Fans of Wray’s Cafe Bar in Moss Side will be salivating at the news that it’s about to add a second string to its bow.
The spot on Lloyd Street, which is a regular haunt for music artists like Aitch, Dyno and Geko, as well as UFC fighters Lerone Murphy and Kane Mousah, will be taking its ‘shack’ - a converted horse box takeaway truck - to Alexandra Park.
The first food truck to be permitted to trade from the entrance to the park, it will be open seven days a week, from 2pm to 8pm.
The shack, which was fitted out during lockdown, will be parked up at the Princess Parkway entrance, though the launch date is yet to be confirmed.
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Co-owner Reaghelle Peltier told the MEN: “We were in limbo during lockdown, and there’s nothing I’ve ever done but run a business, so for me to stop working, it was a struggle.”
She says a lifeline came for the business when they started delivering their now famous rum slushies and milkshakes all around the city.
But while business was quiet, Peltier and co-owner Lilian Nevins then decided to buy a horsebox and turn it into a food truck.
“I had nothing else to do, so I got all these friends around me, in the trades, joinery and electricians, so I called on them and did it as a project on my driveway,” she went on.
“It was a bit of an eyesore at first but people saw it getting stripped down and then seeing it form.
“A guy from over the way came over and told me ‘You’ve inspired my wife, she now wants to set up her own vegan food truck’ after watching it come together.”
The bar has enlisted Manchester rapper Dyno to shoot a video to mark the occasion, with more regulars set to record videos in the coming weeks.
“We have a lot of local artists who come in and they always say they want to do videos,” added Nevins.
“We’ve got another three in the pipeline, but Dyno was the one we allowed to do first. He’s a regular. He loves our patties and the slushies. We have people coming from all over, from London, from Birmingham, just for the slushies!
"We love our city, and we love the support we get from local artists and fighters and entrepreneurs."
As well as the boozy - and non-boozy - beverages, Wray’s is known for its Caribbean-inspired menu, including a range of homemade patties as well as peppered chicken with waffles, wings burgers and bagels, all of which will be served from the food truck.
Sadly, the shack won’t be able to serve alcoholic drinks to begin with, but the cafe bar, which is just a five minute walk from the park, still provides takeaways.
