This week we’ve been absolutely spoilt for choice when picking out the best new food and drink spots to try in Manchester. Get excited, because we’ve got some absolute crackers on the list for you this week.
The Black Friar – the historic Salford pub that’s survived an inner city bypass, fires, vandalism and an horrific, fatal car crash just before its opening weekend – has reopened its doors after nearly twenty years of closure to offer not one but two fantastic-looking menus.
The Black Friar pub in Salford has reopened after nearly twenty years of closure / Image: Ben Chaplin
Elsewhere, Northern Quarter stalwart Trof has to get an honorary mention, having finally reopened its doors for breakfast after a year and a half of doing dinner and drinks only – something that gives us great comfort indeed.
On top of all that, we’ve got some ice cream choux bun sandwiches for you, a top-notch Afro Carribean market stall in Piccadilly, a new cafe inside Affleck’s Palace and the return of one of Manchester’s most hotly-tipped kitchen pop-ups.
It’s going to be a very good week.
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The Black Friar pub in Salford has reopened following a £1.4 million pound investment / Image: The Manc Eats
Legendary Salford pub The Black Friar reopens after nearly 20 years
It was shut for almost two decades, but now historic Salford pub The Black Friar has reopened its doors once again. Inside, the decor is a mix of traditional pub and modern restaurant with floor to ceiling glass windows at the back that lead on to a gorgeous drinking and dining terrace area.
The modern restaurant is headed up by Ben Chaplin, formerly Head Chef at 20 Stories, serving a menu packed with wonderfully balanced seasonal dishes. Think juniper cured creedy duck breast with roast cherries and pickled kohlrabi, sweet pea and truffle tortellini with a wild nettle and watercress sauce, and a melt-in-the-mouth Lake District Himalayan salt aged 10oz rib eye, served with roast shallots and peppercorn.
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Pub food, meanwhile, includes tried and tested favourites like pies of the day served with buttered mash and gravy, and Boddingtons beer battered fish with minted crushed peas, tartare and chips. We’ve so much to say about this place, but the TLDR is essentially just ‘go immediately, you won’t regret it’.
Find The Black Friar on Blackfriars Road, Salford, M3 7DH.
The cafe at the top of Affleck’s Palace has been taken over by Earth Friendly Rocker and has relaunched with a new zero waste menu focused on Northern classics / Image: Potion at Affleck’s
A new zero waste cafe inside Affleck’s Palace
From the owner of Affleck’s zero waste shop Earth Friendly Rocker comes Potion, a new zero waste cafe that aims to be as sustainable as the shop that precedes it.
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With a menu focused on Northern classics, all ingredients here are sourced locally to minimise carbon footprint. In-keeping with Potion’s sustainable ethos, there are plenty of vegan dishes on the menu here too. Look out for the gorgeous pink and green interiors when you head up to the top floor to find them.
Potion opens from today, 26 July for its soft launch. Find it on the top floor of Afflecks Palace in the Northern Quarter, 52 Church St, Manchester M4 1PW.
Tine is back on the scene at last. Chefs Joshua Shanahan and James Lord return this weekend with a pop-up at Atomeca Bar / Image: Tine
Pop-up kitchen Tine is back on the scene
Tine is a pop-up kitchen run by two very talented Mancunian chefs, Joshua Shanahan (Where The Light Gets In) and James Lord (Manchester House / Wolf at the Door).
The duo came onto our radar just before the start of the pandemic in 2020. There they were, all set to be Manchester’s newest obsession making magic in a tiny kitchen at Ancoats’ wine bar Blossom Street Social, when suddenly the world ground to a halt
This weekend they’ll be throwing their first post-covid event at Atomeca Bar alongside some of our other hospitality favourites, the Schofield brothers. Tine will be using the konro grill to cook up a super small menu of small plates, served in tandem with drinks from Atomeca.
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Further details are being kept under wraps for now, but we’ve also been told about a new planned residency pop-up announcement that’ll be coming out officially next week. Think a proper restaurant format and a 6-course set menu with paired wines. We can’t say any more than that for now, but we are very excited.
Afro Carribbean street food boxes at Piccadilly Gardens market
Rita’s Reign has been getting all the love of late and for good reason too. Her Afro Carribbean street food stall is one of the most popular at Piccadilly Street food market, dishing up big boxes of dumplings, plantain, curried and roasted meats and what is known coloquially amongst her fans as simply “the purple stuff”.
If you’re not sure what to get we recomend trying her best seller, the combo box with jerk chicken, ‘the purple stuff’ (aka coleslaw made with red cabbage), two different types of rice (jollof rice AND rice and peas), curry goat, plantain, salad heaped together in one. It’s very special.
Rita’s Reign can be found at Piccadilly Gardens Street Food Market weekly, Wednesday to Sunday from 1030 am – 530 pm.
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Micro bakery Baby It’s Choux is popping up with her ice cream sandwiches at Media City this Saturday 31 July / Image: Baby It’s Choux
Ice cream choux sandwiches at Media City General Store
Although we keep hearing that the weather is about to take a turn for the worse, we’re still very keen to get our hands on some of this ice cream choux bun sandwiches at Media City this weekend.
This delicate pastry, which is also used in making eclairs and profiteroles, is first coated in a sweet and crunchy chocolate craquelin before being sliced in half and stuffed with Jersey ice cream from Cheshire’s Hopewell Farm. For an absolute bargain, you can even add in malted chocolate ganache for free.
Find Baby It’s Choux at Media City General Store, Unit 1 Lighbox, Salford M50 2AD on Saturday 31 July from 11 am – 3 pm.
Inside Manchester’s newest Italian restaurant serving 70-year-old Calabrian recipes
Clementine Hall
A new restaurant inspired by Calabrese cooking has opened its doors in Manchester city centre.
Sometimes only a steaming hot bowl of homemade pasta will do, and you’ll find it at the new Pranzo Italian in abundance.
Located on King Street, slap bang in the centre of town, this light-drenched restaurant is set to become your go-to for authentic Italian cuisine.
Born in West Yorkshire, they opened their first restaurant in the spa town of Ilkley back in 2018 before quickly opening another location in Harrogate after Pranzo became inundated with hungry customers.
Images: The Manc
Fast forward to now, they have another site in York and now luckily for us, here in Manchester.
Inspired by founder Marco’s Italian heritage and his Nonna’s traditional Calabrese cooking, every single thing you’re served here is homemade.
From the fresh pasta and the rich sauces to the fluffy focaccia used to mop up said sauces, and not to forget the cherry gin used in the standout Sour Cherry Negroni.
Dishes here are as traditional and authentic as they get, using 70-year-old recipes that Marco learnt from his Nonna (who you’ll spot in old pictures proudly hung up around the restaurant).
Images: The Manc
On our visit, after indulging in couple of cocktails at the bar we kicked things off with a couple antipasti, because it really would be rude not to.
The arancino picante was a real standout, stuffed with spicy fennel sausage, smoked provola cheese and served on a bed of nduja cream.
This had everything you wanted in an arancini, crispy on the outside, gooey on the inside and served piping hot.
We recommend ordering the focaccia el aglio alongside it to dunk into the smoky nduja cream, a genius move if you ask us.
Images: The Manc
Now, onto the mains.
We ordered three of Pranzo’s specialist pastas and every single one was cooked to perfection. If you’re a fan of proper al dente pasta then trust us, you’re going to love this place.
The ragù di manzo features fresh mafalde pasta in a deeply savoury 4-hour beef shin sauce, and they definitely don’t skimp on the meat.
Showered in parmesan at the table, it’s a favourite on the menu for a reason. The reason? It’s nothing short of delicious.
Images: The Manc
We don’t know about you, but if burrata is on the menu then we’re ordering it with zero hestitation.
A lot of the pastas on the menu give you the choice of plonking a burrata on top, and we went for the nduja è salsiccia piccante.
The sauce is decadent and fiery, combining nduja with spicy fennel sausage, spinach and cream. The addition of the creamy burrata was another genius move, balancing out the spice perfectly.
Last but not least, and a personal favourite, was the scoglio seafood pasta.
This wasn’t just some pasta topped with a couple of prawns, this was absolutely packed full of juicy tiger prawns, mussels and squid – all perfectly cooked and tossed with garlic and cherry tomatoes in a silky sauce.
The recipe used for this one hasn’t changed in 70 years, and we’re glad that it hasn’t.
Images: The Manc
Elsewhere on the menu you’ll find seasonal specials such as your classic caesar salad and pan fried fish, as well as a selection of pizzas.
Of course it wouldn’t be an Italian feast without a tiramisu and this one hits all the right spots.
Indulgent with a punchy coffee flavour and almost cloud-like in texture, that’s a winning dessert if we’ve ever seen one.
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The space, set across two floors, is light and airy whilst the service is top notch. But don’t just take our word for it, find out more about Pranzo and book your table here.
‘Do not let Britain’s independent businesses disappear on your watch’ – Manchester bakery makes heartbreaking plea to Andy Burnham
Clementine Hall
A beloved Manchester bakery has issued an open letter to Andy Burnham ahead of the Budget begging him for help.
Barbakan Deli in Chorlton is basically an institution at this point.
The legendary bakery and delicatessen has been serving the community for 62 years, famed for its freshly-baked loaves of bread, its handmade sandwiches, and its pastries and cakes inspired by bakes from across Europe.
Posting on Instagram last night on Thursday 18 September, Frankie Dyer the director of Barbakan, issued an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Andy Burnham.
Images: The Manc Group
It read: “Dear Mr Burnham, As an independent business owner in the hospitality sector, I am begging you to please read this.
“Really read it. And seriously consider what businesses like mine are telling you before the upcoming Budget.”
It continued: “In just the last two years, we have self-funded new bakery machinery, new catering kitchens, essential repairs and renovations and opened a second retail site, creating another six local jobs. We have won more than ten national awards for the quality of what we do.
“We have invested. We have grown. We have employed more people. We have worked harder than ever. In short, Prime Minister, we are doing everything you keep asking British businesses to do.
“And our bank balance is finished. That is the reality.”
The letter finished by Dyer inviting Andy Burnham to come visit the bakery and pleading for a ‘fighting chance’ to save the business: “We need action. We need meaningful reductions in the tax burden placed on employers.
“We need Employer National Insurance looked at urgently. We need a business-rates system which allows independent high-street businesses to survive. We need VAT reform for hospitality. We need Corporation Tax to reward businesses which reinvest, employ and grow.
“And we need proper grants and incentives that help established independent businesses invest and expand — not schemes with endless criteria which most ordinary businesses can never access. We need you to do something.
“And we need more than one token gesture in the Budget. A band-aid for a bullet wound. So I am asking you, Prime Minister, to come back to Manchester and see it for yourself. Pop an apron on and stand behind our counter.
Images: The Manc Group
“Come into our bakery in the middle of the night and meet the people making Manchester’s bread while most of the city is asleep. Look at our payroll, our energy bills, our rates, our supplier increases.
“Look at what leaves our bank account every single week simply for the privilege of keeping 50 people employed and our doors open. You said you wanted a government that understood the regions. You now have an opportunity to prove it.
“Independent businesses across this country are not asking for a handout. We are asking for a fighting chance. I sincerely hope your next Budget gives us one”.
Georgina Pellant -
26th July 2021 
