Refuge, Dishoom, Track, Renae and Manchester Museum are among the venues showing up for Eat Well MCR this autumn...
Eat Well MCR has announced the first wave of events for Eat Well, Do Good 2026, with restaurants, bars and chefs across Manchester raising money for the charity throughout October.
Returning for its third year, the month-long campaign will feature dinners, parties, special offers and collaborations, with money raised funding chef-made meals for people experiencing food insecurity across Greater Manchester.
Since being founded in 2020 by chef and restaurateur Mary-Ellen McTague alongside Kathleen O’Connor and Gemma Saunders, Eat Well MCR has delivered more than 170,000 meals to families in temporary accommodation, women in refuge, food bank users and parents staying overnight with children in hospital.
This year’s programme actually begins ahead of October, as Refuge marks its 10th anniversary with an indoor-outdoor party on Saturday 26 September. Tickets for the Ghosts of Garage event are priced at £2, the cost of funding one Eat Well MCR meal.
October then begins with SCRAN on Monday 5 October, a one-day food convention bringing together chefs, farmers, producers, policy-makers and community leaders to discuss Manchester’s food economy.
MasterChef winner Gareth Baty will take over The Refuge on Wednesday 7 October for a fundraising dinner, before Northern Quarter venue Renae hosts an evening of ‘fund-raving’ on Thursday 8 October.
The party will feature back-to-back sets from Lil’ Minx and Sarah Sweeney of Eve’s Drop Collective, Chunky and Synna G, and Il Bosco and Metrodome.
Elsewhere during the month, a Negroni Safari will see bartenders from across Manchester create their own versions of the classic cocktail in support of the campaign.
Monday 26 October will bring several events across Greater Manchester. Dishoom will dedicate a special breakfast service to Eat Well MCR, while Holly Pickles will attempt a record-breaking pickle event at Track Brewery aimed at families during half term.
Stockport hi-fi listening bar Odioba will also host a one-off supper club that evening, with Manchester artist and DJ Stan Chow providing the soundtrack.
The programme concludes on Monday 2 November with a dinner beneath the whale at Manchester Museum, created with Gorton Youth Zone and Eat Well MCR founder Mary-Ellen McTague. Young people involved in the project will help create the food served during the evening.
A city-wide raffle will also run throughout October, with prizes donated by businesses including The Black Friar, Nell’s, Palms Bakers, The Ivy, Proloco, Flight Club, Manchester Bites Food Tours and Sampa.
Mary-Ellen McTague, co-founder of Eat Well MCR, said: “We are completely blown away by the support that has come from the Manchester hospitality community. Eat Well, Do Good Month has become such an important part of the Manchester food and drink calendar, and seeing it return for a second year with even more businesses and events involved is really special.
“What started as an idea to bring the hospitality community together around good food and a good cause has grown into something much bigger, with restaurants, bars, chefs and businesses across the city all finding their own ways to get involved. The need is still huge, but so is the appetite from our hospitality community to help. We can’t wait to see everyone come together again this October and, most importantly, turn all that support into more meals for people who really need them.”
Toast returns as headline partner for the 2026 campaign, while St Pierre will continue its support of Eat Well MCR.
More venues are expected to be added to the programme, with restaurants, bars, cafés, delis and other hospitality businesses across Greater Manchester still able to register to take part.
Head here for the full 2026 programme…
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