Eggs Benedict but not as you know it…

With their stunningly beautiful desserts enticing you in off the street to the elegant decor throughout, Fress is an Instagrammer’s dream. Having heard great things of the food here and even enjoyed their Cronuts on a couple of occasions expectations were high.

Luckily we managed to get a table after a short wait and although it was busy the staff were lovely. They brought a water bowl and treat over to Hugo and he happily curled up on the lovely green comfy bench.

On the brunch menu they have eggs benedict with beef brisket!! It was so perfect and was the reason why we waited 15 min for a table. (Unheard of when hungry)

Although other people’s food was enviable the soft brisket and perfectly poached eggs made me wonder why beef brisket isn’t a staple eggs benedict choice everywhere.

The tables here are in high demand, so if you don’t want to wait or miss out you can book a table after 3pm on the weekends and in the week.

Fress even have their own dog mascot Stanley the Manchester Terrier, unfortunately we didn’t get to meet him this time. 🐶

Cane & Grain… Working our way through the ‘dog friendly’ 50% off January

What a choice! I still can’t believe we ate all we did for only £16. One half of beef short ribs, one half of baby back ribs, chicken wings plus a side of regular fries and a side of pit fries (which were amazing by the way). Apologies for the terrible photo hunger well and truly took over by this point! Go take a look a their Instagram for better more mouthwatering pictures.

Again the Northern Quarter gave us another great dog friendly restaurant where the no one batted an eyelid about Hugo being there, well apart from the usual gasps about his cuteness of course. He even managed to use his puppy looks to get some bacon from the couple sat next to us clearly making his life.

To take advantage of the last few days of the Jan 50% off discount all you have to do is use the online form to book your table.

Grindsmith Media City… Working our way through the ‘dog friendly’ 50% off January List

Another gloomy Saturday afternoon calls for one thing… look at the list, find a place to shelter and eat brunch. Albeit it was after lunchtime but on the weekend who says you can’t eat eggs benedict at 3pm. Plus they serve until 4pm so there is no judgement here.

 

 

Grindsmith in Media City might already be one of our favourite dog friendly places to stop for tea and cake but we had yet to try their main menu. It’s safe to say we were super excited to take advantage of their Jan 50% offer, especially after stalking their Instagram last night! 😍

The staff as always were lovely and Hugo was more than happy with today’s choice as this choice involved lashings of ham hock that he wilfully taste tested for us.

 

 

 

 

We both opted for the Eggs Benedict Ham Hock as food envy is something we couldn’t risk. I think we can both say we made the right decision! Hugo definitely thought so too.

 

 

This is is yet another great dog friendly place where you will be made so feel welcome with your pooch. This location on Media City is perfect, the atmosphere is relaxed, the food and coffee is tasty and it’s even better that they have 2 more in central Manchester to try.

To qualify for the 50% Jan offer all you have to do is sign up to their mailing list and show your email… easy-peasy. No booking required, which is a bonus for us as time keeping is not our strong point.

Parking is also cheaper than Manchester and is a short distance to walk too. Win win!

Dog walk and food for thought…

Today we had a break from our 50% off January list in honour of Dave the Dachshund’s birthday walk at Dunham Massey where we met with a 30 strong Dachshund walk.

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Dunham Massey is a great walk for everyone, and during the warmer months you can spend some time watching the deer. (Dogs on leads of course) Hugo doesn’t even notice them but they are magnificent to see. Today the deer were probably being wise keeping dry and warm unlike us!

The park is very accessible you can enjoy the splendid buildings, gardens and ponds or roam further afield along the woodland trails. There is plenty of places to stop for a picnic or visit the lovely cafe and shop.

The car park has plenty of space but as this is a National Trust site it costs £6 per car, so if you can make a day of it. Obviously today it was a short walk for us, but as there is so much to see this is a place we love to come all year round.

With the added bonus of Altrincham market a short 10 minute drive away we dried our selves off and removed the wellies and made our way for food.

We have been to the market a few times with Hugo, he was becoming quite the regular before Mackie Mayor opened in Manchester City Centre. (Also dog friendly and worth a visit if Altrincham is too far)

The atmosphere in food hall is always buzzing and you’ll have to be quick to spot a place to sit. You need ninja skills here people.

There is an array of food options you’ll be spoilt for choice; our favourites are Honest Crust‘s pizzas, Tender Cow‘s steaks and Great North Pie Co‘s Pies, oh and not forgetting hot chocolate from Sam Joseph’s Chocolates .

Another thing to note; if you are ordering from different places your food most probably won’t arrive in sync… most of the time someone will have eaten there whole meal before yours even arrives. You have been warned.

My advice is if you are there during the day you can also have take home dessert from the market stalls next door. Along with a loaf of freshly baked bread and block of cheese if you fancy.

The food is great here and worth the trip but it is ALWAYS busy, you have to share your table and your food timing maybe off. If you go with this already in mind you won’t be disappointed.

5 things to expect at a dachshund walk!

By now you will all be excited for April 8th mass dachshund walk, so we thought we would give you a taste of what to expect!

1. Lots of comments from passersby, the most common being ‘ sausage dogggg!!!!!’, ‘is this some kind of group’ or ‘it’s a long walk for those little legs’

2. Dachshund print everywhere, from bags, wellingtons, scarves and jumpers. We all know you have at least one item that’s fits this description. We have just had Christmas after all!

3. Puppy envy, you’ll be quite content with your adult dachshund until you see the puppies!! Memories of toilet training and sleepless nights will be forgotten for a split second.

4. Small dog does not necessarily mean small lungs, you will hear about it when another breed of dog dares to walk by. Do they not know that dachshunds own the 5km radius around them?

5. Ear correctors, we all know this too well and with all the cameras expected to be out in April we all need to be vigilant people, those ears are going to need flipping back over at some point.

Here are some photos of todays walk at Heaton Park for Digit’s 1st birthday. (Sadly no pictures of Digit as we were at the back of the pack as usual)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lytham

Lytham is probably one of our favourite places that we have taken Hugo recently from it’s stunning beaches, green spaces, bars and restaurants this was definitely worth the drive from Manchester and the lovely Blackpool traffic!

We started with a stroll and a run (well jog) along the beach before deciding if we had moved enough and if it was an socially acceptable time yet for lunch.

But before we even made it to the town centre we happily stumbled upon the promenade gardens which was a wonderful space with meandering pathways through man made ponds, waterfalls, plants and rockery features and is home to a variety of wildlife life. The garden is located alongside the sea front and is a short walk to the town.

We then ventured to the town centre where there are plenty of places to choose from to eat or drink with you puppas.

After a walk around we found a great cafe called Vinyl Groove where Hugo was welcomed with open arms… literally! Here we stopped for a well earned rest and of course a cake and a brew.

This was actually a great find, the staff were super friendly and they had an amazing choice of desserts which were super tasty. (Sorry for the terrible picture I had to take it fast before the Eton mess disappeared) We are definitely going to stop here for lunch next time we come to Lytham.

And finally, a trip to Lytham would be complete without seeing the famous Lytham Windmill. The windmill is situated on the Lytham Green which was a nice final walk for Hugo before we set off Home.

Note: Remember to check the rules for off the lead areas as they vary through the year. We went out of the peak season which meant that Hugo could roam off lead further. But even in the peak season there seems to be plenty of choice.

Oh and remember a towel for your four legged friend or you’ll be finding sand in your car for weeks… yep we forgot!

Chorlton Meadows Walk

After a hectic few weeks we are back! And how else to do it than with a sausage dog walk in Chorlton followed a trip to Betty and Butch for some treats from their amazing Dog Deli. (Oh and of course some death by chocolate cake for us humans from The Richardson Bakery.)

You can access The Chorlton Meadows opposite the Bowling Green Pub, and there is a small car park which is great as parking around Chorlton can be tricky.

The walk can be as long or as short as you want to make it, we did a shorter walk around the woodland trails but there are many other longer routes you can take. With open fields for those 4 legged friends wanting to let of some steam and routes that will take to you to either Chorlton or Sale Water Park there is something for all.

If like us you want to have a nice leisurely walk and then visit Chorlton Village for a few treats then you will be spoilt got choice. Chorlton has dog friendly pubs, bars and cafes and a few of the shops even let welbehaved dogs in. Although Richardson’s bakery isn’t dog friendly their cakes and sandwiches are worth going for and when the weathers nice like today we were able to sit in he sun in Beech Road Park.

Here are some photographs we captured today of the sausages and a couple of friends. Enjoy!

Sundays are for Sausages…

As most dachshund owners will tell you once you have one they take over your life… and this Sunday was no different when Barkers of Wilmslow hosted one of their famous dedicated breed parties and this Sunday was the turn of the Dachshunds to party, eat treats, drink doggie beer and dive around in a ball pool.

Hugo loves meeting other dogs and these parties are a great place for socialising, so if you have a puppy or a dog that is a little more on the timid side I would definitely recommend taking them to a Barkers Party. There were sausages of all shapes and sizes, old and young all enjoying being the centre of the barkers staff attention.

The staff are lovely and go above and beyond to make this crazy experience enjoyable. This time they had made some mince meatball treats which Hugo wolfed down. (He may have helped himself to seconds!) They even had the recipe on a flyer, so that we can make them ourselves at home.

These events are also a great place for us humans too, swapping stories and getting advice and the biggest bonus of all is that you get to cuddle and meet so many adorable dachshunds in one place… especially puppies like Charlie a tiny dapple who Hugo made friends with.

After an hour of dachshund fun it was time to say goodbye and take home some of Hugo’s favourite sausage treats. Don’t worry he didn’t get to eat them all at once despite him cheekily stealing the full link.

All in all Barkers is a great place to take your dog at anytime not just for the parties, they have have a great range of treats and toys and even a doggie spa.