Manchester Food and Drink Festival has confirmed a huge vegan takeover at the Festival Hub this year, with Shaun Ryder, John Robb, Bundobust and Jackie Kearney all involved.
The annual festival takes place between September 26 and October 7 this year, with a programme that sees supper clubs, special events and street food popping up right across the city.
In the new location of Cathedral Gardens - forced to relocate from Albert Square because of the town hall renovations - the Festival Hub will be given over to a celebration of all things plant-based on Sunday, September 29.
Here there will be vegan cooking demonstrations, a vegan Indian banquet, and a street food village full of traders serving plant-based dishes and drinks.
The huge igloo-shaped Dining Dome will be back in the new location, and will be the setting for a banquet hosted by Bundobust, Shaun Ryder and John Robb.
Broadcaster, musician and journalist Robb has been vegan for a decade, while the former Happy Mondays frontman Ryder is a pescatarian - they will have a lively discussion talking about their love of plant-based food, the city of Manchester, and Shaun's struggles to become a full-time vegan.
All that will be accompanied by an Indian street food experience from Manchester favourites Bundobust, paired with vegan beers from the new Bundobust Brewing Co and with a thoroughly Mancunian playlist.
Earlier in the day between 12pm and 4pm, the Dining Dome will be taken over by a vegan kitchen, with some of Manchester's most innovative vegan chefs showcasing their cooking.
Jackie Kearney, Masterchef finalist and author of award-winning cook book Vegan Street Food, will cook some of her favourite dishes from her new book Vegan Christmas Feasts.
Matt Nutter, formerly head chef at the award-wining Allotment vegan fine dining restaurant that relocated from Stockport to the city centre last year, and now development chef at Foodwell, will demonstrate dishes such as his miso-baked pineapple tarte tatin.
The street food village traders will be showing off their plant-based skills too.
Dim Sum Su will deliver vegan dumplings, while The Ottomen will serve Middle Eastern and Mediterranean food and Tibetan Kitchen dish up vegan Himalayan dishes.
Tampopo will be offering vegan Thai food, and Ginger's Comfort Emporium will have an array of vegan ice creams to try.
Camden Town Brewery, JJ Whitley and the Festival Hub wine bar will also be serving up vegan-friendly beers, wines and gin and tonics on the day.
The Vegan Takeover will take place on Sunday, September 29 at Cathedral Gardens.
Tickets for A Plant-Based Evening with John Robb, Shaun Ryder and Bundobust, which will start at 6pm, are £35 and available here: manchesterfoodanddrinkfestival.nutickets.com/VeganEve2019
