If you’ve left booking a meal until now, we can’t guarantee you’ll get a table – however, we have some tempting menus and if you’re lucky you might just get squeezed in somewhere. If Afternoon Tea’s more your bag, check out And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon. Although, we’re also a bit spoilt for choice if you fancy a bit of culinary DIY – Thyme Out Deli, A Taste of Honey, The Cheese Hamlet, Fusion Deli, Didsbury Deli…

However, it’s not just about eating out. Sian, at The Flower Lounge, is ready & waiting for you last-minuters – no need to rush off to your local garage! If it’s chocolates you’re after, look no further than Cocoa-Cabana – hand made, wholesome chocolates. And to accompany those chocolates, how about some fizz from Reserve Wines?

If you are off tonight and want to dress to impress, check out our lovely local fashion emporiums – Steranko and Bond. As an extra special treat – although this is where last minuters can sometime miss out as you’ll need to be VERY quick – if you book online TODAY at Macleod Bradley you’ll qualify for a whopping 50% discount! Call Evie’s Beauty Spa and get yourself booked in for a mini manicure or pedicure – for today only, just £15 each. For candles to create that romantic glow, or gifts to say how much you care, visit David Gavin Design and Frog Furniture.

Perhaps you fancy something a little bit different? How about a piece of artwork from the Wendy J Levy Gallery? Or, if you’d prefer a bit of live music, with your loved one, or friends, how about The Violet Hour? It’s acoustic night tonight, with Rootsman – who you may remember from WestFest a couple of years ago.

So, there you go – plenty of offerings from our Didsbury independents. And, you’ve still got lots of time to get in those good books…

Chocolate Delight at Thyme Out Delicatessen, West Didsbury

Sorry to open this blog with a luscious, gloopy image of melted chocolate. But this is the sight we were greeted with at 10 o’clock on the morning of Saturday WestFest. OK, we dipped in a strawberry or two, but have to say the chocolate did set us up for a weekend of foodie WestFesting. Ben’s now famous Market & BBQ was up and running – and it’s fair to say that even though it was still very early by West Didsbury awakening standards, the burgers were going down a storm…

See. Told you there were strawberries...

You certainly couldn’t go hungry over WestFest weekend. The majority of the eateries pushed out the proverbial boats, so whether you wanted cakes, curry, fish, tapas, veggie delights, paella, tea or coffee, you could have it. And more.

So, here’s a mouth-watering visual reminder of all of the tasty treats on offer…

Honestly, it wasn't *all* chocolate at WestFest...

Sometimes, a cuppa is just what you need - courtesy of And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon...

Seriously, it wasn't all about chocolate...

It all seemed so right to be drinking this at Rhubarb at 11.00 in the morning...

Bryn on BBQ duties at Rhubarb Restaurant, West Didsbury

A very English picnic at The Rose Garden, West Didsbury

Scotch Quails' Eggs - The Rose Garden, West Didsbury

Taster samples at Pomegranate, West Didsbury

A taste of the Mediterranean from Pinchjos, West Didsbury

Rock (& roll) from Folk, West Didsbury

Chips ahoy! Chris & Alex take a fish & chip break...

Newcomers to West Didsbury, Mary & Archies, enter into the WestFest swing...

Pomegranate, West Didsbury

Folk fan the WestFest flames...

Tapas at Bistro West, West Didsbury

Pomegranate, West Didsbury

We got around as many of our businesses as possible, sampling their fares – apologies to those who were putting on a show but we got to them at the wrong time. Or, were just enjoying ourselves far too much & forgot to take snaps…

S0 – what was it all about? Well, there’s been much speculation – but from the perspective of West Didsbury businesses being involved, the intention was ALWAYS clear. We wanted to showcase that we have unique and independent businesses who can become an integral part of a wedding. Our first West Didsbury Wedding Event showcased this on a small scale. This “secret” wedding has showcased it on a larger scale. Without the businesses, it wouldn’t have happened. And whatever people may think about the wedding, we certainly demonstrated that our businesses can put on a show.

If you’ve followed the reports in The South Manchester Reporter, The Manchester Evening News or The Daily Mail Online, you’d be forgiven for thinking that it all “just happened”. Well, there was a lot of input from some very hard-working businesses who should be afforded some real credit. We’ll be blogging over the next few days in more detail, but here’s a snapshot of the day…

The Metropolitan, West Didsbury

The Cavendish School Confetti Boys & Girls

Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury

Rhubarb Restaurant - the venue for the reception

Victoria Sponge Deluxe Wedding Cake & Mini Viccie Sponge Hearts from And The Dish Ran away With The Spoon

Zoe Chiotis performs acoustic set at Rhubarb Restaurant

Reception canapes courtesy of Rhubarb Restaurant & Thyme Out Deli, wines courtesy of Reserve Wines, West Didsbury

Wedding flower arrangements, bride's bouquet & groom's buttonhole - courtesy of The Flower Lounge, West Didsbury

Pimms & pinchos from Pinchjos, West Didsbury

Pimms & pinchos from Pinchjos, West Didsbury

Dress - The White Closet, Make-up - Emma Draper, Fascinator - Silver Sixpence In Her Shoe, Weather - West Didsbury

Connect4, Giant Jenga, Strawberries & Cream at Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury

Candelabra supplied by Frog Furniture, West Didsbury

Cones of fish & chips from Frankie's Fish Bar & English Champagne from Reserve Wines - perfect combination

Jonny Draper - photographer & Hannah Loughlin - film maker

Part 2 coming very soon…

West Didsbury Secret Wedding

You might have seen our tweets and previous blog about the “wedding” which is going to happen in West Didsbury on Monday. If you haven’t, have a read here to get the background to one of the most unusual events we’ve ever been involved in…

It’s certainly generated a lot of interest, both over Twitter and via hits to the blog. The whole event ties in very nicely with the aims of the West Didsbury Wedding Event, the first which was held in March and the the second which will be held in October. The focus for these events is to showcase that you can largely source most things you need for a wedding from the independent businesses in West Didsbury – and now we have an occasion where we can show that we’ve realised our aims.

The schedule for the event will be released tomorrow – but Alex (the groom), would love as many people as possible to be “guests” at this event. If you’re in or around West Didsbury on Monday afternoon, then you can be a part of something that we think will be pretty amazing.

All of the businesses involved have given their services, time or both free of charge – and we think that’s a fairly forward thinking business community. All businesses were contacted and invited to take part, but because of the time scale, some weren’t able to be involved. The following will give you an idea of what each participating business will be doing on the day, or what they’ve been doing in the build up to the event.

The White Closet, West Didsbury

The White Closet will be playing a very major role in the day. We managed to get our bride into the boutique for a fitting, on the pretext that we knew Nikki & as a favour, “Bride” could pop in for a fitting, so she had her proper measurements if she wanted a wedding dress designed abroad. By sheer “coincidence”, leading wedding dress designer and supplier to The White Closet, Charlotte Balbier, was there for a meeting with Nikki – she measured the bride and was able to ascertain that her favourite dress was the Tabitha wedding gown.

"Tabitha" by Charlotte Balbier

It was also very coincidental that wedding photographer extraordinare, Jonny Draper – he who did the amazing shoot at The West Didsbury Wedding Event – just happened to be in The White Closet. With his camera. And, he’ll be around on Monday to shoot the whole day. Although, maybe not that coincidental as he could have just popped in to say hello to his wife Emma, who works at The White Closet, but is also a make-up artist. Who’ll be making up our bride on the day. Nicola from Silver Sixpence In Her Shoe will also be making sure our bride has the most gorgeous accessories.

The Metropolitan, West Didsbury

Our bride will leave The White Closet and, presumably by then, she’ll have an idea of what’s going on (!) – and head to The Metropolitan for the “ceremony”. This will be officiated over by a guest speaker, Jim Gregory of Grosvenor Media – and the bride and groom’s close family and friends will be at this ceremony. It will be held in the Metropolitan’s Library Room – but of course, members of the public are more than welcome to come and watch/be part of this event… Flowers and accessories will be provided by West Didsbury’s Flower Lounge and Frog Furniture respectively. There will also be musical accompaniment from local acoustic musicians, Gavin Jones & John King.

Flower Lounge, Didsbury

Although subject to change over tomorrow, the bride & groom will then leave The Metropolitan and head down Burton Road, with chief photographer Jonny photographing and our specialist vintage wedding film compnay, Pearls and Lace, filming the whole event for posterity. The wedding party will hopefully stop the traffic on Burton Road, popping into Frankie’s Fish Bar for refreshments – mini cones of fish & chips – before arriving at Rhubarb Restaurant for the “reception”…

Zoe Chiotis

In another example of collaboration, Lisa and the team from Rhubarb have joined forces with the Ben and the team from West Didsbury’s Thyme Out Delicatessen to feed the wedding party – expect some photos of some very innovative canapes, to be accompanied by the much sought after English Champagne, from Reserve Wines. The wedding cake (or cakes) – will be provided by And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon.

And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon, West Didsbury

Zoe Chiotis, who was an absolute hit at the West Didsbury Wedding Event, will be providing some very romantic acoustic music during this part of the day. Canapes will be followed by a vintage cream tea, courtesy of the Silver Apples girls -

Silver Apples, West Didsbury

After the reception, the party will move back up Burton Rd – Pinchjos and Love2Eat will be entering into the wedding spirit, but more news of what they’re doing tomorrow.

Didsbury Life has worked with the groom to co-ordinate this event – and we’ll continue to work with Alex & his bride as they globe-trot, sourcing unusual wedding venues.

So – where do YOU come in? Well, you’re invited. If you’re in or around West Didsbury from 2.00pm on Monday 6th June, do pop along. The event will be being covered by various media outlets, so hopefully West Didsbury independent businesses – and our spirit of adventure & innovation – will be well covered!

More news tomorrow – if you follow us on Twitter, do please retweet messages about this event. We’d love to see as many people as possible out on the street on Monday…

A bit of a wedding...

So,Kate & Wills finally tied the knot… It was a bit on/off wasn’t it?

Bet they kept the appointed wedding planners very much on their toes. But – to be fair, it had been on the cards for quite a long time. However stressful to all involved, at least they’d had a bit of notice. I mean, if you’re the future King of England, any romantic liaison will send wedding people into overdrive, surely…

But, what if you’re not the future King of England – but have a BIG romantic ideas?

So, let us introduce you to Alex, a long standing client. He came to meet us, to introduce us to a  friend of his who was setting up a business & who we might be able to help in terms of promotion. Meeting done & dusted, we got chatting. We hadn’t seen Alex for a while. We’d moved Didsbury Life along. Established WeAreLife. Etc etc etc. Then he  told us he was getting married. Congratulations all round.

Now, we need to explain about Alex. We met him as a young entrepreneur. He owned a vehicle body repair garage. Could have been a bit bog standard – but, he thought outside of the box. Anyone remember the graffitied Porsche, parked up in Didsbury Village? That was his idea to promote his company. He used, at the time, the term, “guerilla marketing” & we liked it. Notice no “D” at the end of “Cheating Bastar…”

What attracted us to Alex was that he’d set up his own business, taken a risk, gone out on a limb and done advertising in a way that could have been perceived as a bit mad. But, we went our separate ways. Until we met up again three weeks ago.

He & his fiancee, who, until Monday shall remain nameless – we’ll tell you why in a moment – decided to embark on the adventure of a lifetime. They’ve rented out their Didsbury house. Sold most of their belongings. And are setting off, on Tuesday 7th June, for the journey of a lifetime. A journey which will  involve sourcing unusual/romantic venues in which to get married. To get “married” and to blog about it. Then, return to their most special destination & do it for real….

West Didsbury Secret Wedding

So, where so we come in? The day before the meeting with Alex, we’d met with some of the West Didsbury businesses to plan the next Wedding Event. The date was provisionally set for October -  but what what we felt was missing was a real Bride & Groom to show that West Didsbury independent businesses can source a wedding.

Cue Alex – and his “Wedding Mission”. His idea was to get “married” in as many places as possible, across the globe. He & his fiancee would then blog about these places – and return to their favourite, to do it all offically. But, where to start the journey? And that’s where the idea came from. Our local & independent Wedding Fayre needed a  Bride & Groom. The day after our local and independent potential wedding fayre businesses meet, in walks our groom – with a the maddest of ideas… We showed Alex the film, shot by Pearls & Lace, and that was sort of it. We felt that, mad as it seemed, we could, in a THREE WEEK time period, do it!

So – this is where we are now…

Alex proposed, officially, to his fiancee last week, and she said YES. The catch however, is that she knows nothing about what’s been planned for Monday 6th June. Here’s the story…

Second wedding event being planned. We’d like a bride & groom. With a vision – who could help us to promote OUR vision. Out of another meeting, comes Alex & his vision. SLIGHT NO-BRAINER…

Wedding Shot on Burton Rd, Jonny Draper

Complication being, we have THREE weeks to arrange a wedding. So, we galvanise West Didsbury into action. Now – West Didsbury businesses  now know us (hopefully) well enough to know that we do we do go with slightly mad ideas, in the hope that MOST, if not ALL, will, come off…

• “Bride” – seriously, has been kept in dark – has had “fitting” at White Closet, so that she knows her ‘official’ measurements for any “weddings” across the globe. How it happened was that we arranged with “Fiancee” to visit White Closet for a measuring session – Charlotte Balbier (who is going to give “Fiancee” a dress, just ‘happened to be there)… As was Jonny Draper, taking photos, incidentally – as he does. And, Silver Sixpence In Her Shoe,just being there discussing accessories
• Blanket email then sent out to West Didsbury businesses, from us, with the proviso, that this is “bonkers – get back within 24 hours“. Those who did, are in… Apologies to those who are still digesting & thinking about it. On this occasion, time wasn’t on our side!
• S0 – there’s going to be a wedding on Monday 6th June. And, you’re all – seriously – invited, to it…

It must have taken MONTHS (if not, truth be told, YEARS) to plan the latest Royal Wedding. But, West Didsbury has proved, as we always knew we could, that you can pull off a spectacular wedding in less than 3 weeks.

WATCH THIS SPACE…

A Vintage EnglishWedding - West Didsbury Style...

Next blog post tomorrow…

West Didsbury Market

So, we’re nearly there. With huge thanks to the girls at Silver Apples, Anna at And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon, the West Didsbury Residents’ Association and Manchester Markets. Saturday 26th March sees our first West Didsbury Market – and these will now happen on the last Saturday of every month, between 9.00am and 4.00pm. Located on the forecourt of Withington Community Hospital, we’re hopeful it will become a monthly fixture in our West Didsbury calendar. Almost a mini WestFest.

As a business community we welcome traders who can enhance, and add to, what’s already on offer in our vibrant local area. However, we’re also delighted that local traders have chosen to become part of the market – expect some lovely offerings on the first market from Latin Kitchen, And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon, Piccolino, Pinchjo’s, Folk Cafe Bar, Silver Apples, Thyme Out Deli and The Flower Lounge amongst others. But, it’s not just about the market. There’ll also be fab things going on all over West Didsbury. Milly Mog will be doing facepainting and balloon modelling, Reserve Wines will be doing wine tasting, Conley Hair & Beauty will be branching out into the world of fashion, Love2Eat Deli will be introducing their Waffle & Smoothie Station, with free samples.

More news tomorrow – watch this space…

West Didsbury Lights Switch On

As well as having XFM DJ and all-round lovely guy, Clint Boon, doing the West Didsbury switch-on this year, many of our shops, bars and restaurants are entering into the festive spirit and putting on some lovely Christmassy treats for you. This information will be updated today and tomorrow so that you know what’s going on…

THE EVENT IS DUE TO BEGIN AT 7.15pm BUT WE WILL KEEP YOU UPDATED VIA DIDSBURY LIFE & OUR TWITTER FEED IF THERE ARE CHANGES DUE TO WEATHER CONDITIONS ETC

Azzurro on Burton Road  will be offering its special Xmas deal – two courses plus a bottle of house wine per couple for just £15.95 per person – click here to see menu;

Newly opened Milly Mog, on Burton Road,  will be open until 8pm – pop in and have a browse of the gorgeous range of children’s clothing, footwear and accessories & enjoy a seasonal glass of wine;

And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon will be open late, serving complimentary home made mince pie and spicy mulled apple juice – there’ll be lots of lovely Christmas gifts in stock too;

West Didsbury Lights Switch On

Silver Apples will be hosting an Open Mic Night from 7.30pm, so if you’re feeling like blasting out a few tunes, you know where to head off to. There’ll also be mince pies and mulled wine – as well as a new look Silver Apples, after the recent refurbishment;

Pinchjo’s will be getting into the festive spirit with hot & spicy mulled wine and stew, served outside, so you don’t miss a thing;

Love2Eat Deli will be doing hot buttered rum, onion & cider soup and hot pork pies (as well as usual goodies on the menu) and for Switch-On Night, all kids eat FREE;

West Didsbury Lights Switch On

Green’s Restaurant are doing a Switch-On offer via their Facebook page – click here;

Rhubarb Restaurant is extending their early evening offer (£14.95 for 2 courses, £15.95 for 3 courses) to run ALL evening on Thursday 2 December;

Wok & Flame will be doing winter warming meal boxes to eat outside while you’re waiting for/watching the switch on;

Folk Cafe Bar are going be serving mulled wine, warm cider and beef stew to take away. We’re also hoping that Justin is going to rustle up some Folk style Xmas carols to play over the speakers…

The Metropolitan will be serving up its Tea Time Menu (2 courses £8.95, 5-7pm) on Thursday leaving you time to pop round the corner to see the West Didsbury Christmas lights being switched on at 7pm on Burton Road and listen to some Christmassy carols.

West Didsbury Lights Switch On

Flower Lounge Didsbury

On the same night, Sian at Didsbury’s Flower Lounge is hosting a Festive Open Evening, where Flower Lounge staff will guide you through the creating of Christmas wreaths, table centre pieces and festive flower displays. Christmas stock has been arriving and you can be sure that all of your decorating needs will be catered for – from stunning glass tree baubles, to sparkly reindeers, through to berry garlands. Festive cakes will be provided by AiryFairyCakes and wine by West Didsbury’s Reserve Wine Shop.

Clint Boon

Thursday 2nd December sees West Didsbury lighting up. Last year, we saw Dave Haslam doing the honours. This year, we’ve got Clint Boon. We’ve also got the choirs from Cavendish Primary School and Lancasterian School – as well as much festive revelry, with late night opening and special offers. See Didsbury Life for latest information. The switch on will happen outside the Co-operative on Burton Road. For safety reasons, we’ve been advised by the police that people coming to join in the fun, watch from the opposite side of the road – this is only the second year we’ve done this and we’re still working out the best way to organise a growing community event, so do bear with us!

CHRISTMAS FAIRS

Cavendish Primary School – http://www.didsburylife.com/events/286/christmas-fair-at-cavendish-primary-school.html

Beaver Road Primary School – http://www.didsburylife.com/events/284/beaver-road-christmas-fair-and-market.html

POP-UP CHRISTMAS BOUTIQUE

Christmas Pop-Up Boutique at MacleodBradley – for one night only, on Tuesday 14th December, the award winning salon on Lapwing Lane will be transformed into an amazing fashion emporium.

Also coming your way is XmasWestFest 18th & 19th December. Planning is underway so watch this space – it’ll be a real opportunity to shop local for Christmas…

Christmas in Didsbury

Hate poetry me, Miss, it’s dead posh…Hate poetry, it’s dead boring…I wanna be a poet, cos it’s dead easy…

- I sometimes used to approach events with the word “Poetry” in the name of the event with some trepidation. I knew I’d have to convince kids that this was a good event. No longer. Someone else at school has the responsibility for doing that. I can now sit back and enjoy. And, where better to sit back and enjoy than Love2Eat Deli with Mike Garry?

Mike Garry at Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury

OK, so we need to immediately nail our colours to the mast here. We love Mike Garry. He is a poet extraordinaire. If you’ve never experienced his brand of poetry, where’ve you been? He performed at Westfest, as a bit of a “wandering troubadour”. Sounds a bit pretentious, but it worked so well. If you were lucky enough to have been in Thyme Out Delicatessen, Folk Cafe Bar, Silver Apples or Love2Eat Deli, you may have seen him performing. Mancunia at its very best.

Puddle Pea Soup & Smoky Pancetta Wrapped Bread Sticks

The night started well. A gathering of friends, new and old and a complimentary cocktail on arrival – Kir Royale with an appropriate Mancunian twist  – Vimto. Much enjoyed by the girls in the group! Love2Eat is a very intimate dining experience because it is so cutesy and small. Our party numbered fourteen, and there were two other parties in last Saturday, but it never felt over-crowded. It just felt – well, nice and intimate and friendly. Starters arrived and we all felt very satisfied with our Puddle Pea Soup. It’s always good to have food that you know is fresh – this soup tasted of pea-pods. Not often you get that taste these days with our frozen supermarket peas.

Mike performed between courses. He’d had a mixed day. He’d won an Umbro Competition & had secured some pretty phenomenal funding to spread the literary word to boys who weren’t turned on by books ands words. But he’d also found his car had flat tyres and had to sort that on the way to Love2Eat. Not the best way to prepare for a performance. But, in true Mike Garry style, he did it.

Mike Garry performing at Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury

He read some works we hadn’t heard performed before – there were dark overtones but it worked. In fact, the whole night worked. Pie & mash. Poetry. Laughs. From the people to the food to the performance. It was a real Mancunian treat. If you’ve not been to Love2Eat Deli before, or you’ve never heard Mike doing his poetry, you need to put both on your “To Do” list for 2011.

Mike Garry performing at Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury

Mike will be back at Love2Eat very soon – plans are being hatched – so make sure you don’t miss out next time…

With special thanks to Mike & Amanda, Alison & Charlie, Si & Martin, Paul and Suz & Rich

Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury

Penny Lynch, the owner of Love2Eat Deli on Burton Road, is continually looking at ways to introduce her quirky little eaterie to a wider audience, and with amazing weekly offers, such as the Three Course Meal and “as much wine as you can drink” on a Saturday and The Monday Night Supper Club, the boutique deli (which will be celebrating its first birthday in a couple of weeks time), is going from strength to strength. Children can now feel a part of the deli, as Weekly Story-Time has now started, running each Wednesday morning between 11.00am – 11.45am.

Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury Story Time

This morning, we went along to show some support and to get some snaps of the event. Didsbury based children’s author, Angelina Johnson, organised the very excitable children around her and the reading got underway. Being someone who thinks reading can’t start early enough, I found it really lovely to see the children really captivated by the power of words. A real change to see the audience, really focused and listening, rather than being hyper and demanding every new fangled toy or device available. It was also a real pleasure to hear them commenting on the stories and telling their own spooky Hallowe’en tales.

Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury Story Time

Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury Story Time

Love2Eat Deli, West Didsbury Story Time

Angelina judged the mood of the children really well, and after three stories it was onto colouring Hallowe’en pictures and making spooky masks. There was a mix of children there from the quite grown-up (Lucy is now seven years old!) to tiny babes in arms. It was also such a lovely environment that the two men who popped in for coffee, didn’t feel they had walked into a creche and sat down quite happily – albeit outside – to enjoy their break.

So, all in all, a very lovely morning spent in the company of Love2Eat Deli…

Spooky Mask Making at Love2Eat Deli

Storytime at Love2Eat Deli

Storytime at Love2Eat Deli

Fright Time on Burton Road, post story time!

Click here to see a video snippet of story time – and don’t forget that you can pick-up-a-pumpkin for Hallowe’en carving from Love2Eat. Best pumpkin will be chosen on Sunday 31st October…

We’d also like to say a massive thankyou to the amazingly talented guys in The Gypsies of Bohemia. We were delighted when we found out that Silver Apples had booked them to play on the Sunday night – our seats were booked as soon as we knew they were appearing. However, what we didn’t count on was chatting to Jamie Wallace afterwards – and him agreeing to us using one of their soundtracks over the film. What a joyous way to end WestFest2010!

We’ve been really wanting the film on – but, as much we get on with Ed, we didn’t really feel he’d appreciate us hassling him on his honeymoon. So, we’ve waited ever so patiently – and finally – here are the results.

Sit back, watch, listen, enjoy – and see if you can spot yourself… [Expand to full size screen to get full WestFest2010 effect!]

What with the timelapse film, the Story of SIA (Spirit of Independence & Adventure) written by Rowena Forbes & illustrated by Jody Clarke, the West Didsbury Mosaic (installation news later) by Amanda McCrann and The Community Garden at Thyme Out Deli on Nell Lane, here at Didsbury Life, we think we’ve got quite a nice thing going that can only build, grow and develop. Watch this space…

The Legend of Sia

“Folk?” repeated Sia, in confusion.

“Yes, Folk,” chorused the crowd on her doorstep. “We’re all Folk. This is Albert. This is Frankie. This is Bond.”

“James Bond?” Sia interrupted.

“No, just Bond. This is Ferrious. This is Steranko. And this is Joe.”

“Can I interest you in a pincho?” asked Joe, waving a tempting platter of fragrant king prawns beneath Sia’s nose.

“Er, no thank you,” she replied. “What are you all doing here?”

“Well, we’ve heard about what you’re doing here and we’re very excited by it,” said Folk, smiling as one. “We’d like to welcome you to the neighbourhood and see if we can help you at all.”

Sia scowled. She drew back, her brow furrowing with suspicion.

“Oh no you don’t,” she said. “I haven’t escaped the City of Bureaucracy, trekked the Wilderness of Confusion, found my House of Glass and developed my Unique Talent, all by myself, just to get suckered once more by some shape-shifting Guardians of Conformity. Thanks, but no thanks.”

“No, no, you don’t understand,” protested Folk. “We’ve all been where you are now. We just want to help.”

“I don’t need your help,” Sia snapped, backing away from the doorway.

“We want to be friends.”

“You ain’t no friends of mine!” she yelled. And slammed the door shut.

“Be careful,” she heard one of the Folk call out to her. “You don’t know what’s in there!”

Sia ignored them.

“People,” she muttered to herself. She gazed at her crystal figurines, which winked at her in the light as if sharing a secret.

“Look at these beautiful creations! If I let these strangers in, they’ll probably shatter all my hard work into pieces.”

“Exactly!” squeaked two voices behind her.

Startled, Sia whirled around.

There, at her eye level, two tiny red creatures hovered in the air, each about the size of a bumble bee. It was difficult to make out their features distinctly, but Sia noted that each wore what appeared to be a tiny crown, and grasped in its fist what appeared to be a tiny blossom.

“Your work is so delicate, so original, so stunning! You can’t risk it being ruined,” squealed the first creature.

“Those people just want a piece of you,” whined the second. “They don’t understand. You don’t need them.”

“Who are you?” gasped Sia.

The creatures bobbed up and down in the air, emitting high-pitched chuckles of glee.

“We’re all you need from now on!” they cried.

—

Time passed.

Folk had stopped knocking on her door some months ago, realising that Sia wasn’t going to answer.

And life wasn’t exactly perfect.

Sia still loved creating her crystal figurines. But, in order to maintain her Moregeous standards, she had had to re-stock her White Closet and invest in further specialist equipment – diamond abrasive tools, silicon carbide wheels, fairy dust – all of which meant she’d had to take out a hefty loan.

And in order to make the repayments on that loan, she had to make and sell a lot of crystal figurines. Which meant she was working all the time – and yet she still wasn’t selling enough to make ends meet.

She rarely ate. She couldn’t sleep. In fact, she was so utterly drained and exhausted that she often wondered if leaving the City of Bureaucracy had been the right move after all.

And then there were the Demons.

The Twin Demons of Pride and Solitude were making her life a misery.

They were constantly demanding to be fed. And no matter how much Sia fed them, they always wanted more. With insatiable appetites they sat and gorged, and gorged, and gorged, and gorged.

And as they gorged, they grew.

The harmless bumble bees they’d been upon arrival had swollen to the size of elephants. And as they grew, they revealed the true extent of their horrors.

What Sia had initially believed to be crowns were in fact crooked horns, grasping greedily outwards from the Demons’ engorged heads.

And what she’d mistaken for blossoms in their hands proved to be spiked tridents, which they used to jab her with at every opportunity, demanding to be fed more, more, more, cackling disdainfully at her pain.

One night, a despairing Sia ran outside in the moonlight, threw herself down on her pathway and cried. She cried and cried until she could cry no more. And then she rolled over onto her back and gazed once again, with tear-stained eyes, at the twinkling skies.

She thought back to the night when the Moth had whispered into her ear and revealed the secrets of the stars.

How far have I come since then, she thought. How far have I really come?

And, all at once, she knew what to do.

—

Pride was now so bloated that he had difficulty getting out of bed. He sat propped up against the pillows, rolls of blubber billowing with his every laboured breath, and played with Sia’s favourite crystalline figure – a young man in a pirate’s hat, dancing a sea shanty. Pride held the figure up to the light and chuckled with delight at its reflected brilliance.

“Feed me!” he bellowed, as he saw Sia appear at the bedroom doorway. “Cupcakes! Pies! Or maybe some of those Sicilian meatballs. I Love to Eat!”

“Tough,” said Sia. “I’m not feeding you any more. In fact, I think it’s about time you and I had a chat.”

“Oh yeah?” asked the Demon, suspiciously. “What about?”

“What about how you’re ruining my life?” asked Sia. “What about how you’re consuming everything that I have?”

She moved closer to the bed. Pride looked at her with an indecipherable glint in his eye.

“Not quite everything,” he said with a wry smile. “I haven’t consumed… YOU!”

And, in a surprisingly sudden movement, the Demon heaved himself forwards, forcefully propelling his gargantuan body onto Sia.

He may be unfit, but he’s certainly got the weight advantage, Sia thought as she wrestled desperately with the strong Demon of Pride.

“You’re suffocating me!” she gasped.

“You wouldn’t be anything without me!” shrieked Pride. “Do you realise that I’ve been with you every step of the way, ever since you left the City of Bureaucracy? And I got you here. Me and me alone!”

“That’s not true,” cried Sia. With a tremendous effort, she freed her arms and started to punch the Demon, calling out names with every blow.

“I had the peg. The Director. Crazy Wendy. Macleod Bradley. The saxophone player. Even my Belly Button. ”

The Demon of Pride cried out in pain. And, with every fresh name, Sia realised he was shrinking in size.

“They all helped me when I didn’t know where to go, or what to do,” yelled Sia. “And neither did you!”

Pride wailed a last great mournful wail. And, as Sia watched, he shrank away to a tiny, flailing dot, which hid itself under the bed.

Panting from her exertions, Sia rolled herself up to a sitting position. I did it, she thought exultantly. I’m free.

“Not so fast,” hissed a low voice. Sia looked up to see the great hulk of the Demon of Solitude blocking the doorway.

“That’s right. You’ve still got me,” said Solitude. “And we may be Twin Demons, but we’re fraternal, not identical. You can’t just beat some new-found understanding into me and make me shrink away.”

The Demon took a step forward. Independence groaned.

“Enough!” she croaked, tiredly. “I need to get out of here for a while.”

Solitude’s eyes widened in horror.

“You can’t leave!” she gasped. “There are people out there. You won’t know who to trust!”

“I don’t care,” cried Sia.

And, pulling herself to her feet, she dodged past the Demon’s grasp, half-fell down the stairs and stumbled out of her beloved House of Glass, out into the village beyond.

Tomorrow – The Final Chapter – “The Garden …”

The Green Earth Appeal

Via Twitter, here at Didsbury Life we’ve hooked up with The Green Earth Appeal. We were initially interested by a few of their tweets which got us thinking, and so we started following them, watching what they were up to and what they were about. We’re very conscious that it’s almost fashionable to have a “cause” to support, but people who know us well, will know that if we do put our support behind something, it’s because we’ve spent the time looking into it and realised that it’s good.

Over the past year, Didsbury Life has started to take itself in a new direction that we hadn’t consciously anticipated – although I suppose subconsciously we had, otherwise things that are happening now wouldn’t be happening. We have the lovely Community Garden at Thyme Out Deli – a project which started from a seed of an idea (no pun intended) and is now really beginning to grow. In fact, we’ve just donated our first batch of fruits to Silver Apples, Rhubarb and Folk Cafe Bar and these have featured on daily specials. This is all very experimental at this stage – we’ve still to have our first slug attack, but it’s a start, and collectively, we have very big plans for next year. We’re also trying to use social media a lot more to promote what we do, and especially WestFest – although we’re still going to have posters and flyers, we’re trying to encourage word of mouth and re-tweeting and reciprocal linking on websites. All better for the environment. We’ve also put thought into our printing, going for Marc The Printers in the Northern Quarter – “printing needn’t cost the earth” is their strapline…

Plant a Tree for 99p

So, back to Green Earth Appeal. It’s simple – restaurants add 99p to the table’s bill (yes, that’s the table, not the individual) and Green Earth, in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme, will plant a tree for every 99p collected. It’s completely voluntary – customers can simply decline the 99p levy and it doesn’t cost the restaurant anything to administer.

We’ve spoken to a number of restaurants & cafe bars in West Didsbury who are keen to implement this scheme – and we’re hopeful we can launch it for Westfest2010. OK, there may be people who don’t want to pay the 99p. They may contribute in other ways and that’s fine. But if you think about it – you could be responsible for a tree being planted in Haiti, which could provide a sustainable source of food, or whose root systems draw water to the surface and regenerate the soil. Not bad for less than the price of a loaf of bread.

Small steps is all it takes – and that’s what we’re doing here at Didsbury Life…

Small Green Steps

Pinchjo's Tapas Bar & Restaurant, West Didsbury

Readers of this blog, visitors to Didsbury Life and our Twitter followers will know that we are more than lucky here in Didsbury and West Didsbury in terms of eateries. We’re also really lucky that we’re surrounded by businesses who adopt innovative approaches and are looking for ways to vary what they have on offer.

Pinchjo’s, on Burton Road, is one such place. Joe has transformed what used to be the much loved Ramblas, into a real Mediterranean haunt. Full of rich colours and aromatic smells, Pinchjo’s really is a taste of Spain. Rustic and earthy, but with that eclectic west Didsbury twist. Joe is also introducing, slowly but surely, the concept of the Spanish pinchos to South Manchester – tasty, bite-sized snacks on sticks (or, pinchos). The perfect accompaniment to a Cruz Campo, a glass of Prosecco or a crisp dry white, supplied by another West Didsbury independent, Reserve Wines. (See, that thing we like of businesses working together…)

Pinchjo's Tapas Bar & Restaurant, West Didsbury

The latest happening at Pinchjos is Monday Night Music. On the first Monday of every month, you’re invited to come along and sway to the beats. Monday 2 August saw the first event with Zoe Chiotis and Julie Bruce. The vibe at this end of Burton Road was great – Love2Eat Deli was full with Monday Night Supper Clubbers and then there was a natural gravitation to Pinchjo’s, as the music started. A great way to start the week, but then we do like Mondays at Didsbury Life.

Pinchjo's Tapas Bar & Restaurant, West Didsbury

Pinchjo's Tapas Bar & Restaurant, West Didsbury

Pinchjo's Tapas Bar & Restaurant, West Didsbury

And lovely to end the evening with a shared birthday drink with Gareth from Frog Furniture…

To be able to eat out for two for £14.00 is quite amazing. Especially considering that the portions are quite literally massive. Tonight was Spicy Vegetable Curry and Chilli Con Carne – both dishes usually given a wide berth by us because they can be incredibly bland if not cooked with love and care. No worries then, tonight…

Monday Night Supper Club at Love2Eat Deli

The Supper Club really is a genius idea – freshly cooked cook, very generous portions, a slice of cake and a glass of wine. It’s not about going out for the night – it’s about easing into the week in a really nice way.

If you haven’t discovered the Supper Club yet, or if you’ve heard about it bit just haven’t been there yet, do – and soon. Another local, independent business doing something a bit different…

We’re not talking Campbell’s tinned meatballs – although we’re sure Andy Warhol could have done something with these…

Campbell's Meat balls

We’re talking Love2Eat Meatballs – and Sicilian meatballs at that. Served in a rustic lidded bowl with the freshest green salad and spaghetti, these are meatballs that even the Corleones wouldn’t have had a complaint with! Served in a piquant tomato sauce with fresh basil, these little balls are what make a Monday worthwhile…

Love2EatDeli Sicilian Meatballs

They’re all part of the Monday Night Supper Club – have we mentioned this before? Main course + glass of wine [wine from Reserve = good] + cake [Dandelion & Burdock cake anyone?] = £7 per person. How good is that?

Only complaint tonight. Eton Mess was temptingly advertised on the chalkboard as part of the Supper Club Deal. In my books you can’t beat a bit of meringue so I was looking forward to to this post meatballs. However, as I was licking the last of the last of the meatballs off my lips, I heard those awful words, as another customer pondered dessert -

“We’ve only one portion of Eton Mess left…”

Suffice to say, a friend of mine, who has a penchant for FitFlops, Prosecco & cricket [yes, unfathomable], will take great delight in the Eton Mess being whipped away from me!

Eton Mess

Love2EatDeli – Monday Night Supper Club – £7.00 per person – call 0161 434 7077 to make a booking. Hands off the meatballs though…

A few emails & tweets were exchanged and then we were away! This afternoon, we’ve visited all bars and restaurants, putting to them the idea of turning off their lights next Saturday for an hour, to show collective support for Earth Hour 2010. We were prepared for a really hard time – after all, it does seems a bit nuts to be going into bars and restaurants and asking them to turn off their lights. We were prepared for the Health & Safety arguments against doing it, prepared for people saying they didn’t want to turn their lights off in case they were perceived as closed on potentially the busiest night of the week, prepared for people just not getting it and prepared for people just wanting to get rid of these two mad women. What we weren’t prepared for was the resounding “Yes” from everyone, and the ease with which the sign up was done!

West Didsbury Does Earth Hour 2010

Everyone got it. And so they should. Climate change, global warming, melting ice caps affect us all – even if we’re not aware of it yet. Leading research shows that it is still possible to avoid the worst impacts of climate change by measures such as rapid development of clean energy production [which would address some 65% of global emissions] and stopping tropical deforestation [addressing around 20% of emissions]. If all of this sounds a bit global and far removed form us, just think about recent weather patterns…

So, back to West Didsbury. Emin at Azzurro took no persuading. He knows the right thing to do! Jenny from Green Tea and Seema from Cachumba were also straight onto it – although I think the after effects of the chillies they’d been chopping in Cachumba cut short our conversation – the fumes were strong! There’s going to be some good food going on there tonight!

Catherine at SousChef said yes immediately, as did Justin at Folk Cafe Bar – we wait with baited breath, and excited anticipation to see what Folk will do on the night! The lovely Oli at Rhubarb Restaurant got the idea immediately – as well as being delighted about the proposed SpringWestFest [more of which in a later blog]. Although Mark at Burton Road Bakery won’t be open, he said he’d be delighted to support by having one of our specially designed posters in his window.

Reza at Thyme Restaurant pledged immediate support, as did our lovely friend Sarah at Silver Apples – always good to speak to a girl who knows the value of candle light! We’re thinking Silver Apples will be a contender for an Earth Hour prize…

Gurkha Grill said a definite “yes” straight away – and also confirmed their delight that we’d be having a SpringWestFest. Joe at Pinchjo’s and Penny from Love2Eat were push-overs, in the nicest possible sense – again, business owners who have a conscience and a heart. I was really glad that Alex, owner of Frankie’s Fish Bar, said “yes” – he just missed out on being involved in XmasWestFest because the opening of the Fish Bar was slightly delayed – so great that he’s on board with this one. Kate from Reserve Wine Shop was another easy one to convince – again in the nicest way possible – and I’m suspecting another contender for an Earth Hour Prize for innovative lighting on the night!

Namaste Nepal and Great Kathmandu were really enthusiastic about the event and gave total support, as did Phillip and his staff from Bistro 156. Despite an adventure in The Manchester Eye Hospital and an eye which still wasn’t fixed, Phillip totally engaged & loved the idea of both Earth Hour and SpringWestFest.  As an aside, both myself and Sian agreed that the crab dish on the menu looked slightly gorgeous! Rob from The Drawing Room, bought into the idea, as he has done with other events to promote the area. The boys at One Lounge Bar just got into the groove really quickly. We visited The Railway and we think they’re on board – but time will tell.

Miguel from Piccolino was a joy to talk to. He tested the lights there & then, looked at where he could put up one of our Earth Hour posters – and get this, he suggested the illuminated menu display boxes outside. Lets just hope they’re not illuminated between 8.30pm – 9.30pm next Saturday!

Then it was to The Metropolitan - would they, wouldn’t they? Well – it’s still to be worked out, but Mel thinks there’ll be things that The Met can do…

We also managed to “persuade” Gareth from the totally gorgeous Frog Furniture to open late and be a part of the event – although I think the opportunity to do put on a bit of a twinkling show was something he couldn’t pass up on. So – another possible contender for an Earth Hour prize…

So, all in all, a fabulously successful afternoon. Lovely to be out and about with Sian – two very determined women who will get things done! Lovely to plant seeds of SpringWestFest. And, lovely to know that Didsbury Life is moving in a very different, exciting direction – but, more of that in a subsequent blog…

However, something has happened in West Didsbury recently that has totally turned Didsbury Life onto the idea of Mondays. Love2Eat has introduced the simple, yet ingenious, Monday Night Supper Club. Why, oh why, hasn’t it been done before? For just £7 per person, you can enjoy a main course [such as Spanish Chicken Pot, Veggie Shepherd's Pie, Beef & Ale Stew etc] a slice [or is it a wedge?] of homemade cake [Bounty Cake - now there's something you don't get everywhere!] and a rather large glass of wine. If you’re feeling particularly gung-ho on a Monday evening, you can always pop across to the Co-op and get a nice bottle of vino as Love2Eat also do BYO. Doesn’t really get much better!

So, Mondays have now become the new Friday in the world of Didsbury Life. Just don’t tell too many people, as we still want a table on a Monday…

Love2Eat

"Dream" photographed by Mark Nelson

My knowledge of the Internet, and all its possibilities, is fairly limited. I’m not particularly interested in HOW something works. I’ll leave that to the lovely technical people we have around us at Didsbury Life. What I am interested in are the possibilities that are now afforded to us in terms of making connections with real, like-minded people.

I got into Twitter fairly late, dismissing it as something that the kids at the school I work in, were into. Last night’s experience at Didsbury Life – and I have to admit, my fondness for Twitter has been growing – showed just how powerful this particular piece of social media actually is.

Some of you might know that we discovered Mark Nelson through Twitter. It’s becoming a little fuzzy now as to how we first chanced upon him, but I think it might have been via either ghostfinder or uncouthamerican. A few tweets were exchanged, and this developed into email exchange, leading to a meeting. Mark passed all of the Didsbury Life tests – great taste in music, films, books, sense of humour, very similar past experiences. Almost like a friend just waiting to happen.

Fast forward a week or so, and Mark was taking photographs at Pinchjo’s Tapas Bar for the website we’re designing, as well as hanging a selection of his photographs in our office for his first exhibition – which happened last night.

We’ve been offering up our wall space for some time now, to emerging artists – anyone interested in a bit of an exhibition, drop a line to jennie@didsburylife.com & we’ll see what we can do. It’s great for us to have art on the walls that’s very original & it’s great for the artist to have somewhere to exhibit, free of charge – and potentially make a sale. [We don't take commission, so there's nothing to lose really...] We’re particularly pleased with Mark’s exhibition because none of it would have happened without Twitter.

In the room last night, we had people who had never encountered one another before, but we’re fairly sure some good friendships have been forged. It was great that moregeous & Mr Moregeous turned up – just hoping that garlic fest didn’t ruin Saturday too much! Also, really lovely to meet Adam [aka ghostfinder] – v. interesting novelist… Then we had Matt from 3D PTS & his wife Dee – Matt has been on Didsbury Life for a while now, but it’s only recently we’ve really got together and realised just how much we share visions & values & he seemed to be getting on very well with Mark, as well as really loving his work…Always good to catch up with Claire & Craig, as well as Jennie & Molly & Nige & Pete & Martin.

Lawrence came along with his friend Adam from Budapest – Adam may have been coming back to the UK anyway, but I prefer to think he didn’t want to miss out on the showcasing of an emerging talent! Lawrence also popped in again today with his wife, Liz – and, as an “amateur photographer” himself, totally identified with Mark’s opening night nerves! However, he did also say some VERY complimentary things about the work, especially the canal bridge image…

Canal Bridge by Mark Nelson

We also had a visit today from a client of ours, Annabelle, who couldn’t make it last night but was really interested in Mark’s work. You just never know where the first sale will come from!

All in all, a very successful night. With our friends at Folk supplying scrumptious nibbles and other people from our Didsbury Life building attending [thanks to Sarah from Shout Out Graphics & Dan from Bewildered Media], it was a great turn-out. And, despite vowing it would be an early night this time, we still ended up, in the wee small hours, with Penny & Tim…