Festival pushed back due to 'royal mourning period'
Manchester Food and Drink Festival 2022 has been postponed by one week. The festival organisers say they have followed advice from Manchester City Council in order to fall in line with the mourning period for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II who died last week.
The festival will now take place 22 September - 2 October.
Twenty-five of Manchester’s best breweries will be on site repping our enviable craft beer scene.
Confidential reported the initial MFDF 2022 lineup announcement in all its fiery glory back in July but with a few new additions and this postponement, we thought we'd give you a quick rundown of events.
The free-to-enter festival hub will be open at Cathedral Gardens for two weekends: Thursday 22 - Sunday 25 September and then Thursday 29 September - Sunday 2 October. Food and drink stalls, markets and bars will be available for you to enjoy from midday to 11pm on those long weekends.
What’s on at the Festival Hub at Cathedral Gardens?
The Manchester Beer Bar x Joseph Holt
The massive bar is back, this time with the “unmistakably northern” brewery Joseph Holt as official lager partner. Expect a special 25th Anniversary beer and ale brewed especially for the festival.
25 years, 25 beers
Twenty-five of Manchester’s best breweries will be on site repping our enviable craft beer scene. These will include Brightside Brewery, First Chop, Burton Road Brewery and Thirst Class Brewery.
What can you eat at the festival hub?
Thursday 22 - Sunday 25 September
Oh My Glaze - Signature burgers
Il Forno - Mobile pizza van with wood-fired oven
Super Bao - Light and fluffy filled bao
House of Habesha - Authentic Eritrean and Ethiopian soul food
Cyprus Kouzina - Greek Cypriot street food
Hip Hop Chip Shop - a Northern chippy tea with a difference
Meksikan - Handcrafted tacos with Mexican flavours
Mi & Pho - Award-winning Vietnamese food
Heavenly Indian - Authentic Indian street food
Cafe Cannoli - Classic, sweet Sicilian snacks
Guzzle - Vintage caravan with a retro espresso machine and ice cream
Thursday 29 - Sunday 2 October
Senor Paella - Traditional Spanish paella
I Knead Pizza - Neapolitan, wood fired pizzas with locally sourced ingredients
What’s Your Beef - Locally and ethically sourced grass fed beef burgers.
Parmogeddon - A classic Northern Eastern treat
Herbivorous - Vegan comfort food
Bab K - Authentic Korean prepared using fresh, local ingredients
Mama Sue’s - Unique hotdogs with all kinds of toppings.
Cha Cha Churros - Vegan churros
Spoon Desserts - Crepes and waffles with sweet toppings
Plus:
Festival Fire Pit at the Festival Hub (both weekends)
Sponsored by Weber, one of the world’s leading barbecue specialists, the Festival Fire Pit will invite chefs such as Caroline Martins, founder of the Sao Paolo project, Francisco Martinez from Fazenda and Robert Owen Brown to throw some *shrimp on the barbie - *actually we’re not sure if there will be shrimp.
Friday 30 September 12-3pm - Coffee Rave with Factory Coffee Enjoy a FREE coffee from MFDF nominee Factory Coffee, or a free affogato in association with Rogue Artisan ice cream, while a local DJ provides the tunes required for an afternoon bop.
Shopping at the festival’s artisan market
Grab your favourite tote and head to the market for some treats to take home:
Dghnt MCR - Artisan brioche doughnuts
Paradiso Authentic Italian - Authentic Italian desserts like tiramisu
The Flat Baker - Brazilian artisan breads and pastries
DevilDog Sauces - Small batch chilli sauces
Prodjuice Juicery - Cold pressed raw juices
Gourmet Jay - Award winning rolls, pies and pastries
Two Lasses - British rum and rum liqueurs
Small Farmers Coffee - Jamaican Blue Coffee
The Doughnuteers - Handcrafted doughnuts
Global Nomad - Internationally inspired artisan sauces, spices and preserves
Ancoats Distillery - Luxury craft gins, rums, vodka and ales
The Chocolate Cafe - Hand-crafted chocolate made with Colombian cocoa and British ingredients
Prendi il Biscotti - Artisan Italian biscuits and sweet treats
World Famous Hot Sauce - Small batch gluten free and vegan hot sauce
Root2Ginger - Alcohol-free ginger drinks
Prestwich Gin - Award-winning local small batch craft gin
Masterclass kitchens at the Hub
Saturday 24 September - Octopus Cookbook Confidential
In collaboration with Octopus Books, top chefs and industry experts will share tips, ideas and knowledge in cookery demos, conversations and discussions.
12.30PM - Pip Payne and Nicky Corbishley: dinner budgeting tips
1.30PM - Joe Woodhouse, Josh Katz & David Bez: veggie recipe inspiration
2.30PM - Edd Kimber and Rahul Mandal: Discussing their love of puddings
3.30PM - School of Wok’s Jeremy Pang: giving a demo from his latest book and introducing his simple Wok Clock cooking technique
4.30PM - Kate Humble and Lia Leendertz: Talking about their books Home Cooked and The Almanac respectively.
6.00PM - Jaega Wise vs Joel Harrison in conversation with Neil Ridley: a friendly debate about booze.
Sunday 25 September and Sunday 2 October - MFDF Cookery School
Join the likes of Tampopo and Ancoats Coffee as they share some of their secrets and knowledge.
Saturday 1st October - Leftovers Kitchen with Recycle for Greater Manchester
How to ditch excess food waste and cook amazing meals with leftovers - in association with Open Kitchen.
Outside the hub: The Festival Fringe
Bars and restaurants around the city including District and Mi & Pho will be offering £25 menus to celebrate MFDF’s 25 years in the game, Three Little Words has a special Martini menu on and Bundobust will be doing their version of Oktoberfest. Meanwhile, Unicorn Grocery in Chorlton is inviting you to celebrate its 26th birthday. Read more details about all that on the MFDF website.
Saturday 17 - Sunday 18 September - Eat Well MCR Harvest Festival at Platt Fields Market Garden
A celebration of autumnal produce weaved into locally made food and drink with music and good vibes a given.
Wednesday 30 November 7.30-10.30pm - Eat Well MCR Fundraising Banquet at Hello Oriental
Nonprofit social enterprise Eat Well MCR presents a fundraising feast hosted by Hello Oriental and aiming to showcase Manchester’s best East Asian and Southeast Asian food. The line-up includes: Hello Oriental, Neon Tiger, Rice Over Everything, New Wave Ramen, Tampopo and WowYauChow. Expect sushi and sashimi, dim sum, fresh and zingy salads, ramen, fiery aromatic curries - and desserts too. Tickets are on sale now at £70 per person. All proceeds will help provide meals to people in need across Greater Manchester.
Finally, the MFDF Curry Club has sadly been postponed and will be rescheduled as soon as possible.
The MFDF Wine and Fizz Fest will now be taking place on 7-8 October, just after the Festival at the latest music venue and food hall on the block: New Century.
The Manchester Food and Drink Festival Awards Dinner will go ahead as planned on 26 September at Escape to Freight Island - good luck to all those nominated. Have you voted for your favourites yet?
We'll be down early for a first look at the festival next week. See you there.
Read next: Manchester Literature Fest announces 2022 live programme
Read again: Best things to eat & drink in Manchester: September 2022
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