Cocktail Time!

It's already 2012 in Christmas Island, New Zealand and Fiji, but here in the UK our celebrations won't be getting under way for a few more hours - leaving just enough time to grab ingredients for making your own Pesto cocktails to see in the New Year with!

Our first masterclass, as effortlessly demonstrated by our very own Deansgate cocktail king Marcus, will take you through how to create the Maple Leaf.

The Maple Leaf is the creation of Marcus and Christian of Pesto Italian Restaurants Deansgate. The special recipe was laboriously tested by Marcus, Christian and the video team - we are pleased to confirm this delicious treat is easy to make and suitably potent for any New Year's celebrations!

So, without further ado, we introduce Pesto Italian Restaurant's the Maple Leaf.



Ingredients

Maple Syrup
Monin Syrup (liquid sugar)
Mount Gay Rum
Basil
Lots of ice!

Equipment

Cocktail shaker
Cocktail glasses
Straws (optional)
Strainer

Method

Chill your cocktail glass with ice and soda
Add a shot of maple syrup
Add a generous shot of Mount Gay rum
Monin syrup
A smack of basil
Shake it all up with the ice
Strain and pour
Enjoy!

Bonkers Bank Holiday!

Ordinarily bank holidays are an opportunity to kick back and relax, chillax, if you will. However, this August bank holiday is set to be anything but laid back, with Manchester Pride taking over the city and Jenson Button bringing his F1 car down the city's gorgeous Deansgate.

Pop heavyweights Alexandra Burke and Pixie Lott are just a couple of the many artists performing at this years Pride Festival.

Local talent, including Corrie's Bruno Langley and Hollyoak's Abi Phillps will also be performing at the Big Weekend in Sackville Gardens, while authors, including bestseller Louise Rought will be delivering talks in Deansgate's Waterstone's book store.

The Parade starts on Deansgate at 1pm on Saturday through St Ann's Street, Cross Street, Albert Square, Princess Street and finishing on Whitworth Street – why not get yourself down to Pesto Deansgate for noon and kick off the day with some of our delicious cocktails? Noon isn't too early for cocktails, surely...? 

Our personal highlight of the Pride weekend is the Pink Dog Show (yes you read that correctly) Manchester & Cheshire Dogs’ Home has teamed up with Barking Barbers for this camp canine carnival – not one to be missed!

As all the Pride excitement draws to a close, Formula One champion Jenson Button will be setting pulses racing as he brings his F1 car for a spin down Deansgate on Monday afternoon! If you're making your way into town to catch a glimpse of Jenson, why not take the best seat in the house on Pesto Deansgate's leafy terrace?

If you'd like to share your bank holiday weekend photographs with Pesto, why not head over to our Facebook page and pop them on there? If Twitter is more your bag, you can follow us at http://twitter.com/pestorestaurant

http://manchesterpride.com/
http://jensonbutton.com/
http://formula1.com
http://alexandra-burke.us
http://pixielott.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruno_Langley
http://abiphillips.com
http://manchesterpride.com/whatson/bigweekend/sackvillegardens
http://louiserought.com
http://pinkdogshow.co.uk/
http://dogshome.net
http://barkingbarbers.co.uk
http://www.pestorestaurants.co.uk/location/deansgate/