Manchester Picnic: three days of street food at Piccadilly Gardens

Manchester Piccadilly is always a good place to go if you want to absorb the very essence of Manchester – every age group, race and social strata mixing and (mostly) getting along, scuttling off somewhere, settling down for a coffee or catching a rare bit of sun on the grass. It’s fitting, then, that the Manchester Picnic should take place there, as pop-ups from around the region converge for three days to sell all manner of tasty treats to the masses. Last year’s event was a massive success – it falling on one of the few sunny weekends in 2012 helped – and this year’s edition will run alongside the hugely anticipated Dig the City festival, too. Among the traders are Wilmslow’s Chili Banana (who arguably make the best Thai in the country), the self-explanatory Hoggie Hog Roast and the sugary sweet Churros Con Chocolate. The rest of the list reads as: Papa G’s, Nandos, Wasabi Sushi, Chiquito, Printworks, Baron Bruchard, Green Goddess, Fire and Slice, Lulabelles, Fish and Co, Gingers Comfort Emporium, Las Paelleas, Martins Foods, Tibetian Kitchen, Tios Snack Shack, Castro, Elkantina & The Common. There’s something for everyone, so get ready to fight for that last square of grass to eat your dinner on.

Fri 2 – Sun 4 Aug, Piccadilly Garden, Manchester City Centre, 12pm – 7pm daily, FREE entry, www.facebook.com