Learning to #eatpastarunfaster with Vapiano Mcr

On monday I was invited to Vapiano's in Manchester to learn about their new campaign promoting how eating carbs whilst training is actually good for you and also getting to try what was on offer on the menu. I had been to a Vapiano's in the Hague a few years back and was in love with it and had wanted to go back ever since so when one finally opened up in the triangle I was buzzin!  First I will go into the campaign a little then talk about my experience in the restaurant. Vapiano have teamed up with nutritionist Sarah Schenker to explain why pasta and it's slow releasing glycogen qualities are so good for you. This was perfect timing for me because I've just signed up to run a half marathon in October and I'm already doing the BBG plan which is quite intense. Mostly if you are running even a 5-10k it's really important to carb load the night before, this ensures that you have a good amount of energy stored for your entire run so you don't ' hit the wall' and struggle with low energy. Sarah Schenker recommends you carb load up to 3 days before any long run to make sure you have enough energy to last. I can fully vouch for this because I had a hot yoga session right after our meal and although it was one of the hardest classes I had ever been to but

 

I also performed pretty much the best I ever had. A few days later I went to a hot pilates class which isn't anywhere near as hard and I hadn't really prepped a meal that was going to store energy the way that pasta can and I honestly really struggled, I couldn't beleive it! Fuelling yourself properly is so important and you can read more about it here. 
NOW, onto the restaurant, as I said above I had been to a vapiano before and loved it and I also have a seriously deep love for all foods of the Italian variety so I knew this was going to be a great experience. Firstly one of the managers showed us around and gave us some extra little details like how they make the pasta fresh every morning and they even prep all the veg fresh in the morning as well!!  You can tell it's fresh just through the taste and although we had bread,pasta and pizza we didn't feel bloated at all, just nicely full which I was pleasantly surprised about. When I was getting a pasta dish made there was a little queue and the manager jumped on to cook my dish and later on the other manager told us that they have to spend 3 months on each station before they can get their position as manager which I really loved the idea of. I love it when managers understand and can do the actual jobs themselves! 

WHAT WE ATE.  So we took their advice and decided to try a little of everything - the best thing about Vapiano's is that they make it all in front of you so you can edit the dishes to suit your tastes -perfect for any dietary requirements or allergies! 
ANTIPASTI - we shared the Piatto Antipasti and this was gorgeous, put together in seconds with delicious meats, breads( perfect for teaming with the oils on the table) veg, mozzarella and bruschetta. We got the smaller size and it's perfect for 2-3 people and really not overly filling for a starter.
PASTA - we had the Rucola Ravioli - this was gorgeous ravioli with a ricotta stuffing with cherry tomato's, rocket and pine nuts. I had some extra garlic and a little chili thrown in as well. This was lovely and was a massive hit with my friend! I'm not 100% sure if I would order this for myself again, I found it a little rich and thought it may be a bit much to have the whole dish to myself but I would definitely share it with some one because it was delish! ( this dish is actually one of Dr Schenkers dishes on her plan as one of the recovery meals as the natural whey protein from the ricotta is perfect for helping repair your muscles!)
PIZZA - I'm calling it guys. this was THE BEST pizza I have ever had. All my favourite things combined onto one pizza and it was heaven. We went for the Carne Pizza - chorizo, chicken( the most tender fall apart chicken...) peppers and onion. Although there is so much I want to try there, I am 100% ordering this pizza when I go back.
DOLCI - we couldn't pick between the desserts, I wanted something chocolately and my friend was drawn in by the strawberry and cream combo. Luckily they offer smaller options for some of their desserts so we got two mini desserts - Panna Cotta & Crema Di Fraggola - both absolutely amazing- if I had to pick one of the two I would go for the Crema Di Fraggola. I picked the death by chocolate which was gorgeous and rich but not to overwhelming the way a rich chocolate cake can be. I am deffo getting the Cioccolata foresta nera next time because it sounds heavenly and I was torn between the two and took the waiters recommendation this time. 
DRINKS - we decided to try the white tea & elderflower and also the Green tea & lemony drinks both really lovely and refreshing. If Vapiano's sell these separate I'm stocking up! The white tea does have mint in which I was a little concerned about as I'm not a massive mint flavour fan but it was really subtle - this is a really nice alternative to a white wine if you aren't drinking.
The restaurant had a really lovely easy going feel perfect for going out with your friends and sharing food the way that we did. It honestly wouldn't take much to convince me to go back, I'm already dreaming of that pizza!! The pricing is really reasonable as well - for 3 drinks, starter, two mains and the 3 desserts it came to £40 so £20 each which I think is an amazing bargain for what we got! 
Have you been? Which dishes did you try? 
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