Lifestyle
What better way to welcome in the longer days and brighter nights than with a whole host of new cocktail and wine bars, bakeries, seafood and steak houses, New York-style pizzerias and plenty of funked up fried chicken…
- Toca Social Birmingham - You know Brum is doing something right when a hugely successful London venue picks the second city for their second venue on Earth. And hush now Mancunians, it is the second city. for only their second venue on Earth. TOCA Social is one of these wildly moreish social sports games in the ilk of Flight Club (darts) and Sixes (cricket), both of which are excellent, by the way. TOCA, however, is the epitome, particularly if football is your game. You’ll be tasked with blasting a football at zombies, or hitting increasingly diminishing targets while feasting on — get this — fried chicken from Chick ‘N’ Sours, the London chain’s first foray into Brum. Opened early June in Bullring.
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- One Star Döner Bar Birmingham - Brad Carter, debatably Birmingham’s best chef will, in 2025, find new city centre premises for his Michelin starred Carters of Moseley, but no longer of Moseley. Until that date you’ll find him and his team high up in the clouds at 103 Colmore Row — as reported in our last issue — where they are the resident kitchen for the foreseeable. That’s not the newness, though, oh no! Brad’s wonderful (and more financially accessible) sideline, One Star Döner Bar will, open near New Street Station this summer. We have pinky-sweared not to give away any more info at this point, but watch this space for - and we really mean this - the best kebabs on Earth, set to a soundtrack of Brad’s slightly ravey outlook on life. Can. Not. Wait.
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- 1000 Trades On The Park Birmingham - Well, well, well, if it isn’t the newest launch from Jewellery Quarter pub doyens 1000 Trades. To be known as 1000 Trades On The Park it will sit as part of the beautiful Lightwoods House, overlooking Lightwoods Park, Bearwood. The Grade II-listed spot was lovingly restored to its 18th century glory five years ago, with a tea room, community rooms and, soon, this glorious looking pub with bags of outdoor space — a frustratingly rare commodity in dear ol’ Brum. Dan Lee, winner of Masterchef 2021, is onboard as executive chef with his signature pan Asian offerings. And okay, okay, Bearwood is not technically Birmingham, but we’re all going to be going at the first sign of sunshine, right? Slated for an early June launch it could come sooner, but most likely later.
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Seafood City Birmingham - In June, which is starting to look like a purple patch for new Brum restaurant launches, the brains behind the excellent Vietnamese Street Kitchen are launching a seafood boil restaurant called Seafood City, in the Arcadian. The concept — which we don’t have here at all yet, in any shape, manner or form — takes inspiration from the original southern ‘seafood boil’ made famous in Louisiana in the USA’s Deep South, using a traditional cooking method to lock in the taste of the sea. Since then, the cooking style has been adopted by the Vietnamese community and emboldened with new flavours. Expect bib aprons and messy hands in the city’s least pretentious launch in years. The signature dishes are lobster rolls (phwoar!) and a crab and prawn burger with a side of seasoned fries in an environment best described as an explosion of neon colour. The venue will seat 99 people inside with a cocktail bar as the centrepiece, plus outdoor seating for lazy days in the sun.
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Albatross Death Cult Birmingham - Yep, that’s what it’s called. It could only be the work of wildly charismatic Alex Claridge. Claridge is chef patron of Jewellery Quarter restaurant The Wilderness — which is a must visit, by the way — but he’s also Birmingham dynamite in all the best ways. A heart on-his-sleeve type who just so happens to be wizardly talented in the kitchen, he has opened (and sadly lost) some of the city’s most ballsy and brilliant venues. For his next act Alex is launching Albatross Death Cult this June, also in the Jewellery Quarter, in the building where Atelier once lived. Expect a punky, raw, experimental restaurant — an avant garde omakase, if you will — with plenty of seafood served up at something of a communal counter, where you will get to know the strangers around you.
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- Apiary Brighton - A new cafe and cocktail bar celebrating all things honey is opening on Western Road in Hove. The owners, Alistair and Noemi Bell, took up beekeeping during lock-down, and are now bringing their love of honey to their business.
The cafe will offer honey-based cocktails, mead (a honey wine), and a menu that incorporates honey, honeycomb and beeswax. It will operate as a café during the day and a cocktail bar in the evening. The duo also plans to use some of their profits to support rewilding projects in the local area.
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- Sugardough Brighton - Much-loved local bakery, Sugardough, is set to open its third site in the city this year. Taking over the cafe in the Hove Museum of Creativity, it will be Sugardough’s third site in the city, alongside its bakehouse on Victoria Terrace in Hove and restaurant on Market Street in Brighton.
An exact opening date and menu hasn’t been announced yet but we can expect the same delicious pastries, cakes and beautiful sourdough boules that Sugardough is known for, and perhaps some of their modern British dishes on the cafe menu too.
Follow @sugardoughhove
- No No Please Brighton - A new Southeast Asian-inspired restaurant has opened on Brighton’s Preston Street. The siblings behind the restaurant, Mel and Euan, have worked closely with the hospitality industry over the years, but this is their first actual restaurant venture.
No No Please serves small plates showcasing flavours from across Southeast Asia, such as bang bang salad, chook skin scratching, grilled roti with penang curry, and sesame prawn toast egg and soldier. For drinks, there’s a menu of small-batched cocktails mixed up in their cellar including a smoky negroni and a mai tai milk punch. There’s a walk-ins only policy, so you’re welcome to pop in for a quick bite or settle in for an evening of drinks and socialising.
Follow @no.no_please
- Drifter Brighton - A new venue specialising in vinyl, natural wine and seafood has opened on Brighton’s seafront. Drifter ‘celebrates the rhythm of local and organic ingredients’, with a range of seasonal small plates, along with vinyl records and live music. Sit overlooking the waves with a plate of fresh oysters and a glass of natural wine. Or choose from their changing selection of small plates with things like whipped cod roe and crispy potato skins, wood fired potato bread with ricotta and trout roe, or crab rarebit toasts. Everything on the menu screams freshness, along with the setting and the music, the vibes are absolutely on point.
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- Etçi Mehmet Steak House Leeds - With a large Muslim population in Leeds, there’s a high demand for Halal dining. Etçi Mehmet, translating as ‘praiseworthy beef’, has been awarded the best Turkish steakhouse in the North West, thanks to its popular Manchester and Liverpool locations. This Summer, it’s set to delight customers of all preferences, bringing a range of Halal kebabs, sumptuous steaks, and vegetarian grills to Eastgate Leeds. Expect live fire shows and dishes flecked with none other than 24 carat gold.
Follow @etcimehmet_uk
- Latitude Win Bar Leeds - After 16 years crouched under a railway arch in Leeds City Centre, Latitude has found a new home, just 200m down the road at 46 The Calls. With a new venue three times the size of the original, they’ve decided to bring a bespoke bar to their shop, so you can sip and savour a wealth of world class wines from each and every region. The Tasting Room will offer an expansive “by the glass” menu, giving guests the opportunity to truly try before they buy. Staff will be on hand to suggest alternatives to your tried and tested tipples, alongside a cocktail menu featuring a range of classical and high-end spirits. Their “by the bottle” menu, will include over 1000 wines available to drink in-store for the retail price, plus a nominal corkage fee. Fancy a bite to wash it all down? Paired cheese, charcuterie, and vegan sharing boards will tempt you into making this a perfect post-work pit stop. After all, the train station’s only a few metres away!
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- The Kirkstall Brewery Tetley Takeover Leeds - Since the contemporary art gallery and kitchen shut its doors in October 2023, there has been much mumbling about what will pop up at Vastint’s Aire Park development site. Thankfully the beloved Tetley HQ will be sticking true to its roots and revamping under the Kirkstall Brewery banner, breathing new life into the ninety-two-year-old brick building, with a business facing boardroom, exciting events calendar, plus, of course, a beer hall come food court. A welcome new chapter for South Bank.
Follow @the.tetley.pub
- Caravan Manchester - Not content with their award-winning collection of restaurants across London, Caravan are coming to Manchester armed with their mind-blowingly good all-day breakfasts and cocktail offerings. Oh, and some exceptionally great coffee, brewed in house. Guests will be able to enjoy an eclectic, ‘well travelled’ menu across two all day dining rooms, a bar, a private dining room and two outdoor terraces at the St. John’s district space. The menu is packed with everything from healthy grain bowls to Korean style, buttermilk fried chicken with kimchi pancakes as well as the outrageously popular fried jalapeno cornbread with fried egg, mojo verde and chilli butter. Find us devouring all of this on a regular basis from this summer onwards.
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- Blacklock Manchester - Opening in a Grade-II listed building on the already bustling Peter Street, Blacklock’s modern take on the classic chophouse has already been a huge hit in London, with its dedication to charcoal grilled steaks and chops complemented perfectly by its ‘pip-to-peel’ approach to cocktails and wine on tap. The best bit, in our opinion, though? Got to be the signature white chocolate cheesecake, served straight from the dish at your tableside with a loving ‘say when’ approach. Need we say more?
Follow @blacklockchops
- Oseyo Manchester - If you’ve walked down Oxford Road at any point over the last few years, you likely won’t have been able to resist the temptation to explore the vibrantly coloured aisles of Oseyo. And now it’s going to be even easier to discover more sensational Korean snacks and flavours, with a new branch opening up in the Arndale Centre this summer. So if you want to stock your freezer full of dumplings, ram your cupboards full of ramyun pots or you need all the right ingredients for a hot pot party, look no further.
Follow @oseyouk
- Nell’s Albert Square Manchester - The New York-inspired big slice slingers are going to be selling their NYC-style ‘za from a fourth location, with a new city centre spot opening this summer. Taking over the hallowed site of the legendary, long-serving Croma, Nell’s will be bringing their signature well sauced, well baked pies to Albert Square. Originally set up as a pop-up inside their iconic Northern Quarter haunt Common in the pandemic days of 2020, husband and wife team Jonny and Charlotte Heyes have become synonymous with their monster 22-inch pies and paper plate-covering slices. We can’t wait for them to be slap bang in the centre of town in a few short months.
Follow @nellspizza
- Ezra & Gil Liverpool - For the last 10 years, Ezra & Gil has been warming up Manchester with great coffee, food and cupboard provisions from its two locations in the 0161. Now, they’re bringing their roasted beans, loose leaf teas and various very good eggs on sourdough and the like to Liverpool. If comforting neighbourhood vibes are your bag, then E&G have you well and truly covered. Lazy brunches and working lunches are catered for expertly, so whether solo, with a mate, a date or a laptop, you cannot go wrong here.
Follow @ezraandgil
- Petit Café Du Coin Liverpool - Le Noveau Petit Café is here! The third instalment of the Petit Café family is heading to Lark Lane, complete with their very own jazz line up and their usual tres bien selection of wine, cheese, coffee and cocktails. Petit Café Nombre Troix will bring the same sophisticated Parisian charm and service to Lark Lane as has also been enjoyed on Berry Street and at sister site Petit Café du Quartier on Allerton Road. Saucers of champagne with candlelit jazz? Sign us all the way up.
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- Sister Ray Liverpool - Laid back European cafe culture blended with the effortlessly chic and cool vibes of a classic New York bar? Yeah, we’re definitely game for this. By day, Sister Ray will serve as a hangout for all, so you can work, sip coffee and pretend to read an interesting looking novel. Make yourself at home. By night, it’s the place to go for a date night, a mate night, after work drinks or whatever other excuse you need for an expertly poured or mixed beverage. Founder Chris Edwards, who once upon a time owned Top 50 bar Filter and Fox, and is also responsible for city favourites Belzan and Madre, has enlisted the likes of Lewis Jenkins, previously of Hawksmoor and Swift (no. 30 in World’s Best Cocktail Bars) and Carey Hanlon, most recently of Present Company and formerly Head Bartender at Amsterdam’s SuperLyan within the world famous Mr Lyan drink group. So this is not an establishment to take lightly. This is a spot with a series of heavyweights running the show, delivering a classic and chaotic cocktail menu and beers served in frozen glasses, which will no doubt go down a storm over the incoming summer months. Oh, and we are hearing nothing but great things about the Guinness here, too.
Follow @sisterray.bar
- Mamasan Bar Glasgow - While the title of ‘Scotland’s first audio bar’ may not immediately grab you, Mamasan’s combination of tantalising Thai BBQ and delicious drinks certainly will. The bar and brasserie, setting up its second location after a storming success in Liverpool, draws inspiration from 1950s Japanese listening bars, blending intimate dining with high-fidelity sound. Head chef Finn Steel-Perkins and Great British Menu star Ali Borer have collaborated on an expertly curated Thai BBQ menu, which will be complemented by a host of global DJs soundtracking your visit. Wall-to-wall fire, in every respect.
Follow @mamasanbarbbq
- House of Gods Glasgow - If floral covered opulence is your bag, then House of Gods is a new opening you simply cannot afford to miss out on. The multi-award winning hotel and bar is now throwing open its doors in Merchant City after three years of renovations, with one of a kind interiors decking out 28 maximalist rooms and suites. The ‘sacred’ rooftop garden is our recommendation for one of the most lavish and laid back drinking experiences in the city.
Follow @houseofgodshotel
- Sarang Korean Cafe Glasgow - Ever seen a cactus and had an overwhelming desire to take an enormous bite out of it? Well, maybe not, but if someone told you within that prickly green exterior there would be sumptuous wallop of chocolate cream, Oreo crumb and muffin? Well, this is one of several immaculately decorated offerings being served up at Sarang Korean Cafe on Hope Street. The unmissable baby pink and emerald green coffee shop is bedecked with floral arrangements. As well as it’s beautiful baked goods, Sarang also serves sublime K-Toast and cracking caffeinated beverages. The iced green tea cappuccino, especially, is stunning both in aesthetics and taste.
Follow [@sarang_kcafe]((https://www.instagram.com/sarang_kcafe?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==)
- Gucci Edinburgh - A glamorous slice of Italian luxury will soon be opening in Edinburgh, with fashion powerhouse Gucci opening their first store in the UK outside of London, on Multrees Walk. Located where Hugo BOSS and Caffè Nero once stood, the space is undergoing a £750,000 renovation in preparation for the iconic Italian brand’s grand opening, where it will stand alongside fellow international fashion houses Louis Vuitton, Burberry and Canada Goose. The new opening will see Gucci expand from their current space within Harvey Nichols in St. Andrew Square to 4,700 square metres of retail space which is being hailed as “the essence of luxury shopping” by Nuveen, who own Multrees Walk.
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