Eating Neapolitan on King Street West ……. and coming across a bit of history

We found Capri’s by chance and what a stroke of luck.

Tina is Italian and is very picky about eating Italian food which often disappoints but not yesterday when we dropped into Capri’s on King Street West.

It helped that the food was authentic Neapolitan, which is where the family come from, and in conversation with the owner and his daughter it turns out that they are from the very next suburb to where Tina’s mum and dad were born and grew up.

But it was as ever the food which made the visit.  Tina went for the Spaghetti alle Vongole which is pasta with clams, garlic, chilly, parsley and datterini tomatoes and I had Pasta all ‘Arrabiata which is tomato sauce, parsley, garlic and fresh chilly.

They are the dishes Tina grew up with and the ones her mum cooks regularly.

We had been in town visiting the two exhibitions at Central Ref** and debated where to eat and slowly meandered past several Italian restaurants, as well as a few which are our favourites, but on that day none quite fitted the bill.

Still Tina fancied “some fish and pasta” and so we pushed on to King Street West, which as a historian is one of those forgotten areas of the city which included a gas works and the Shambles.

Now you won’t find New Shambles or Pork Lane, they disappeared along with the meat markets which ran from Deansgate back to Butter Lane during the 19th century.

The Shambles in 1849

They were the Bridge Street Market which fronted Deansgate down to New Shambles and then the delightfully named, Pork and Carcase Market which stretched from New Shambles to Butter Lane.

And even before the markets vanished Pork Lane had became Pork Street.

But with redevelopment the street vanished for ever under a series of buildings and befitting the areas new character New Shambles became a continuation of Southgate.

All of which is a bit off the track.

So, I will return to Capri’s which opened in November when the owner decided to start up his own business after working in various Italian restaurants.

At which point I could fall back on pictures of the food and a listing of the menu, but where would the fun be in that when you csn go online and explore the food for yourself?*

Pictures; Pictures of Capri, 2023, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, Butter Lane, and Back Bridge Street, 2016 from the collection of Andrew Simpson and the Shambles in 1849 from the OS for Manchester & Salford, 1849, courtesy of Digital Archives Association, http://digitalarchives.co.uk/

*Capri's, https://caprismcr.co.uk/

** Curry Mile, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Curry%20Mile

and

Manchester Ship Canal, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Manchester%20Ship%20Canal