This week’s food news marks the return of an old classic at Hawksmoor, news on the Abergavenny Food Festival, Randall and Aubin’s new summer menu, an early stint for MFDF at the Manchester Day Parade, Festa Italiana in Cathedral Gardens, with a free kids section curated by Play Factore. Plus, where a door closes at Squid Ink another opens at Mana.

Festa Italiana doing it for the Bambini with dedicated kids festival by Play Factore
Festa Italiana, the annual three day celebration of all things Italian held in Cathedral Gardens, adds a special ‘Bambini Cucina’ to the lineup this year. Collaborating with the PlayFactore, entertainment includes circus classes and kids’ cookery sessions, with pasta masterclasses from noon on Sunday. The Play Factore Circus House will be open from 3-5pm on Friday, 11am-5pm on Saturday and Sunday. All activities are free to join in and children must be accompanied by an adult. The festival itself is a celebration of food and drink culture in Manchester
Fri 20 – Sun 22 Jul, Festa Italiana Bambini Cucuina, Cathedral Gardens, Manchester, M4. 11am -11pm daily. www.facebook.com

Abergavenny Food Festival Full Programme Released
Celebrating their 20 year milestone, the festival which helped make perfect provenance mainstream has released its full programme. Running throughout the second weekend in September, the Welsh town is transformed into a hotbed of foraging walks, Michelin-starred chefs sweating over open coal fires and tasting workshops on everything from British cheeses to craft beer and black pudding to feasting menus cooked with ingredients ‘sourced hyper-locally from the local landscape’. If you fancy the vibe but not the drive, The Good Life Experience at Hawarden, a mere 45 mins from Manchester, serves up a laid back cool blend of family friendly activities, great food and a grown up soundtrack of acts curated by Radio 6’s Cerys Matthews on the same weekend.
Abergavenny Food Festival Sat 15 & Sun 16 Sep, Abergavenny, Wales. Tickets available online www.abergavennyfoodfestival.com Follow @afoodfestival for more info.

Randall and Aubin Bar Menu arrives in time for summer snacking
Seafood specialists Randall and Aubin have added a wider bar menu to their offering of oysters and caviar. Small plates of devilled eggs with bacon and crisp fish goujons with R&A tartar sauce will be amongst the new dishes available to accompany their collection of champagnes, fine wines, cocktails and beers. To their a la carte menu comes a tagliolini with Devon crab and a prawn cream sauce, plus a reminder that they serve a cracking Sunday roast at £18.50 per head.
Randall and Aubin, 64 Bridge Street, Manchester, M3 3BN. Tel: 0161 711 1007, www.randallandaubin.com

Manchester Day Parade brings in MFDF to feed the crowds
Manchester Food and Drink Festival have pulled in some familiar faces to help complete the lineup for the Manchester Day Parade. Drop by Cathedral Gardens and Exchange Gardens via St Ann’s Square on Sunday 17th June between midday and 6pm to find the likes of Eat New York serving the best bagels in town, wood-fired pizza by Proove and Gingers Comfort Emporium cooling it off with their perfect ice creams in unusual flavours; marmalade on toast anyone? Read our full story here.
Sun 17 Jun, noon-6pm. Keep up to date by following @Manc_Day.

Squid Ink Closes as owner moves to Mana
Ex-Noma Chef Simon Martin has lured Squid Ink owner Anthony Barnes away from his stoves and deeper into Ancoats as they begin to expand their restaurant team. Anthony, who will take up the role of Operations Director at Mana, posted on Twitter his intention to close the Great Ancoats Street restaurant ahead of his move with a note thanking customers and suppliers for their support. It’s just another snippet of info on the much anticipated Mana which is slated to open some time this summer.
Opening soon, Mana Restaurant, Sawmill Court, Ancoats, Manchester. Follow @SquidInkMcr & @Restaurant_Mana for more info.

In Short:

Awesome food offer: Big Matt burger, drink and fries for £5.09 at Hawksmoor (pictured)
One last thing. If you only get time for one treat this week, make it Hawksmoor’s Big Matt. It’s not the first time they’ve snuck round the labelling rules (looking at you giant hazelnut-and-gold-leafy dessert) and it probably won’t be the last, but Chef Matt Brown has perfected his version of the famous burger and it’s well worth a diversion down Deansgate. For Wed 13 Jun only, they’re serving it up with a Ginger Brew (think gin and beer slushy) and a portion of dripping fries for the iconic snacks’ original RRP of £5.09.
Wed 13 Jun only, Hawksmoor Manchester, 184 Deansgate, Manchester, M3 3WB. Tel: 0161 836 6980, from 5.30pm onwards in the bar, no bookings. www.thehawksmoor.com

Wed 13 Jun - Sun 16 Sep
Words:
Lucy Noone
Published on:
Tue 12 Jun 2018