Serving pure ’80s nostalgia with a Stranger Things twist, expect Upside Down Stacks, Hellfire Tots, and Peanut Butter Jelly chicken burgers and tenders
Hawkins Diner is available in Manchester (Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
If you’re a fan of Stranger Things then you’re no doubt excited to watch the long-awaited final episodes this Christmas. But if you live in Greater Manchester there’s another treat for fans of the show with the launch of a new Hawkins Diner.
It’s not actually a diner you can visit, but a ‘food delivery restaurant’ that’s arrived on Deliveroo. Inspired by the hit series, Netflix and Sessions have teamed up to launch the concept diner across 150 locations, including Manchester, to give fans ‘the chance to feast like Hawkins locals while watching the Stranger Things story come to its epic close’.
It serves ‘pure 80s nostalgia with a Stranger Things twist'(Image: Sessions, David Nobre)
We were invited to try a number of dishes from the menu, which we were told serves ‘pure 80s nostalgia with a Stranger Things twist’. You can just get a normal burger if you wish and my other half enjoyed The Hometown Classic – double grass-fed beef patties with American cheese, house sauce, classic pickles – but it was the Hawkins Specials me and the kids wanted to try.
I can’t say I’ve ever sampled a burger with pancakes instead of a bun before, but this ‘sweet meets savoury’ Upside Down Stack was an unusual yet tasty treat.
My son made light work of the PB&J Burger – with a double fried chicken breast, peanut butter, chilli jam, mayo, melted cheese, lettuce and waffle skewer – and my daughter enjoyed the Hot Honey Stack with three chicken tenders and three pancakes.
The PB&J Burger (Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
The hot honey sauce, described as ‘impossible to resist’ was exactly that and we found ourselves fighting over that to dip our delicious Tater Tots, so it’s well worth ordering another pot if that’s your thing.
If you fancy something a little spicier, another Hawkins Special is the Hellfire Tots – crispy tots piled high with spicy mayo, fireball ketchup, jalapeños, crispy onions and chives.
There’s loads more themed treats on the menu, including The Mouthbreather chicken burger, Hellfire Wings and Chief’s Veggie Sandwich. And even the drinks and desserts give a nod to the hit show with Mountain Dew, Dr Pepper Cherry, Root Beer and Banana Pudding, Dark Void Brownie Bites and The Upside Stack.
The themed packaging(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
It all comes in themed Hawkins Diner packaging too, with black and white adverts on the side of the paper bags for the likes of Scoops Ahoy and the Palace Arcade. And there’s a limited edition Stranger Things glass and squishy toy you can also order too.
It might well be a gimmick to get more customers this Christmas, but most Stranger Things fans want as much of Hawkins as they can get and when it tastes as good as this, who can blame them.
Jordan Moore, executive development chef at Sessions, said: “When creating the Hawkins Diner menu, we wanted to capture the nostalgia of a classic 1980s American diner but with a Stranger Things twist. That’s what we call #StrangeComfort: iconic comfort dishes made just a little stranger. Think a PB&J Chicken Burger, where creamy peanut butter collides with sweet and spicy chilli jam, or the Upside Down Stack, which swaps out the bun for fluffy pancakes to create the ultimate sweet-savoury mash-up.
Stranger Things themed food and drinks from Hawkins Diner on Deliveroo(Image: Manchester Family / MEN)
“For dessert, our Biscoff-infused banana pudding is banoffee pie’s all-American cousin. And of course, you can wash it all down with sodas like root beer and Mountain Dew – straight out of Hawkins in the ’80s.”
Hawkins Specials start from £5.99 for Hellfire Tots, up to £11.49 for a Mac Stack. You can order Bundles including the Two Player Special with two burgers, two fries or tots and two drinks for £29.99.
Stranger Things 5 Volume 2 is released on December 26 (three episodes), with The Finale January 1. Each volume releases at 1AM GMT. Hawkins Diner is available on Deliveroo now. Availability is dependent on postcode.