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BAKED IN BRICKS AND MORTAR
If we've got one teeny, tiny reservation about street food, it's the eating it on the street bit. That Europe's best street food vendor is getting a physical restaurant is therefore joyous news. Baked in Brick is opening in the Custard Factory (opposite Kanteen) in early-May. Predominantly a pizzeria, the licensed 60-seater will have a woodfired oven as its focal point, serving up Neapolitan style pizzas whole and by the slice, and will also trade in brunches at the weekend. There'll be a covered area with a retractable roof to the side of the stripped back newbie. Can't wait until May? Baked in Brick's on brunch at Digbeth Dining Club's Cafe Colette on February 25. Three-courses (including steak), sides, bottomless coffee and a Mimosa are £35. Tickets
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OMELAN,
PASCOE & CO.
The thigh gap. It's a thing. And it's a thing that Luisa Omelan performed a sketch about, which received more than 41 million views on Facebook. And for Omelan's next trick? Dead Funny is two chortle-making hours worth of UK comedians, raising cashdollah for the charity Omelan created in memory of her Mum. The Hippodrome's got everyone from Sara Pascoe (pictured), to Mo Gilligan, to Ellie Taylor on stand-up, plus seven other professional rib-ticklers. On a single noche (Feb 28), it's a very reasonable £25 for a ticket. Also taking the Hippo's stage and worthy of your laughing consideration — Sean Lock's in town the night before Dead Funny (tickets also £25), while Dara Ó Briain's got March 1 to 3 (£23) covered. We defy you not to enjoy yourself.
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FILM: BLACK PANTHER
For all their cross-generational appeal, it’s fair to say Marvel movies can feel a bit samey: not so here. Black Panther’s overwhelmingly black cast is one obvious point of difference, and lends it a zeitgeisty importance that’s hard to deny. That said, we’ve had black superheroes before: what’s really bracing here is how the film takes on the legacy of colonialism in Africa in a surprisingly head-on way, and with a frankness that’s never been seen in the usually conservative superhero genre. Most importantly, though, it just rules: the design is smart, the music inventive, Chadwick Boseman is commanding in the title role, and Michael B Jordan a truly memorable villain. This is going to be huge. Times
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50% OFF AT ROLA WALA
Emerging, phoenix-like, from the ashes of Izza Pizza, Rola Wala opens in Selfridges on Monday. They've got an enviable rep for Indian street food in The London and Leeds, and particularly major on sourdough naans and healthy spice bowls, with fillings like sweet potato saagwala and Nagaland lamb. But get your own opinion early on, and get it half price. Sign-up to Rola Wala's mailing list by following this link to get 50% off your meal until the end of Feb. Menu
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SHOWTIME FROM THE FRONTLINE
Setting up a comedy club's not known for being easy. Make that comedy club in a refugee camp, and make that refugee camp in Palestine, and you've got yourself a tale to tell. Mark Thomas' Showtime from the Frontline isn’t a comedy exactly, but a series of stories about dodging cultural (and actual) bullets, to run a comedy club in Jenin in the West Bank. Known to be a stronghold for the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, it's not exactly a place synonymous with laughs. But despite the obstacles, the club operated for two whole nights and Mark is joined by Fasial Abu Alhayjaa and Alaa Shehada to share the experience. From Feb 28 til March 3 at mac. Tickets (£20)
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Venue: Circle Restaurant, just off the Middle Circle Foyer, Birmingham Hippodrome, Hurst Street, B5 4TB; Website Choice: Pumpkin ravioli (two-courses is £26.50) Chooser: Waitress
Your mission, should you choose to accept it: feed 90 people all going to a performance that starts at precisely the same time. We ate at Circle Restaurant ten years ago, and spent the last nine pre-theatre-dining in the Chinese Quarter. But clearly a lot of thought, and work, and training has gone into how you deliver a menu with such a definite cut-off. It was the gin-cured ocean trout, with pickled fennel and a horseradish crème fraîche that took the tiara in terms of beginnings — light, but flavour-filled, the horseradish combo was particularly to our liking, with precisely the right kick to bring the dish together. Again winning on flavour balance, the pumpkin ravioli comes with a slightly tart, crumbly goat's cheese, thyme foam, and micro herbs. It's a super satisfying bowl of food that you won't regret come interval two. On the subject of intervals, your table remains yours throughout the performance. While the fifteen minute interval we had wasn't long enough to genuinely enjoy the puds we ordered, it was a revelation not to have to queue for drinks, which you can absolutely pre-order and will be waiting come curtain down. Menu
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