GRUB Manchester
Ian Jones, Food and Drink Editor
GRUB ExtraVEGANza: The 10th edition of Manchester’s original three-day vegan street food festival returns at the end of this month to celebrate VEGANuary, running from 6pm-10pm on Friday 24th January, 12pm-10pm on Saturday 25th January & 12pm-6pm on Sunday 26th January. Best of all, it’s a free, non-ticketed event.
Expect a varied lineup of local pop-up street kitchens cooking plant-based dishes, including old favourites such as Seitan’s Kebab and Munchie Mummy’s Vegan Bakery, plus new faces including Saffa Soul and El Piloto Tacos. That means more vegan street food than you can shake a celery stick at, alongside a 100% vegan bar (offering wine, cocktails, spirits, mulled wine, coffee and soft drinks, plus over 20 draught beers from the best local vegan-friendly breweries), music and good times with like-minded people.
It’s always a busy one so if you’re coming in a large group, we advise booking a table via the Grub website (link below). What’s that? You want the full list of street food vendors cooking at the event? Oh, go on then:
- El Piloto Tacos: Local taco chefs serving a special menu of plant-based tacos, corn ‘ribs’ and ‘cheesy’ loaded fries
- Pizza Mutt: Chicago-inspired Tavern-style pizza makers with vegan versions of their best sellers including phoney pepperoni, double cheese and veggie Picante
- Saffa Soul: The chefs behind Saffa Soul are unveiling their brand new vegan menu at the event. Guests can look forward to vegan-ised braai classics, Gatsbys and Bunny Chow
- Seitan’s Kebab: Plant-based alternatives to favourite takeaway kebabs including seitan Doner and ‘chicken’ Shawarma
- Munchie Mummy’s Vegan Bakery: Best known for freshly made cinnamon buns and loaded brownies. They’ll also have a range of speciality coffees with a selection of plant-based milks
Venue profile: GRUB Manchester has had a long and storied history in and around the city, with various iterations and locations over the years. It began life as a street-food and drinks events company, set up by husband and wife team Jason Bailey and Juliana Bailey in 2014 after a successful stint as street food traders. They went onto showcase a host of well-received events with an inclusive, festival-style atmosphere, alongside exceptional food and drink from independent producers and chefs.
As friendly and gently eccentric as this great city gets
But now they have a permanent home, in Manchester’s Green Quarter – or as the old school among us like to call it: ‘Cheetham Hill’. It’s yet another of Manchester’s ever-multiplying corners, less square, more dodecahedron, and in truth, there isn’t much going on around here other than a bunch of pot-holed car parks and a huge number of hastily-built apartment blocks. Unsurprisingly, I get lost for about 30 minutes trying to find the venue.
Once inside, it’s clear GRUB has the potential to be the perfect local haunt for all the many renters in the area. It’s a smart modern bar with an upstairs events space, and a truly diverse set of customers and staff, as friendly and gently eccentric as this great city gets. Think back to the Northern Quarter 15-20 years ago, before the beady-eyed landlords raised the rents and turned it into a tourist-rinsing alt-Magaluf.
It’s a home from home for anyone looking to escape the cookie-cutter capitalist vibe of the modern city, wonderfully laid-back, with a great selection of craft beers (card-only, naturally) and vegan-themed happenings such as the weekly Plant Powered Sunday events. But upstairs is where the magic happens. This wildly-decorated room is one of the city’s best event spaces, perfect for live gigs, theatre productions, stand-up comedy and anything else that requires a dash of creativity and a big well-designed room.
GRUB Manchester is proof that the city’s independent spirit is thriving, unassuming and gloriously inclusive. It’s hard to think of a better venue in the city right now.
