It’s midweek, a very warm evening in June. Cosimo, a Neapolitan chef, is talking loudly in the open kitchen. The focaccia in front of me is as fresh and soft as in Italy, and only the sight of a car driving on the left side of the road outside brings me back to reality – and to Manchester.

I’m at Bruco, a sleek, modern spot in the Ancoats area – one of several Italian restaurants to have opened across the city in recent months. The name is a reference to its location: “bruco” means caterpillar, and here it refers to silkworms – a nod to Ancoats’ history of textile manufacturing. It also alludes to a specific contrada (district) in Siena, likewise known for its connection to textiles. With Ancoats known as Little Italy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, due to an influx of Italian

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