Pesto Italian Restaurants Manchester Harry Potter event goes down a treat!

The Pesto Italian Restaurants Manchester Harry Potter event went down a treat this weekend, as kids from across the North West lined up to have their faces painted and sample our Butterbeer!

We've added a selection of photographs from the event on this blog, but many more photographs can be found at http://pestorestaurants.co.uk/gallery or on our Facebook page at http://facebook.com/pestorestaurants

Interview: Javier Mellado Pesto Liverpool One

Liverpool One is the UK's largest open air shopping centre, and the tenth largest overall; right at the heart of Liverpool One is Pesto Italian Restaurant, managed by the tall, dark and handsome Javier Mellado. We caught up with Javier to ask him what it's like working at the hub of the UK's biggest and brightest cities.

How long have you been a part of the Pesto team?

I started in October 2010

What is the best thing about working for Pesto Liverpool One?

To be able to contribute on the development  of the business and feel part of the everyday decisions.

What is your favorite Pesto dish and drink?

Cartoccio Merluzzo, Bruschetta Salsiccia and the Moretti beer.

Which three celebrities (dead and alive) would you invite to dinner at Pesto?

Rafael Nadal, Fernando Alonso and Cameron Diaz.

What inspired you to become a manager?

I love the challenge with people, the adrenaline of a busy time and dealing with suppliers.

After a meal at Pesto L1, what's the best thing to do in Liverpool?

Around Pesto you have all types of shops, the Odeon cinemas, the Echo Arena, Albert dock, Mathew Street to visit the Cavern, Victoria Sreet full off night bars, very close to the theaters and why not maybe a football match in Anfield or Goodison park?

What was the last show you went to and how was it? 

My last show was a the Peter Pan Christmas panto at Liverpool Empire with my children. It was very funny.

What does the next year at Pesto L1 hold for you?

Hopefully a lot of people through the door and a exciting campaign that'll put Pesto in Liverpool's top ten eateries.

Two New Additions to the Pesto Italian Restaurant Team!

Spiedini and Gamberoni

There were two new additions to the Pesto Manchester Deansgate restaurant team yesterday, as two beautiful little birds decided to set up camp underneath one of our outside tables.

The birds, appropriately dubbed Spiedini and Gamberoni were nestled underneath a side table on the Deansgate restaurant terrace. 

Restaurant manager Vicki coaxed the birds into a box filled with treats to keep the tiny creatures safe until they are collected by the RSPCA Manchester later this afternoon. 

Can anyone identify from the picture what kind of birds they are? If so, tweet us your answers on Twitter @Pestorestaurant or leave us a comment on Facebook www.facebook.com/pestorestaurants

Check out our Wednesday blog for the latest human addition to the Pesto Italian Restaurant Team! 

Harry Potter: The End of and Era

Following a decade of Pigwidgeon, Quidditch and general wizardry, the Harry Potter film series is coming to an end.

Thousands of Harry Potter enthusiasts from across the globe braved the typically wet British weather and camped out in Trafalgar Square for several days in anticipation of Thursday's world premier of the final instalment in the franchise. 

Rupert Grint, who plays Ron Weasley in the multi-billion pound series arrived first on the red carpet, and described the experience as “emotional” and as his favourite moment from his time in the films.

The final film, 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two' makes its UK cinema debut on July 15th, and at Pesto you can turn your cinema trip into an entire day of spells and sorcery with Butterbeer and face-painting!

To mark the occasion we've created our very own Butterbeer drink consisting of butterscotch syrup, cream soda and hair of Hippogriff* topped with cream and for our adult diners we have a special alcoholic version with butterscotch Schnapps, Havana rum and essence of Boggart** for just £5.

We'll also be offering free Harry Potter themed face-painting for kids and adults with every Butterbeer purchase - and one free kids Butterbeer when you show us your Harry Potter cinema stub!

Times and locations of the events are underneath the official (and stunning!) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows trailer vid from Warner. 

Photographs and video footage of the event will be posted to Facebook so you don't even have to worry about packing your camera! If you're not already a Pesto fan, click here to like or if you're more partial to the odd tweet, click here to follow us on Twitter.

So gather up muggles and squibs, grab some galleon from the gringotts and treat the whole family to a magic day out!

 Friday 15th July 

Pesto Deansgate

Face-painting from 3pm - 5pm

Butterbeer served all week!

Saturday 16th July

Pesto Trafford Centre

Face-painting from 3pm - 5pm

Butterbeer served all week!

* we made this up
** and this

Pesto's Picks for July

The people of Manchester and indeed of the North West are really spoiled for the month of July thanks to the plethora of fantastic events hosted as part of the Manchester International Festival.

Running from the 30th June (previews) through to the 17th July, the festival promises '18 days of extraordinary premiers', and here at Pesto's Picks, we've highlighted the best of what's on offer.

Icelandic Queen of all things bizarre Bjork opened the festival last night with the audio-visual spectacular 'Biophilia', ahead of her next album release, also entitled 'Biophilia'. The response to the show following its debut has been outstanding (see video for audience reaction) and is certainly not one to be missed. 

Bjork will perform a further eight shows as part of the festival at Campfield Market Hall, situated only five minutes walk away from Pesto Deansgate – ideal for a food and drinks before or after this truly unique event.

Next up we have Punchdrunk: The Crash of the Elysium, a Doctor Who special running from the 1st July to the 17th. The show, specially created for children aged six to twleve, is a live Doctor Who adventure centred around audience participation, whereby the audience become the stars in this near-sellout extravaganza. All adults must be accompanied by a child, but don't worry, the kids don't get to keep all the fun to themselves – special adult-only shows run most evenings from 8pm.



The show is held at MediaCityUK at Salford Keys and for those looking to make a whole day of the show, the venue is just a short drive from Pesto Trafford Centre or Pesto Deansgate. We have a tasty kids menu and menu options that will tantalise the fussiest of palates without breaking the bank. For the big kids participating in the later shows, our bar is open until 11pm offering a delicious and diverse range of beers, wines and cocktails.

Lastly, we look over the way to Liverpool! On the 2nd and 30th of July the one and only, ahem, Brit Floyd will get their strats out for “the Ultimate Pink Floyd Tribute Show”. Now, although most tribute shows have a (massive) element of naffness to them, this one actually seems pretty good. The chances of a Pink Floyd reforming and embarking on a world tour is about as unlikely as Kerry Katona scooping her second Mum of the Year award, so this really is as good as it gets, and if you check out the vid we've posted you'll see that it really is pretty darn great!



The Liverpool Echo arena is just a two minute walk from Pesto Liverpool One – with Peroni on tap it's the perfect spot to get a little comfortably numb before the show.

Interview: Adriana Scholes

The Trafford Centre is one of the UK's biggest and best shopping complexes, with almost three-hundred stores over three floors spanning just shy of two-million square feet. At it's centre is the Great Food Hall, Europe's largest food hall, attracting almost thirty-thousand hungry shoppers each week. At the very heart of the food hall is Manchester's second Pesto site, managed by Il Divo fan Andriana Scholes. We caught up with Andriana for a quick chat about what life is like at Pesto Trafford Centre.

How long have you been part of the Pesto team?

I took over managing the restaurant in February 2010 and haven't looked back

What is the best thing about working for Pesto?

Because Pesto is relatively small as far as companies go, I am privileged to be able to work with the Directors on a one to one basis, inputting ideas and feeling part of a larger family which is what Pesto is.

What is your favorite Pesto dish and drink?

Red wine is my guilty pleasure and I am very fond of our Valpolicella Classico DOC Villa Domiziano which is an excellent one, I also love the Linguine Al Cartoccio con Gamberoni which I thoroughly endorse and recommend.

What's the funniest thing to have happened to you in the restaurant?

On one occasion during a busy shift I was helping out in the kitchen preparing trays of food for customers, I happened to notice a client walking into the kitchen talking on his mobile. He was very embarrassed as he thought the kitchen door was entry to the rest room. I offered him back to his seat, and cheekily remember him asking me if I would like a drink! Left a nice tip though.

Which three celebrities (dead and alive) would you invite to dinner at Pesto?

I think if I could choose any three celebrities to dine at our restaurant it would be the Britain's got talent judges, I would love them to critique the service the food etcetera, although we can't sing or dance we can certainly outperform our competitors and having the Hoff for dinner would be so great!

What inspired you to become a manager?

I have been a restaurant Manager for over 10 years now and love my job. It's a people thing as no two days are the same and you never know what the day will bring. The Industry is spontaneous and that's what attracts me to running restaurants as well as the reward for delivering outstanding service and quality, the staff and all the people I meet are wonderful, it's what gets me up in the morning.

After a meal at Pesto, what's the best thing to do in Manchester?

Personally I think Manchester has a lot to offer with regards to dinning out, obviously many tastes are catered for but I believe Pesto TC has a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere to dine in, the food is superb and also good value which in today's climate goes a long way.

What was the last show you went to and how was it?

The last show I attended was with my husband at MEN Arena Manchester, Il Divo was playing and I thoroughly enjoyed my time there.

What does the next year at Pesto hold for you?

The future is bright; Pesto is expanding into Glasgow and has a beautiful new site with three floors and over 300 covers to service. It will be the flagship for Pesto and I for one am looking forward to visit Glasgow and dinning at the restaurant. We have seen growth even in these times of austerity and I believe we can build on this strength and make the next year just as exciting. All credit should go to my wonderful team for pulling out all the stops to make TC what it is today, and I thank them all for their hard work and diligence, here's to them and too 2012.

New to the Pesto site? Meet Francis from our soon-to-open Glasgowrestaurant here.

 

Giggling with Glee!

The Pesto Deansgate team were treated to an unexpected celebrity visit this week when Heather Morris of Glee fame stopped by for dinner and drinks with fellow cast and crew team from Glee live! 

The Glee stars enjoyed our light and refreshing Peroni by the pint and a selection of cocktails, including Cosmopolitans and Frangelics and our brand new Bloody Mary's. Our gorgeous barmen Marcus and and Stuart were also very popular!

Pesto manager Anthony and assistant Vicky were lucky enough to have themselves papped with our celeb diners and after a few hours at the restaurant the Glee team lured Anthony away to act as a tour guide for the remainder of the evening. We shan't be posting those pictures!

The two night run of Glee live at the MEN ends this evening and Pesto is only a short walk away from the venue; pop in later and you lovely Gleeks might be fortunate enough to spot a celeb at Pesto!

For full menu information, directions, contact info and much, much more please visit www.pestorestaurants.co.uk

Festa del Papa!

This Sunday in the UK and Ireland, the US and a host of other countries across the globe, families will be celebrating Father's Day, or as they say in Italy, Festa del Papa.

According to the history books, Father's Day is a relatively modern celebration, established in 1908 by Grace Golden Clayton to celebrate the lives of the two-hundred and ten fathers who died in the Monogah Mining disaster in December 1907.

The initial celebration of Father's Day was short-lived, and 1909's Father's Day passed by uncelebrated. It wasn't until Sonora Smart Dodd, daughter of American civil war veteran William Jackson Smart, called for greater recognition of fatherhood, that the third Sunday of June was established as Father's Day.

Unlike the US and UK however, Father's Day in Italy is celebrated on St Joseph's Day, March 19th., when most countries are celebrating St Patricks Day.

This isn't to suggest that the Festa del Papa is overshadowed by those pesky leprechauns. As with any Italian celebration it's executed with gusto with lots of tasty food to be devoured!

Traditionally Italian families prepare fresh breads and create a spread for the celebrated Papa, but taking the whole family out for a delicious meal is also an Italian favourite, particularly as men are so notoriously difficult to buy gifts for. As the old adage goes, the way to a mans heart is through his stomach; so should you find yourself stuck for gift ideas this Father's Day, why not treat your papa and the whole family to a meal at Pesto?

Our Festa menu is perfect for la grande famiglia (big families), while our piattini range and kids menu is perfect for smaller gatherings. Our whole menu is available to view online or download here. If you want to spoil not just your papa, but the whole family you can book a special table online or by calling the Pesto Restaurant you'd like to visit.

Liverpool's Little Italy

Liverpool’s Scotland or ‘Scottie’ Road is infamous for it’s long and tangled history, spanning back to the 1770′s.



The street, located near Liverpool docks was home to the majority of the city’s migrant communities, comprising mostly of Scottish, Irish, Welsh, German, Polish and Italian – for over a century the road has been affectionately referred to as ‘Little Italy’ on account of its burgeoning Italian community.

In almost two-and-a-quarter-centuries, the road has played home to five football teams and two hundred public houses hosted countless May Queen celebrations and survived a World War Two blitz.

The road is also known for some of its famous residents; the road was once home to a number of UK household names, including Tom Baker of Dr Who fame and Saturday night Blind Date legend Cilla Black.

In recent years Scottie’s Little Italy’s population has declined, but that’s not to suggest that Scotland Road and Liverpool’s Italian residents haven’t left their mark on the city. Many of the city’s marble, terrazzo and mosaic work was undertaken by Italian immigrants in the late 19^th and early 20^th century, and although much of the work has been lost to the redevelopment of Liverpool, there are still excellent Italian architectural efforts to be found throughout the city.

Why not take a trip down Scotland Road and absorb the diverse local history on the way to one of Liverpool’s best Italian restaurants on Paradise Street.


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Pesto's Picks for June

With restaurants based in both the heart of Manchester and Liverpool (and soon to be Glasgow), Pesto diners are spoiled for choice when it comes to theatres, music venues, cinemas and great shopping. But with all this choice, where to start? 

We've scoured the streets, the papers and the mighty interweb to bring our lovely diners a comprehensive list of the best of the North West this June. 

First up, it's Manchester's very own Take That. The boys have eight sold-out dates at the City of Manchester Stadium starting tonight and running until the 12th of June. 

If you and your mates are lucky enough to be going, why not make a night of it and book a pre-show table at Pesto Deansgate? Our Festa menu is ideal for parties of ten or more, and best of all we've an excellent selection of cocktails to whet your appetite for the Take That party!

Next is Liverpool's favourite funnyman John Bishop, who'll be bringing his unique sardonic wit to the Echo Arena for a two-night stint on the 5th and 6th June. The Echo Arena is just a ten minute walk from Pesto Liverpool One and we're open late, so ideal for pre and post-show food and drinks.
 
If you didn't make it to London for the Royal wedding the TV highlights just didn't cut it, we recommend 'One Night at the Proms', a stunning audio-visual celebration of the Royal marriage from the National Symphony Orchestra and selected singers at the Lowry Theatre on Sunday June 12th. British favourites Rule Britannia, Jerusalem and The Dambusters March are just a few of the musical numbers to feature in the extravaganza. The Lowry Theatre is just a short drive from Pesto Trafford Centre, so why not treat yourself to a glamorous new outfit, followed by delicious Italian piatinni at Pesto and a night at the theatre?
 

Lastly it's there 'Here and Now' tour; a plethora of 80's pop legends bringing two evenings of cheese-laden chart anthems to Manchester's MEN (26th) and Liverpool's Echo Arena (25th). Without the aid of a Delorean, you'd be hard-pushed to see the likes of Rick Astley, Boy George, Bucks Fizz and Bananarama sharing a stage – this really is a one-off nostalgia-fest not to be missed! Both venues are within easy walking distance of Pesto Deansgate and Liverpool One.

If you're planning to attend any of these events and would like to book a table for your pre or post-show party, head to www.pestorestaurants.co.uk/bookings and make a reservation now. Easy!