Ok so I'm gonna come straight out and say this place is awesome - there... I just did it!…read more What a great concept, you pay 5p per minute for being here but everything is free including gourmet coffee (from Ancoats coffee roasters), food, juices (I'm currently quaffing some sort of fresh grapefruit juice). In fact a guy just walked around with a big barrel of tasty looking biscuits offering everyone some - is this utopia!?! The place is huge and had so much room to sit, move and just be lived in - the people it attracts all look to be in the same boat with their macbooks/creative mindset and within 5 mins I've got chatting to my neighbour in our plush leather chairs about how great it is that you don't feel under pressure to drink up and go like a standard coffee shop! I'll be back, probably most days! Make sure you get here soon :-)

I'd so many good things about Ziferblat but had always opted for the established coffee shops to…read morespend my mornings. Well the other day I changed that, and I have to say I was dead impressed with this place! The concept is fantastic, you pay for the time you spend there and in that time can eat and drink as much coffee and cake as you like. Some people think the concept is odd, and I can appreciate it's a little different, but look at it economically and you're practically stealing from them! I genuinely felt guilty when I paid about £2.80 for 45 minutes of time, in which I'd consumed 3 slices of cake and 2 coffees. Thats the norm for me though, not that I'm a greedy pig, just that if I'm sat working for an hour (anywhere) I'll need a couple of coffees and something to nibble on. And let me tell you this for free, it costs a damn sight more than £2.80 even if I'd make the cake myself at home! I do wonder how they cover expenses however I believe a lot of volunteer work is involved and if you do volunteer, you get free time in the place - wins all round!

Arts About Manchester is an audience development agency operating within greater Manchester to…read moreenhance the cultural produce of the city and the people's connections to it. As a business they provide a range of services to cultural organisations. Typically a business could call Arts About Manchester to gain advice about an upcoming project and they would provide local audience profiles, marketing reports for previous similar projects and a development strategy for moving forward. They provide an extremely well thought through and precise service which takes into account as many factors as you can imagine and processes them in a way which is easy to understand. I have used their services when promoting a local festival and their help was invaluable at reaching our target audience. If you have an event or a project coming up, get in touch with Arts about Manchester and watch the sparks fly.

If you like a little schnitzel with your noodles then get yourself to the Goethe-Institut and have…read moreyourself a bratwurst of a time. Sausage jokes aside, Manchester's German Institute is the place for all things Deutsche. Situated in the same offices as the Alliance Francaise (upstairs in swishy Churchgate House on Oxford Road), The Goethe-Institute is a brilliant cultural and language centre slap bang in the city centre. Offering language courses from the basic to the fluent as well as German cultural events and festivals, the Goethe-Institute is a wonderful place to learn, network and mingle. There are several large learning spaces as well as smaller classrooms and a library. There are racks of German newspapers (current and dated) as well as magazines and a selection of fiction and non fiction books, maps and textbooks. The centre also runs a drama group which put on German productions and dance groups. There are plenty of spaces in the office to chat and learn, as well as regular German movie nights showing some classic cinema as well as current offerings. With friendly staff and great learning resources, you'll soon know your sauerkraut from your frankfurters.

I've studied German at the Goethe-Insitute and although its one of the more expensive language…read moreschools its so worth the money! I've been to to other schools in England and they're not comparable to Goethe. The teachers are great and super structured. They have the ability to explain the most complicated grammar rules in a very easy and understandable way. I improved my German so well in the Goethe institute that I am now a freelance editor for a German company!

I have a sore head. It's not good but it's the price you pay for a great night out. Ruby Lounge…read moretotally exceeded expectations. Me, planning, making a decision is a rare thing. My suggestion was actually a hit. I did my indecisive alterego very proud. There are many quality club nights organised by the Lost and Found name and this was no exception. Dance off, being £1 entry, sold it for me. Doubles for £3, a range of sambucas £1.50? Messy. Dance off saw a battle between three major DJs, strangerways, good vibrations and juicy DJs playing a mix of Joy Division, The Temptations and Dr Dre. Amazing combination. Ruby Lounge is renown for it's quality club nights and live music. The venue is perfect, with an adequate dance floor, a stage to match and plenty of seating on a slightly raised level for a chill out. Another great Northern Quarter location that needs to become a regular thing for me.

I think this might be a strip club. In fact I'm pretty sure. Well, it wasn't when I was in the Ruby…read moreLounge last night for a Lost and Found gig which is why I felt comfortable to take my boyf in with me. The gig was billed as The Cribs Aftershow but it was basically just a gig- most of the spectators were either in one of the four bands, looked like they should be or were girl groupies who were way too impressed with themselves that they were getting backstage. The sofas and high backed armchairs in the main bar area were nice touches, there were a few mirror balls around too. Plus velvet curtains - hello, strip club? Then you turn to the grimy stage area with the big grill up between the bands and the crowd. That said, no one went past the pillar anyway. Too cool to stand right at the front. Alright drinks prices - get some of their cheap vodka mixers or flavoured sambucas otherwise you'll run out of money quickly. After the bands they had Gareth Brooks from Xfm DJIng but we didn't end up staying.