TWO North West Michelin-starred chefs head the food and drink line up at Manchester International Festival 2019 (July 5-21), whose programme was announced today (Thursday March 7). They will cook at a series of supper clubs, curated by legendary North West chef Paul Heathcote, a long-time associate of the festival.
First up in Albert Square’s pop-up Glass House is Mark Birchall, from the double Michelin-starred Moor Hall near Ormskirk, on Monday, July 8, followed on Sunday, July 14 by Lisa Goodwin-Allen (below) of one-star Northcote, near Whalley.
Equally impressive is the rest of the kitchen cast list – Sebastian Mazzola and Sussie Villarico of Barcelona's Cooking in Motion (July 8), Chantelle Nicholson, of London’s Tredwells (July 12), Michael Wignall, of the Angel at Hetton, North Yorks (July 15), and Steven Smith of the Freemasons at Wiswell (July 19).
Tickets for these intimate dinners cost £65 for a four course meal and aperitif. Wine flights will also be available,
Paul Heathcote’s own catering is part of a strong local street food line-up – Firebird Hope with fried chicken sandwiches (inc vegan versions), Honest Crust pizza, ice cream from Ginger's Comfort Emporium plus, from Leeds, Manjit's Kitchen Indian specialities. Gary Usher’s newly opened (if crowdfunding goes to plan) Kala on King Street will also have a ‘food on the go’ presence.
MIddldeton brewers JW Lees will operate the bar, serving their beers along with cocktails, wine and soft drinks in the free-to-enter Festival Square hub outside the Town Hall and a huge range of entertainment will be on offer on a re-designed main stage.
Of the mainstream festal events one that catches our eye – because it involves beer – is A Drunk Pendemic where five emerging local artists build a temporary brewery in a secret city centre location. Beer was the safest thing to drink in Manchester's 1830s cholera epidemic, so there's a historical theme here that transcends hops. And a lot of fun to be had.
For the full details of the entire MIF programme and tickets visit this link.https://mif.co.uk