Father and son Paul and Chris Edwards are opening up their own pizzeria – on a boat. What more could you want?!
The Waltzing Matilda boat is based on the Macclesfield canal and covers Stockport, Bollington, Poynton. Macclesfield, Whaley Bridge etc. The boat comes back and forth down this route but does also sometimes go to Congleton and Manchester, but the main route is the one published on Facebook.
Chris said that the idea of creating this business was “a bit of a quirky one”. With him being a chef for nearly eight years, working in both New Zealand and Manchester, he had always wanted to have his own business and began discussing the idea with his father.
Chris said: “It is a hard job and the pay’s not great; I have missed a lot of family events because I have been working, like my niece’s birthday. Now I can decide when I work.
Credit: Jamesnicholas__
The boat was named after my niece as she was born at the same time, so it is a very family-based business. I do all the cooking and my Dad does the building.”
The pair came up with the idea over lockdown due to being on furlough since March, and thought that it was nice to come up with something for themselves.
Picture of Chris’s niece Matilda, which the Waltzing Matilda boat was named after. Credit: Chris and Paul.
Though the café’s main focus will be serving classic style pizza, your typical café coffees and sandwiches will also be available for purchase.
The pair want to ensure that their café opens doors to everyone, so they will ensure that everyone’s dietary needs are met (e.g. specific dietary requirements / vegan) – they do not want to exclude anyone from coming down.
The dough will be made fresh every day, and the ingredients are fresh and local, due to the pair supporting small businesses.
Every few months they intend to hold exclusive events such as themed nights where people can dress up, try different cuisines, and listen to their culture’s music, e.g. Japanese nights, French nights etc. Chris stated that: “It would be nice to do different themed nights on the boat.”
Eight people will be able to fit into the café at one time, and can keep up with the venture’s official Facebook so that they know where the café will be each day or week.
Chris’ chocolate cookies. Credit: Chris and Paul.
Audiences from near and far have been drawn to The Waltzing Matilda boat pizzeria, and have been really positive on social media.
The launch has brought the pair a lot of attention, from people talking to them, to sharing on social media, and now to radio stations getting in touch.
The Pizzeria is thinking of opening in May. The official date will be published via their social medias.
Chris stated: “People using the canals have almost doubled during lockdown. Every two minutes we have people get onto us and asking us what we’re doing. The community engagement has been amazing. It means the world to someone like us.”
Though The Waltzing Matilda boat is not liveable, Chris commented on how his dad has lived on a canal boat for four years. He said they’re “a very interesting way of living if you don’t want to be around people you can just float off. Just to hear the birds singing… A very peaceful place to live, relaxing and able to connect with different communities.”
Let us know whether you’ll be visiting The Waltzing Matilda come May @pieradiouk
