Takeaway land in Greater Manchester is vast, diverse and highly populated.
One tap on the Deliveroo app and we’re abruptly inundated with dozens of delicious-looking food joints jostling for our appetites.
The Friday food order is invariably the first headache selection of the night (with the task of deciding on a Netflix movie coming later).
The trick for takeaways, of course, is to stand out from the crowd. And Icon Burgers seems to have found an excellent way in which to do exactly that.
This a restaurant that flips the concept of a typical burger on its head – from the ingredients used right down to the cooking process.
The menu is populated by utterly unique dishes such the Green Burger – containing CBD with cannabis leaf; the Deep Fried Cheeseburger – prepared exactly how it sounds; and a Cheetoz Flamin Hot Burga – borrowing flavours from the fiery cheesy snack.
There’s also the 1 on 1 Burger which combines chicken with beef; the Double Bluff that hits the spot for vegans; and the Philly Cheese Steak and Shredded Beef Steak items which take inspiration from cuisine across the world.
Indeed, Icon Burgers is seemingly one of the most truly global restaurants in Manchester – bringing in its top-quality sauce from Belgium; brioche buns from France; and internationally-imported drinks and sweets.
The brand itself was actually born on the other side of the pennines, but has now branched out following a wildly successful chapter in Huddersfield – setting up shop at Brickhouse Social on New Wakefield Street in Manchester city centre.
All the patties are made using 35-day dry aged Black Angus, with Icon promising a recipe that is ‘impossible to replicate’.
The restaurant also offers an American-style desserts menu with all items freshly-baked to order – including quarter pound cookies oozing with gooey chocolate and trans-Atlantic candies which can be made into real American Milkshakes.
“Since bringing Icon to Manchester we have seen an immense buzz on social media, and on the ordering platforms,” say the owners.
Easy to see why.
There’s no other burger place in Manchester quite like this.
Icon Burgers is open from 5pm-11pm Sunday to Thursday and 5pm to 2am on Friday and Saturday.
Available on UberEats, Deliveroo, and via phone orders for collections.
Eats
Hotel Chocolat to open viral chocolate Velvetiser Cafe in Manchester
Daisy Jackson
Hotel Chocolat is set to open a Velvetiser Cafe in Manchester city centre, and it’ll be absolute paradise for chocolate lovers.
The popular chocolate shop, which has stores across the UK selling delicious chocolate bars, boxes and more, is now preparing to branch out in town.
Hotel Chocolat then hit a new level of fame with its Velvetiser, an invention that creates velvety smooth hot drinks at the touch of a button.
They’ve been so popular, Hotel Chocolat is now opening Velvetiser Cafes across the UK – and Manchester is up next.
If it follows in the footsteps of the Meadowhall cafe in Sheffield, visitors will be able to customise their perfect hot chocolate from thousands of combinations.
There are 18 flavours, different milks, and a whole variety of toppings available.
Then you drink can be served hot, over ice, or as a choc shake.
Colourful hoardings for the Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser Cafe have now appeared on Cross Street, just next door to the new Joe & The Juice.
A planning application has also been lodged with Manchester City Council.
Drake-backed fried chicken brand Dave’s Hot Chicken is opening in Manchester
Daisy Jackson
The huge LA-based fried chicken brand backed by Drake is heading to Manchester for the very first time this summer.
Dave’s Hot Chicken is set to open in the Printworks this August – the first UK branch outside of London and Birmingham.
The cult chicken brand has said that its new venue will feature an ‘industrial design inspired by Manchester’s rave scene’ (if we had a pound every time a new venue used that design style, we’d be as rich as Drake…).
Dave’s Hot Chicken is famed for its signature Nashville-style hot chicken, which is served in seven different spice levels from No Spice to Reaper.
Expect sliders, tenders, ‘next-level’ top-loaded shakes and slushes.
It’s grown so quickly that in 2021, it caught the eye of none other than rapper Drake, who is a ‘significant investor’ in the brand.
The fried chicken spot will be moving into the large corner unit at Printworks, which has previously been Busaba Thai, and Floripa, with 139 covers.
Dave’s Hot Chicken is coming to Manchester
Inside, it will feature towering ceilings, exposed steelwork, and laser lights, claiming to be a ‘full-on sensory trip, where music, light and fried chicken will come together to create a high-voltage experience’.
There will also be custom graffiti inspired by L.A.-based street artists Splatterhaus and Dehm.
Dave’s Hot Chicken still has hour-long queues down in London, several months after opening on Shaftesbury Avenue – next up will be a Birmingham branch in July before Manchester opens later this summer.
And this is just the start of a nationwide expansion.
Jim Attwood, Managing Director of Dave’s Hot Chicken UK, said: “Printworks Manchester is the ideal setting for our next UK site – right at the heart of one of the country’s most exciting cities.
“The new restaurant pays homage to Manchester’s legendary warehouse rave scene, with an industrial-inspired design and bold, high-energy atmosphere to match our signature flavours.
“We can’t wait to bring something fresh to this iconic venue and its vibrant mix of entertainment, food and culture.”
Dave’s Hot Chicken will open at Printworks Manchester on 8 August.
The Manc -
12th February 2021 
