Take a step into the NIGHTGARDEN, a fantastical environment of electro-landscapes and digital botanicals.
Combining food, drink, design and performance, NIGHTGARDEN debuts at the Greenland Street venue on Friday October 14 and will run weekly. Designed to disorientate and delight, nature meets technology head on, as the venue’s Furnace room is transformed into a ‘glitch forest’, with large-scale video projections sitting alongside towering trees and verdant plants, creating a playground for drinking and dancing.
Collaborations with some of the North’s hottest culinary talents are set to take eating to the next level, with headliners already confirmed including Steven Burgess, Robert Owen Brown, and Manchester’s Real Junkfood Project. Subversive menus inspired by the changing seasons will shift perceptions of street dining, with feather and fur featuring alongside plant-based dishes for autumn, as well as foraged ingredients and reclaimed food waste from supermarkets.
A trailblazer on the Northern dining scene, Mary-Ellen McTague guests at the October 14th launch, planning a night of reworked historically influenced recipes and cooking techniques in a menu which includes slow roasted kid goat lasagne with kale, roasted cauliflower yoghurt and scotch pine. Before being part of the NIGHTGARDEN project, Mary-Ellen has been sous chef at The Fat Duck under Heston Blumenthal and Ashley Palmer-Watts, before working on historical R+D at The Hind’s Head, contributing to The Fat Duck’s Menu.
Mary-Ellen also went on to be Head Chef at Aumbry in Prestwich, which served a contemporary British menu. She appeared on BB2’s Great British Menu in 2013 and reached the North West The chefs from BEASTro follow Mary-Ellen on October 21st and promise a line-up of barbecued ox heart, short rib bon-bons with burnt tomato puree and charred corn, with sides including crispy pigs ears and beef dripping roast potatoes.
Sommelier and DJ Adam Speechly comes to the event as the Wine Selector, with over two decade’s experience of mixing white labels with wine labels. Against a backdrop of downtempo beats that step up through the night so guests can comfortably socialise, Adam will be sharing his knowledge on the art of the grape, between dropping tracks in the wine bunker and connecting with guests from across the decks.
The project also brings together many of the region’s top creative talents. Spacial concept design and event curation is by Soo Wilkinson, creative director of Igloo Design, who’s previous projects include Liverpool’s Alma de Cuba and The Lawn Club and The Kitchens in Ma2nchester. Large-scale visuals and photography are by Reuben Wu photographer, director, and co-founder of electronic band Ladytron, and Sam Wiehl, artistic director of Liverpool Psych Fest and Abandon Silence.
Speaking about the new event, a Camp and Furnace spokesperson commented:
“With NIGHTGARDEN we wanted to carve out a new niche and give people something different to go to on a Friday night. It’s an event that will evolve and change weekly, combining fantastic menus from well-known chefs with quality drinks and tracks from a wine-loving DJ, in a relaxed environment that’s accessible to everyone – from the one-after-work crowd to those on a big night out. It’s the future of Fridays.”
NIGHTGARDEN launches at Camp and Furnace on Friday October 14, and runs weekly from 6.00pm till late. Entry to the event is free, find more info out here.