What’s that I hear you say – nothing happens in January? Well it turns out there’s plenty to tempt you out of the house this month, whether it’s mega discounts, new places or exciting dinner events. Put it this way, I’ve already reneged on my booze-free plans for the month.

You can see a quick guide to the month’s events in the Events Calendar, and I also recommend having a read of my 2018 Highlights post at some point, mainly because it took bloody ages. Ta!

News

Bristol is already making waves this year, whether it be as one of the Top 7 UK Destinations for 2019, one of the Best European Cities to Visit in 2019, or as part of The Guardian’s Travel Hotlist 2019. You can see some of the city’s biggest achievements over the past 12 months in my 2018 Highlights Guide, but I have a feeling 2019 is going to be a big one.

*First award of the year klaxon* – Boston Tea Party has been named most ethical coffee shop in the UK, woohoo!

And seeing as it’s Veganuary for some, now’s a good time to mention that The Kitchen on Silver St now has an entirely vegetarian & vegan menu, and Root will be doing a full vegetarian roast on the last Sunday of the month for the next 3 months, a meat option will not be available. For £28 you’ll get a 3 courses, including a vegetable Wellington/lattice along with all the usual trimmings. The South West Vegan Festival also comes to town mid month.

This time of the year is also an excuse to do Dryanuary (good for your liver, bad for businesses, so make sure you still frequent your locals, even if it’s for a cuppa and a sarnie), or I’m an advocate of Tryanuary, where you drink less, but get a bit braver and more experimental with your choices. There are some good tours being run by Bristol Hoppers for it, but you can also ask for advice at your local boozer or beer shop.

Belly Laughs

Belly Laughs returns this months for a series of brilliant comedy gigs at bars, cafes and restaurants across Bristol, raising money for The Julian Trust. Tickets are still available for the following gigs at the time of writing:

• Sat 12th at North Bristol RFC – noodles from Yaki Shak and comedy, £18.
• Mon 14th at Bambalan – burgers, posh ‘babs, a drink and comedy, £20.
• Tue 15th at Pigsty Wapping Wharf – a Pig Mac and live comedy, £16.
• Wed 16th at B Block, Keynsham – Pizza and comedy in an old chocolate factory, £15.
• Tue 22nd at Spike Island Cafe – Comedy & mezze in a gorgeous arts space, £15.
• Sun 27th at Strawberry Thief – Comedy, nibbles & a welcome drink in a specialist beer bar, £20.
• Tue 29th at Hart’s Bakery – Live comedy with a mix of sweet and savoury baked treats, £15.

Dinners

Some exciting foodie events coming to town this month…

• Beer & Tacos with Wild Beer at CARGO Cantina, Wed 16th – four courses with matched beers, £35.
• Burns Night Supper at Hotel du Vin, Fri 25th – A whisky cocktail on arrival followed by a traditional three course Burn’s Night Supper served with wine, £70 pp.
• Burns Night Whisky Dinner at Milk Thistle, Fri 25th – Three courses, Chivas cocktail and tutored Chivas tasting. £45
• Meet the Makers: Bangers & Beer at Pigsty, Fri 25th – five course menu with five beers, £32.
• 91 Ways Italian Supper Club, Thu 31st – 3 courses of homely Italian food, £30.

Offers

Want to save a few quid this month? Here are a few fab offers going on this month…

• 50% off all mains at The Square Kitchen throughout January, excluding Sundays.
• 50% off all mains at Racks throughout January, excluding Sundays.
• 40% off food at The Ox Clifton and The Ox Cheltenham, Tue-Fri from 12-2:30 or 5-7pm until the end of Jan.
• 40% off the A La Carte menu at Cowshed until the end of January.
• 40% off all food at The Lost & Found throughout January.
• 30% off food at Quay St Diner, Mon-Fri from 12pm, until 31st January.
• 25% off all tapas at Pata Negra, Mon-Sat from 12-7pm. Available until the end of Jan.
• 25% off A La Carte dishes at Steak of the Art, Mon-Thu throughout January, they’re also offering 50% off any rump steak order on Tuesdays in January.
• 25% off all A La Carte menu dishes at Glassboat, PLUS a complimentary glass of Picpoul Frisante for you and your guests when you quote PP25. Valid Monday-Friday.
• 25% off ALL food & drink at 1766 Bar & Kitchen when you book to dine after 19:30.
• 20% off mains at Fi Real vegan Caribbean restaurant on Old Market until the end of Jan.
• 20% off takeaway meals from Suncraft when you redeem the voucher in the January issue of Crumbs (which is free to pick up across Bristol)

• Two mains for £10 at No.4 Clifton Village throughout January.
• Two courses & a cocktail for £18 or three courses & a cocktail for £22 at Harvey Nichols, every day in January.
• 2 for 1 babs at Bambalan, all of Jan, Mon-Sat from 5-10:30pm.
• 2 mains for £20 at The Cauldron, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
• Get five gold hugggs to send for free when you download the Huggg app, so basically you get to give free stuff to your mates, hurrah!

Workshops and classes

Learn something new this month!

• Chase Distillery gin tasting at Bellita, Tue 15th, £20.
• Macaron Class at ANNA Cake Couture, Tue 15th, £95.
• Tryanuary beer tour: Fishponds mini brewery & micropub, Thu 17th, £25.
• Introduction to Wine evening, Fri 18th, £25.
• Sourdough for Beginners class at Bakesmiths, Sat 19th, £50.
• Italian Cookery for Adults & Children, Sat 19th, £40.
• Gin Masterclass at The Kensington Arms, Sat 19th, £35.
• Food & Wine Matching at Avery’s, including tasters of 8 wines, Wed 23rd, £25.
• Beer & cheese tasting at Bristol Brewery School, Thu 24th, £30.
• Bristol Whisky Appreciation Society: Whisky Maturation, Thu 24th, £21.
• Islay meets Bristol: whisky tasting & cocktails at Hyde & Co, Thu 24th, £30.
• Introduction to Cider at Bristol Cider Shop, Fri 25th, £25.
• Gyoza Masterclass and intro to Japanese cooking by Eatchu, Sat 26th, £55.
• Scotch Egg Masterclass at Little Kitchen, Tue 29th, £42.
• Bar Moulding Class at Zara’s Chocolates, Wed 30th, £50.

Newbies

Some new places to try this month…

• Coach House Cafe is now open in St Paul’s, in what was formally The Pear Cafe.
• Clifton Seafood Company have opened a shop in Wapping Wharf.
• Bay Fire Foods is the new permanent pop-up at The Old Bookshop – I can confirm the roasts are bangin’.
• Spicer & Cole are opening a new coffee shop in Finzels Reach at the end of the month.
• Pho Lounge is serving up homely Vietnamese food on Gloucester Road.
• Good & Proper is now open in Temple Meads, focused on locally-sourced products.
• Hummasapiens is a new veggie pop-up at Small Bar throughout January.
• Beijing Cooking Pot has taken over from Chilli Daddy on Perry Rd.

And coming soon: Hangar 25, Masa & Mezcal, Filthy VIII, The Alchemist and lots more – Bristol 24/7 did a nice round up here.

That’s it for this month, let me know which events or new places you get along to over on Twitter or Facebook, or you can see what I’m eating over on Instagram. I love hearing what you lot get up to, so say hello!

If you’re still keen for something to read…

• Bristol Food & Drink: 2018 Highlights
• Bristol’s Best Harbourside Restaurants
• Oldies but Goodies: 11 Bristol Institutions
• Bristol’s Cosiest Pubs

Dates for the diary
(or check the Events Calendar)

• Thu 10th – Burgundy 2017 En Primeur tasting at Avery’s Wine Cellars
• Fri 11th – Sat 12th – Wassail at Barley Wood Orchard
• Fri 11th – Sushi workshop & Tampopo film screening
• Fri 11th – Grains, Gradients & Graffiti beer tour with Bristol Hoppers
• Sat 12th – East to West food tour
• Sat 12th – Kimchi College: An Introduction to Fermenting Vegetables
• Sat 12th – Keto Kickstart Cleanse workshop at Bristol Cookhouse
• Mon 14th – Belly Laughs at Bambalan
• Tue 15th – Designing Great Beers course at Bristol Brewery School
• Tue 15th – Introduction to Sushi at Little Kitchen
• Tue 15th – Macaron Class at ANNA Cake Couture
• Tue 15th – Kefir School: Learn how to make your own kefir
• Tue 15th – Mushroom Growing at Home for Beginners
• Tue 15th – Chase Distillery gin tasting at Bellita
• Wed 16th – Belly Laughs at B Block
• Wed 16th – Syrian Supper Club at Bristol Cookhouse
• Wed 16th – Beer & Tacos with Wild Beer at CARGO Cantina
• Thu 17th – Thai Street Food cookery class at Little Kitchen
• Thu 17th – Wild Beer tap showcase at Brewdog
• Thu 17th – Tryanuary beer tour: Fishponds brewery & micropub
• Fri 18th – Introduction to Wine evening
• Sat 19th – Paleo Every Day: Cooking Class & Lunch at Bristol Cookhouse
• Sat 19th – South West Vegan Festival
• Sat 19th – Artists Brunch at Spike Island
• Sat 19th – Yoga Brunch Club
• Sat 19th – Sourdough for Beginners class at Bakesmiths
• Sat 19th – Italian Cookery for Adults & Children
• Sat 19th – Gin Masterclass at The Kensington Arms
• Sun 20th – Chocolate Tempering Masterclass at Zara’s Chocolates
• Sun 20th – Bottomless Burger Club at Burger Theory
• Mon 21st – Beginner’s Guide to Wine Tasting at Avery’s Wine Cellars
• Tue 22nd – Belly Laughs at Spike Island Cafe
• Tue 22nd – Celebration Drip Cake class at ANNA Cake Couture
• Wed 23rd – Food & Wine Matching at Avery’s Wine Cellars, £25
• Thu 24th-Sun 27th – Balloon Bar Beer Festival
• Thu 24th – Meat-free cookery class at Little Kitchen
• Thu 24th – Islay meets Bristol: whisky tasting & cocktails at Hyde & Co
• Thu 24th – Bristol Whisky Appreciation Society: Whisky Maturation
• Thu 24th – Tryanuary stout & porter beer tour with Bristol Hoppers
• Thu 24th – Beer & cheese tasting at Bristol Brewery School
• Fri 25th – Burns Night Whisky Dinner at The Milk Thistle
• Fri 25th – Burns Night Supper at Hotel du Vin
• Fri 25th – Introduction to Cider at Bristol Cider Shop
• Fri 25th – Meet the Makers: Beer & Bangers at Pigsty
• Fri 25th – Buckfast Burns Night Extravaganza at King Street Brew House
• Sat 26th – Prosecco & Italian Wine Tasting
• Sat 26th – Artisan Cheese & Wine Tasting
• Sat 26th – Stokes Croft food tour
• Sat 26th – South of the River food tour
• Sat 26th – Gyoza Masterclass and intro to Japanese cooking
• Sat 26th – Bristol Brewery Tour
• Sat 26th – Make your own sauerkraut workshop
• Sun 27th – Belly Laughs at Strawberry Thief
• Tue 29th – Belly Laughs at Hart’s Bakery
• Tue 29th – Scotch Egg Masterclass at Little Kitchen
• Tue 29th – Pasta Slut Cinema Club: Isle of Dogs
• Wed 30th – Bar Moulding Class at Zara’s Chocolates
• Thu 31st – 91 Ways Italian Supper Club
• Thu 31st – An Arabian Night supper club