New Boutique Hotel For MCR, New Burger Bar Too, Sleuth's Dish Of The Week

SleuthSleuth is a sideways glance at the city every week, it's the truth, but Sleuth's truth. He's several people all at once. We give £25 for every story/rumour and piece of absurdity you find for us to publish. Sleuth sometimes even gets serious. We ask for the money back if any legal action follows. Follow Sleuth on twitter @mcrsleuth

New Boutique Hotel For Manchester City Centre

One of Manchester’s most handsome office buildings from the nineteenth century could be revamped, relaunched, beautified and boutiqued. Sleuth is pleased that 8-10 Booth Street (pictured above), in the heart of the traditional commercial centre of Manchester, might become - subject to planning permission - a 40 bedroom hotel 'with ancillary bar, restaurant and conference facilities'. If planning is granted then the conversion will take just over a year. 

The building was the Manchester and Salford Trustees Savings Bank and was finished in 1874 by president of The Manchester Society of Architects Edward Salomons who also designed The Reform Club round the corner, now the host of Room Restaurant and Agent Provocateur.  

It's a beautiful building with lovely carved heads over elaborately moulded window surrounds. Better again is the fact that Eclectic Hotels are behind the scheme, sensitive restorers of the old buildings that house the Great John Street Hotel, 11 Didsbury Park and the Didsbury House Hotel.

Whether or not there'll be a jacuzzi on the roof as there is on the Great John Street Hotel has yet to be resolved. But it's probably not a good idea. Gordo lives on the top floor of the neighbouring building and likes to sunbathe naked. Sleuth wonders if Eclectic Hotels have factored this into their conversion equation. 

Burger Rumours Or Even Bumours Or Even Burgours

The word on the street is that Five Guys, the American burger chain that has now arrived on these shores in London and Reading (it's well-know that Reading people prefer burgers to reading), has found a site in Manchester and will be fitting out this year. Sleuth's chasing the story down, but the menu is very cut-back with descriptions as florid as Hamburger, Cheeseburger, even Kosher-Style Hotdog - why 'Kosher-Style', is it or isn't it? Obviously these five guys are like Beegees in Saturday Night Fever, women's men with no time for talk. You can tell it by the way they use their walk.

Kosher-style?

Sleuth's Best Meal Of The Week

This was at the charming Hate Awareness Week event at Manchester Cathedral. Under the banner 'Food Brings Communities Together', a range of kosher, halal, Nigerian, Ghanaian, Polish, British, Caribbean and Geordie - yes Geordie - food was prepared or pre-prepared. The winner for Sleuth was the Nigerian food, a big gorgeous stew, incorporating beef, tripe, mackerel and crayfish paste. It was an unlikely collation but robust, invigorating and very filling. All the food though was lovely, as was the event to promote third-party reporting of Hate Crimes. Carisma, an organisation which helps troubled youth by giving them positive alternatives, prepared the Nigerian fare. Pictured in costume is Erinma Bell, and her friend Mercy. Bell is a talented lady and also a Deputy Lieutenant of Greater Manchester. 

Lovely food being described

Sleuth's Idea Of The Week

Sleuth's tired of bumping into scruffy people on Fridays. At lunch Sleuth sees them slouching out of offices like binmen coming off shift. Apparently these ragmuffins are doing something called 'Dress Down Fridays'. Well Sleuth doesn't approve. He wants to change things to Dress Up Fridays. He's stamped his foot and shaken his fist. So on the third Friday in February Manchester Confidential staff are coming to the office, men and women, as if they're going to a very posh dinner in the evening. Sleuth always leads by example. The picture below is of Sleuth last Friday, without his mac, hat and camera. Sleuth would like other offices to do the same. 

Sleuth Without His Hat But With His Spats

More Food For The Avenue

People with nosh are replacing the people with togs on The Avenue. Sleuth's spy from Heald Green has spotted that Chaophraya are moving into one of the clothes shops next to All Saints. "Ah", said Sleuth, with his razor-like wit, "so a change from ties to Thai." Most people in the office are still laughing. One member of staff threw themselves out of the window laughing so much.

Sleuth's Manchester Quote Of The Week

Sleuth's been looking up Manchester quotes. He loved this one from Memoirs of The Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, 1785. The writer of the passage is unknown.

‘Men, however great their learning often become indolent and unambitious to improve in knowledge for want of associating with others of similar talents and acquirements. But science, like fire, is put in motion by collision. Where a number of such men have frequent opportunities of meeting and conversing together, thought begets thought, and every hint is turned to advantage. A spirit of enquiry glows in every breast.’

Sleuth's Manchester Quote Of The Week Part Two

'People think it always rains in Manchester. Not true, though I admit it's the only town in the country with lifeboat drill on the bus routes.' Les Dawson.

Veiled Womon Hanging Around On A Wall

Every seven days or so Sleuth is stopped in the street and asked by policemen, concierges, Edward Solomon, naked Gordo, Great Johns, Erinma Bell, Five Guys, scruffy Friday people and Les Dawson, this question: "Where can we find a sculpted head of a woman wearing a veil?"

"Why," says Sleuth, "that would be on the side of Massey Chambers on 6 Booth Street also by Edward Salomons next to the proposed boutique hotel in the top story above. Nobody knows why she's there - possibly the company that occupied the building dealt in life insurance and the woman is mourning."

And to prove this he showed all the policemen, concierges, Edward Solomon, naked Gordo, Great Johns, Erinma Bell, Five Guys, scruffy Friday people and Les Dawson, this picture.

Veiled Lady