Sleuth is a sideways glance at the city every week, it's the truth, but Sleuth's truth. He's several people all at once. We give £25 for every story/rumour and piece of absurdity you find for us to publish. Sleuth sometimes even gets serious. We ask for the money back if any legal action follows. Follow Sleuth on twitter @mcrsleuth
David Gale Leaves Manchester – Boo Hoo
So Sleuth had lunch with one of his favourite chefs, David Gale, at The Lowry River Restaurant and got a review out of it - the lemon sole was particularly good. But Sleuth heard bad news. David Gale, one of Confidential’s favourite chefs, is off. The Wythenshawe-born Hilton Hotel chef, has been offered the control of the food offering at The Waldorf in London. It’s a measure of his success that he should be given the job of turning round one of the most prestigious kitchens in the country. Boo, that he's leaving the city though. Sleuth still recalls a steamed halibut with a clam sauce and oyster fritter that makes him weep with joy.
David Gale and the imaginary turbot
The David Gale Manchester Viewpoint
David GaleThe well-travelled chef, New York, London and so on, before returning to Manchester gave his view of the current Manchester food scene:
“It’s changed beyond all recognition from five or six years ago. Openings such as Manchester House and The French with Byrne and Rogan have been very important. I’m convinced this year we’ll get a Michelin star. The diversity of chip shop next to fine dining next to ‘dirty’ food next to Chinese and so on in Manchester is amazing. Standards have risen across the board.
"I had Rockefeller Tacos in Luck, Lust, Liquor and Burn the other day and they were amazing. We’re improving, I always said the city was like easy-going parents happy with their child getting a B-plus. We’re moving beyond that now.”
Painter-Man Goes Insane While Imprisoned In MCR Restaurant
Speaking of Luck, Lust, Liquor, Burn - Sleuth thinks revenge is best served in paint. Canned paint. Northern Quarter’s purveyors of burritos, tacos and all that Mexican-American gubbings roped in their graffiti artist to do a ‘little bit of touching up’ on the staircase this week. They accidentally locked him in for the night. Needless to say, locking a graffitist in a bar overnight is only going to end one way. The manager opened in the morning to find a bar drier than a camel’s flipflop and this ‘little bit of touching up’ on the staircase. Sleuth particularly likes 'I think there's something wrong with me.'
Oh my God, the man's gone mad
El Capo Opens (And The Dangers Of The Twitter Guestlist)
The NQ opened yet another bar last night, this time it's one for tequila fans. El Capo, from those behind The Whiskey Jar, launched on Tariff Street and threw its doors wide open to the public. Too wide actually. Opening the guestlist on twitter, the poor doorman had five pages of names to scroll through and a forty-five minute wait at the bar with many nipping next door to Kosmonaut for a drink whilst one friend queued at the bar and kept their place.
It was so hectic that bar staff reinforcements were drafted in from Whiskey Jar next door and even as far as Elixir on Deansgate. Still El Capo couldn't have expected this thinks Sleuth. After all, there's never been any bother before when opening up parties to the world of the internet has there?
#packedlikesardines
Beef And Pudding Has Opened
Beef and PuddingUpmarket pub with grub, Beef and Pudding, has opened on Fountain Street. It’s a handsome fit out and we’ll be in to review and score the food next week. But whenever Sleuth hears the pub name, he only hears, ‘Beetham Pudding’. So he suggested to the owner he might want to make a Beetham Pudding that you slice vertically. Owner Dave Mooney, for it is he, replied, “We tried - honestly. But it kept collapsing. So we went for a burger called Beef’Ham Tower which does the job, although it doesn't whistle in a high wind.”
Dierdre’s Glasses – Sleuth’s Daft Press Release Of The Week
Sleuth was pleased to have a whole press release devoted to a pair of Corrie glasses this week - see main picture above. The city centre Coronation Street set has re-opened in the city and Deidre Barlow’s glasses ‘were released from the archive vault at MediaCity to be loaned to the Street tour organisers on the provision that they are displayed with 24 hour surveillance’. Sleuth can understand this, the glasses are clearly one of the world’s great objects – the Crown Jewels, the Mona Lisa, the Crystal Skull of The Incas, the Kohinoor, Dierdre’s glasses. Pilgrims will flock. No they will. We live in a fallen world.
Sleuth’s Potato Wharf View Of The Week
Sleuth likes this racy PR picture of what the finished Potato Wharf apartments will look like when finished - so he thought he’d share it with you. Apparently it was taken just prior to Armageddon. We're all dead you know.
Armageddon over Castlefield
Killing Kittens For Older Folk
Sleuth has found the furore over David Blake’s review of his visit to high-tone sex party Killing Kittens intriguing. The article gave Sleuth an idea. “Let’s start a similar thing for older people. Keep the animal theme in the title,” said Sleuth to the franchisee of Killing Kittens on the phone. “Interesting - what name are you thinking of?” she asked. “Flogging a Dead Horse," said Sleuth. "Hello, hello, are you still there?” asked Sleuth ten seconds later.
Stag Party - Already Too Drunk To Think Straight
Sleuth got this from Manchester Guided Tours last week. ‘Hello all, anyone to guide a pub/walking tour 2pm-ish on Saturday afternoon 12th April? It's the stag group who originally asked if guides were willing to dress up. They've messed up on their dates, asked for 12th October when they meant 12th April.’ Dress-up. October not April. Sleuth reckons these boys have already had more than enough to drink.
Beer More Expensive Than Gold
Every seven days or so Sleuth is stopped in the street by policemen, concierges, kittens, horses, stag parties, David Gale, Deidre Barlow, Dave Mooney and all the cocktails in the Northern Quarter, and asked: "Where can we find the most expensive beer in all the city, all the world, all the universe and all the thirteen extant dimensions imagined by the insane?"
"Why," says Sleuth, "that would be Brewdog bar on Peter Street where the beer prices are so high they have to rachet up the alcohol content so you fall off your stool dead drunk after two pints. This avoids you losing your clothes and dignity by the third pint, and losing your house by the fifth."
And to prove this he showed the policemen, concierges, kittens, horses, stag parties, David Gale, Deidre Barlow, Dave Mooney and all the cocktails in the Northern Quarter, this shaky picture. Shaky because it was taken just prior to Sleuth falling off his stool dead drunk after the second pint.
How much?
