Hey all, how are you doing? Weather is a little dull out there (well, it’s raining bucket loads but I’m a hopeful soul). We’re all trying to cling on to the last bit of summer, so this foodie was chuffed to bits to hear some very exciting, summery news.

Lunya, the award-winning Spanish deli, restaurant and bar owned by husband and wife team Peter and Elaine Kinsella, has been granted planning permission to build its second site in Manchester. Now, I don’t know about you, but tapas invokes memories of lazy hazy summer days, gorgeous balmy evenings of chilling out with a Bellini and “just being”, as you soak up some delicious rays, you know?

The Catalonian specialty will launch in October at the historic Barton Arcade on Deansgate after being given the green light by Manchester City Council. Following a £1m investment, the new restaurant will cater for more than 200 diners and include an exclusive outdoor seating area on both the ground floor and the first floor of the beautiful Victorian arcade.

The ground floor will be a large deli and an intimate bar area where people can enjoy coffees and pre-theatre snacks, tapas and drinks throughout the day. The first floor will be the main dining area and feature an open kitchen.

lunya first floor perspective

Executive Chef and Co-owner of Lunya, Peter, said: “We simply cannot wait to have our own slice of Spain right here in the heart of Manchester and we are raring to go. The next steps will be to begin our carefully considered renovation of the site in time for its grand opening next month.

Peter and Elaine resized

“We have made significant investment into this project to ensure that it remains authentic to its home nation while respecting the grade II listed Barton Arcade.”

Peter and Elaine have recently returned from a trip to Spain where they were sampling new ingredients and wines to add to their Manchester menu. They personally travel to Spain every few months to visit suppliers and seek out new delights for their ever increasing range. (Now there’s a job that would make many green at the gills with envy.)

Elaine, Operations Director and Co-owner, added: “Here at Lunya, we are committed to providing customers with an accurate depiction of dining in a Catalonian restaurant. With the deli stocking over 1,000 rare and artisan Spanish foods, there are bound to be new and exciting dishes customers have never tasted before on these shores.”

The deli will stock a huge range of Catalan and Spanish food and drink with three hams carved off the bone, 40 artisan Spanish cheeses and more than 1,000 other unique Spanish ingredients. Lunya will cater for all occasions, from breakfast through to dinner, coffees and cocktails and will even have its own Spanish Gin bar. I’ve never had Spanish Gin, so this is a novelty for me that I cannot wait to check out.

Lunya will make all of its own sourdough bread on site in addition to all of the traditional favourites and lots of modern inventive Catalan food, including gambas pil pil with vanilla, estofada with an orange infusion, salt cod spring rolls, chorizo and fennel seed sausage rolls.

And new to Manchester, diners will see exciting fusion dishes such as Catalan hotpot and Crema Catalana Manchester tart. I love this fusion of two very strong, proud heritages. I’ll update you with more news as and when it becomes available. In the meantime, further details are available from: www.lunya.co.uk.

RAxxx