Food & drink news ft. Alty’s toast-only cafe Toast & Manchester Coffee Festival

Manchester food and drink news this week includes the opening of a new, toast-only (or toast-mostly) cafe in Altrincham, Mcr Art Gallery’s Wild Beer Company paired supper club, a porridge-based pop up in Ancoats, Judy’s Vintage Fair, Manchester Coffee Festival, and more – as well as another instalment of the award-winning weekly Grub Food Fair at Fairfield Social Club (click here for more).

New cafe serving everything on toast: Toast in Altrincham (pictured) 
Recent addition to Altrincham, new cafe Toast, serving (almost) everything on toast, is the combined vision of co-owners Justin Orange (formerly of Teacup Kitchen) and chef Ed Carr (formerly of Aumbry and The Fat Duck). Read our preview here.
Toast, Mon-Sat 8am-6pm, 63 Stamford New Road, Altrincham, Cheshire, WA14 1DR, Tel: 0161 804 4580, www.toastaltrincham.com

Book tickets: Wild Beer supper club at Mcr Art Gallery 
Local food sustainability champion and The Gallery Café chef Mary-Ellen McTague is joining forces with The Wild Beer Company and Cave Direct wholesalers to create a four-course seasonal menu in the stunning surroundings of the gallery’s Drawing Room. See our preview.
Thu 2 Nov, The Drawing Room, Manchester Art Gallery, Mosley Street, Manchester, M2 3JL, 7-9pm, tickets are £40, www.eventbrite.co.uk

Haver porridge pop up at Ancoats General Store ft. almond oats, banana jam & more…
Local porridge trader, Haver, reckon breakfast should be a party. And that’s the kind of early morning thinking I can get behind. With three consecutive Friday pop-up dates starting this week, visit them at Manchester Food and Drink Award winners Ancoats General Store to sample their breakfast pots. Creations include almond oats, roasted pear, vanilla and lavender granola with maple cashew cream and almonds, or cacao and coconut oats with banana chia jam, cacao caramel, toasted coconut and pomegranate. All motivation on colder mornings is gratefully received.
Fri 3, 17 & 24 Nov, Ancoats General Store, 57 Great Ancoats Street, corner of Blossom Street, Manchester, M4 5AB, 7.30-11am, twitter.com

This weekend: Judy’s Vintage Fair & Street Food Market at Royal Mills
The food, clothes and objet d’art fair is back at Royal Mills. With food stalls offering cakes, burgers, paella, veggie and vegan curry, head down to the listed converted mill to join in. There is also a pop-up bar to slake any thirst whilst perusing the 30 vintage traders.
Sat 4 Nov, Royal Mills, Unit 9a Royal Mills, Redhill Street, Manchester, M4 6JG, 10am-4pm, www.facebook.com

This weekend: Manchester Coffee Festival at Victoria Warehouse
Run by local coffee sustainability champions Cup North, the festival returns to Victoria Warehouse for a third consecutive year. More info at our full preview here.
Sat 4 & Sun 5 Nov Manchester Coffee Festival, Victoria Warehouse, Trafford Road, Manchester, M17 1AB, Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 10am-5pm, www.cupnorth.co.uk

Next Friday: the return of Manchester Christmas Markets 2017
Running for longer than ever before, the 300 wooden stalls are set to take over the city’s streets and squares, spreading festive joy via mulled wine and bratwurst. Opening on Fri 10 Nov, they are serving up German goodies and selling potential Christmas gifts for challenging relatives until Wed 20 Dec, with the main hub on Albert Square staying open an extra day. You can’t fight the influx of Christmas with the all-seeing Manchester Santa surveying the scene from on high – get on board.
Fri 10 Nov-Wed 20 Dec (Thu 21 Dec for Albert Square), various locations – main hub on Albert Square, Manchester Town Hall, Manchester, M2 4JW, www.facebook.com

IN SHORT
Wagyu beef special at Cottonopolis: Mon 6 Nov, 5-10pm: Monthly produce takeover focusing on wagyu beef at Cottonopolis Food & Liquor, 16 Newton Street, Manchester, M1 2AE, ticket information here: www.facebook.com
French and Italian classes at Chorlton’s Barbecue Coffee House: Mon 6-Tue 28 Nov, 6.30pm: Learn how to speak French on Mondays and Italian on Tuesdays at Barbecue Coffee House, 486 Wilbraham Road, Chorlton Manchester, M21 9AS, course fees and information here: www.facebook.com