commentary team over there in past seasons, as well as being named official sponsors of the Manchester Titans American football team. If it’s good enough for them it’s good enough for us – you can sort seats for you and your group HERE.
3. BOX – Deansgate
BOX Bar opened on Deansgate back in 2021 and has quickly become one of the most popular places to watch any sport in town and it’s not hard to see why either.
With massive pitchers and steins of booze, a banging food menu built for shuffleboard at the back and screens on almost every wall, including a massive NBA-style jumbotron screen, you won’t miss a second of the action. This one always fills up quickly so book now if you don’t want to miss out.
4. Calcio! – Northern Quarter
Credit: The Manc Group
It may look like footy and games at first glance, but there is so much more to Calcio! over on Dale Street. From retro PS2 and Nintendo classics, as well as an amazing food and drink selection, this city centre sports bar has quickly become the go-to spot for hordes of sports fans.
Showing every from cricket and F1 to rugby, snooker and more, they’re one of many screening the Super Bowl in Manchester. If you’re interested in watching the Super Bowl at Calcio, you can sort your table/booth HERE.
Given students are typically the ones who don’t tend to worry about sleeping/waking up at any particular time, it’d be rude not to put a regular uni haunt and Manc nightlife favourite The Courtyard on this list.
Not only is this one of the cheapest places for a night in town, possibly the country, but it’s yet another prime location to watch the sport. You are never, we repeat, NEVER too old for Courtyard and it never disappoints when there are sports fans in.
Another all-time classic Manchester sports bar, The Directors’ Box just off St Peter’s Square in the city centre has plenty of pints, an absolutely mint menu full of sharing platters perfect for watching the game with your mates, as well as a pool table to keep you occupied during the breaks.
They’re even putting on a special menu just for the game. This is another one that packs out fast, so book now while you still can.
The Brotherhood of Pastimes and Pursuits is another tried and tested favourite come any matchday and the team over there does a great job of building a proper atmosphere across their two floors when it comes to the Super Bowl.
It’s great a post-work spot any day of the week, let alone when there are big events on like this. Food, pints, pool, table tennis and more. 10/10, no notes from us. Reserve your table HERE.
8. Tib St Tavern – Northern Quarter
Credit: The Manc Group
No list of Manchester sports bars would be complete without Tib Street Tavern, one of the most popular in NQ or the city centre in general, for that matter.
With booths for you and all your mates to pile into, massive screens filling the walls and solid grub, this place is packed out noon till night, so give ’em a ring on 0161 834 1600 to sort your seat whilst you still can. They’ve also recently had a bit of a refurb as well so you’ll be comfier than ever this year.
Nothing like the Bowl at Bunny’s. If you’ve ever been in this beloved wing-stop and rock-themed watering hole for an NFL game, you know that this place is pretty much the perfect place to be.
Arguably the best dive bar on the planet, (it’s us, we’re arguing it), and not just because the wings are 30p, there’s no bookings — you just rock up and try your luck and hope for laces out. Say no more.
10. GRUB – Green Quarter
In at number 10 is one of our favourite places in Manchester for hosting big events full stop, so it’s no surprise that it’s also going to be packed out for this year’s Super Bowl.
Projecting the big game straight onto their in-house Cultplex cinema screens, not only will tickets set you back just a tenner but they also include a welcome drink and a hot or vegan dog — now that’s what we call gameday vibes. You can sort yours HERE.
If you popped into Brickhouse for the World Cup or even the Six Nations, you’ll know the bar, club, rooftop terrace and pool hall is really killing it when it comes to live sports at the minute.
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Kicking off from 8pm and spreading across two of the three floors, this is one of the best places to grab a slice of pizza and a pint while watching the game. Better yet, their increasingly popular fan zone is absolutely free, you just need to email [email protected] or ring 0161 236 4899.
Last on our list is another cult favourite amongst NQ frequent flyers, as not only do Shack MCR specialise in all the very best kinds of food you want whilst watching live sport — wings, fries, burgers, nachos etc. — but they’re even serving up special Super Bowl platters for the occasion.
They’ll be serving scran until 1:30 in the morning and although all the private booths have already sold out, there are still some tables left for Sunday, 11 February, so book yours now.
Of course, it goes without saying that if we could chuck every one of this city’s wonderful pubs and sports bars on this list then we would, but we’d be here forever.
That being said, a literal dozen places to watch the big game in Manchester city centre should be more than enough to get you started — now it’s down to you to make sure you plan out the perfect Super Bowl Sunday for LIX 2025. Just make sure you’ve got your arse in a seat before that first touchdown.
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So, who’s going all the way this year then? Will the Chiefs retain the title or will ‘The Birds’ make up for their loss to the reigning champions back in 2023? Only time will tell.
Get lots of sleep this week because you’re going to need it!