ORDINARILY, an exclamation of: “Waiter, there’s a fly in my soup!” would result in a grovelling apology from the restaurant manager, but here in Manchester there’s a real buzz in the air as it prepares to permanently open its first bug restaurant: Favelas.
This Brazilian restaurant in the Northern Quarter launches its heavily anticipated big buffet menu packed with creepy crawlies on Friday (November 25) evening.
A carnival-themed launch party complete with live band and samba dancers will add authenticity bringing the South American flavour to Manchester.
The marketing team behind Favelas are no stranger to Manchester’s diverse night scene.
Oliver Summerfield, who founded Northern Quarter cereal bar Black Milk, explained why he wanted to establish the insect market.
“They taste amazing,” he said.
“The team are passionate about changing social stigmas and with being very proud of Manchester, we are always trying to look for ways to eat new foods especially in such surroundings.
“We believe in looking ahead and our chef team of ento-experts are constantly looking for new variations.”
It is still to be confirmed what critters will make an appearance on Favelas bug menu but one dish that any arachnophobe should stay well clear of is the tarantula gaucho burger.
Summerfield told the MEN: “We’ve been experimenting with a gaucho burger… you’ve got a gorgeous burger, green lettuce and red tomato and you’ve got this egg on top with a tarantula just resting on top of this egg.”
This burger can be bought for around £13.50 although prices are yet to be confirmed.
A delicacy in South America, the tarantulas arrive preserved to let the chefs experiment with their flavours – deep fried tarantula served with a saucy dip being the current favourite.
Summerfield told Quays News: “People love to be a part of something different. Through our flavours, presentation and science we will explore the less creepy side.”
If eight-legged friends do not satisfy your tastebuds, diners can indulge in other bush-tucker dishes such as cricket tacos and mealworm fish cakes.
“Taking food out its normal environment came from the culture we accidentally exposed in our cafe Black Milk Cereal Bar where we put pancakes, brownies and doughnuts on top of our milkshakes.
The idea moulded itself when we took on the Brazilian-inspired space and after we researched South America we noticed insects were a huge part of their diet.
“Eating bugs has been a traditional Mexican food since the time of the Aztecs and are still consumed in Africa, Asia and South America.
“When the first pioneers landed in the Americas and up until the 19th century, lobsters were only fed to prisoners, animals and the very, very poor. In fact, beans were more expensive than Lobster in the 1800s!
“They were in such abundance and looked strange as they fed on the bottom of the sea, so they were considered dirty and not for consumption.
“If this doesn’t highlight the effect social stigmas can have on food I don’t know what can, ” Summerfield told Quays News.
Still unconvinced? Consider popular British wine merchants Laithwaite’s, who created the first insect and wine matching guide in 2014.
This compared sparkling rosé to barbecued locusts, Chardonnay to tarantulas, sherry to giant water bugs and Shiraz to sago worms.
Manchester’s Ento-Revolution ‘I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here’ has brought media attention to bug eating but perhaps for the wrong reasons.
According to Summerfield: “It is portrayed as a horror movie or something to not enjoy. Two billion people already include insects in their diet every day, so it is merely ourselves that see them as inedible.
“The light that has been shone by the media has definitely kick-started the ento-revolution.
“The first and hardest boundary we have to overcome is the look of them, but when they taste like a chocolate cookie and you see no arms and eyes it’s very hard not to enjoy.”
In a recent Food and Agriculture Organisation report it was suggested that there are more than 1,000 known species of edible insect, offering a multitude of flavours and textures .
Insects breed quickly and require very little space or water which makes farming them extremely efficient.
For example, it takes around 3,290 litres of water to produce a 150g beef burger, the equivalent insect burger requires less than a pint.
Could this mark the birth of a new industry? Could this be a culinary step gone too far? Or is this the way forward for the UK food market?
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