This March, there are plenty of great Manchester restaurant and dining deals to get stuck into if you’re eating out on a budget (which, let’s be honest, most of us are).
Given that it’s such a tough time for hospitality, quite a few of the city’s bars, restaurants and cafes have decided to extend their food deals after seeing a huge upturn in business during January.
Whilst there are still great offers, we’re going to keep promoting them – and fortunately for us, there are some awesome set menus, lunch deals and general discounts going around.
From 50% off at Chakalaka, Firehouse and NQ favourite Trof, to £1 tacos, massive £2 hot dogs and lunch deals with a drink from £10, there are loads of great dining deals to get stuck into in Manchester this March.
Keep reading to discover the best Manchester restaurant deals, discounts and offers to try this month.
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50% off food – Manchester March dining deals
Chakalaka
What is it: Brightly coloured South African bar and kitchen in Manchester’s Northern Quarter.
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The offer: 50% off food.
T&Cs: Applies to mains only, all day Monday-Wednesday.
The Firehouse
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What is it: Buzzing venue on the cusp of Ancoats serving wild spirits, chargrilled chicken and some of the fluffiest pittas in the city.
The offer: 50% off pittas, stracciatella, hummus and kalamata tapenades, plus all bottles of wine and sparkling.
T&Cs: Available Wednesdays only with a booking.
Pen and Pencil
What is it: New York-influenced all day kitchen serving imaginative menus, as well as craft beers & cocktails.
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The offer: 50% off all food
T&Cs: Available Mondays only when you pre-book a table.
Trof
What is it: A dandyish den of indulgence in the heart of Manchester’s Northern Quarter. Famed for brunching and daily food specials, Sunday roasts and classic cocktails.
The offer: 50% off food.
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T&Cs: Available Tuesdays only.
Wood
What is it: MasterChef Simon Wood’s high-end restaurant down at First Street, perfect for a pre-theatre treat.
The offer: 50% off cheese and wine at Homage.
T&Cs: Every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings.
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More Manchester March dining deals
Almost Famous
What is it: Legendary burger bar serving the original ‘dirty burgers’ as well as loaded fries and wings.
The offer: £10 on selected burgers and fries.
T&Cs: Weekdays between 12-4pm.
A Taste of Honey
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What is it: Adorable little neighbourhood deli and cafe on Burton Road.
The offer: Living lunch deal. £3.50 breakfast / £5 lunch menu.
T&Cs: Available during set hours only.
Bab
What is it: Casual venue with an industrial vibe, prepping meze and fancy kebabs with homemade sauces and marinades.
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The offer: Two courses and bottomless drinks for £40 per person.
T&Cs: Available Fridays only from 3-10pm.
Bundobust
What is it: Indian vegetarian street food and craft beer hall with its very own Manchester brewery.
The offer: Two dishes for £9, including okra fries, bhajis, and tarka dhal and rice.
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T&Cs: Available at lunch time only.
The Blues Kitchen
What is it: Dedicated blues bar serving hickory-smoked comfort food, plus regular live music and DJs.
The offer: Selected dishes with a soft drink for a tenner.
T&Cs: Available weekdays only until 3.30pm.
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Cibo
What is it: Modern cafe/restaurant and prosecco bar, for Italian pizzas, grill dishes and sharing plates.
The offer: Two courses for £15.99 and three courses for £19.99.
T&Cs: Every Sunday – Friday from 5-7pm.
Cottonopolis
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What is it: Lively destination for Asian-inspired menus in a warehouse-style venue with a full bar.
The offer: Two dishes and a side for £13.
T&Cs: Available during lunch only, Monday – Friday 12-3pm.
Crazy Pedros
What is it: Part-time pizza parlour and mezcal / tequila party bar serving New York pizzas by the slice and the pie.
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The offer: £12 pizza, £2.50 slices, two cocktails for £12.
T&Cs: Available 5 – 9pm, Saturday – Friday.
Edinburgh Castle
What is it: Another classic pub reborn – cosy vibes and pies downstairs, fancy small plates upstairs.
The offer: Two courses for £30 or three courses for £35.
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T&Cs: Available Wednesday – Thursday 5-6.30pm and Friday and Saturday 12-3pm & 5-6.30pm.
El Capo
What is it: Mexican and Latin American dishes, plus tequila menu, in a casual, bare-brick space with a tiled bar.
The offer: Tacos from £1.
T&Cs: Monday – Thursday from 5pm.
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Habas
What is it: Middle Eastern-inspired dishes and cocktails in a comfy, relaxed space.
The offer: Three dishes and a drink for £15.
T&Cs: Tuesday – Saturday 12-5pm.
La Bandera
What is it: Market-fresh, classic Spanish cuisine in airy, contemporary space with yellow booths and banquettes.
The offer: Three mini tapas dishes and a soft drink for £15.
T&Cs: Sunday – Thursday 4-7pm.
The Marble Arch
What is it: Traditional boozer with its own and guest beers, plus food including cheeseboards.
The offer: 25% off starters, mains and desserts.
T&Cs: Available 12-4pm, Monday – Friday.
NAM
What is it: Cool, laid-back Vietnamese restaurant, bar and music venue based in Ancoats.
The offer: Any Pho and a Tiger beer for £12.
T&Cs: Available Thursdays only.
Nell’s
What is it: NYC inspired pizza parlour with locations in the city centre and Chorlton.
The offer: 14-inch pizza for £7.77.
T&Cs: Available weekdays only from 12-4pm.
Ramona
What is it:
The offer: £1.23 Margherita Slices and £6 margarita cocktails.
T&Cs: Available 4-7pm Wednesday, Thursday and Friday with a booking.
Salt Dog Slims
What is it: Late night dive bar hidden on a Manchester back street serving fat, delicious hot dogs.
A city centre gym has been forced into temporary closure after it was flooded following heavy rainfall on Greater Manchester on New Year’s Eve.
While lots of people were toasting the end of 2024 earlier this week, many other residents and local businesses woke up to a less-than-ideal way to start the new year as flooding plagued the likes of Stockport, Altrincham, Bolton, central Manchester and more.
A whole section of the Bridgewater Canal over in Dunham Massey, Cheshire and here in the city centre, the flow caused various sections bits of waterside path to disappear completely underwater.
Naturally, being a very canal-centric district, Castlefield ended up being one of the most heavily affected areas and, unfortunately, The Y Club gym and health centre saw much of their facilities flooded and have had to close for drainage and repairs.
The gym and health club said in a lengthy post on social media: “Overnight, the Y Club was impacted by severe flooding, which has affected the ground floor, including the swimming pool, changing rooms, gym and fives courts.
“This is devastating news for our staff, members, and the entire Y Club community. Our immediate priority is to address the situation and begin the process of reopening the affected areas. The floodwaters will need to subside before we can safely begin repairs and restoration efforts.”
Explaining that various rooms will be out of action for a more significant period, they have made plans to relocate the majority of their gym equipment into the sports hall – mostly unscathed in comparison – to allow for gym members to still make use of the facilities.
The message on Instagram goes on to read: “As a result of this, the Y Club will remain closed until Wednesday, 7 January. We will continue to provide updates on when specific areas of the club will be ready to reopen.
“We understand how important the Y Club community is to all of you, and we share in your frustration. Please know that we are working tirelessly behind the scenes to restore the club and get things back to normal as soon as possible.”
“Any questions you may have please contact the club via email [at] membership@yclub.org.uk. Thank you for your patience and support during this challenging time.”
We’re sure we speak for everyone when we say we hope they get back on their feet in time to reopen properly next week and that the damage/repairs aren’t too costly.
Y Club is located right next door to the Castlefield Hotel and although the two Liverpool Road buildings are attached, there has luckily been no word of flooding in the latter as yet.
The gym was the only popular Manchester destination to have been hit with the watery scenes either, as student favourite bar and nightclub Joshua Brooks was forced to close on New Year’s Eve after their basement room – which sits precariously just above the canal – unfortunately flooded as well.
Listen, quite of a few us here at The Manc are giving Dry January a go again this year and if there’s one thing we’ve learned it’s that it isn’t always the alcohol that we miss but more the feeling of sitting around a bar with your mates, drink in hand and talking rubbish, not a care in the world.
These days, alcohol-free stuff is getting pretty good and if you’re having a good enough time chatting away with you and yours, be it your partner, a loved one, your bestie or otherwise, you’ll be surprised how quickly you forget there’s you’re gulping down a zero or low-alcohol alternative.
Whether it’s a wheaty bottle of Erdinger, a cold pint of Lucky Saint, a fruity mocktail or even a crisp 0% gin and tonic, they all quench your thirst just as good as the real thing, only without any damage to your health and without the hangover the next morning.
We’re not going to pretend we don’t love a few beers at the weekend or a vino after a long day, but Dry Jan is a positive challenge we can all get behind and it doesn’t have to mean staying in or saying bye to the pub — so here’s five Manchester bars that do alcohol-free or low percentage booze really well.
Five zero-percent and alcohol-free friendly bars in Manchester
1. Hinterland – Northern Quarter
Opening up back in June 2024, Hinterland is currently Manchester’s only permanent and purpose-built alcohol-free bar and cafe, and while the place might be booze they’ve certainly added a real cosiness and creativity to the space. Oh yeah, it also happens tp be tucked away under the Buddhist Centre.
Roomy and with no reservations needed, dog-friendly, not to mention serving fresh cakes, bakes and a fully-fledged food menu from vegan heroes, Wholesome Junkies – who are now the main vendors of the basement bar – this place has grown pretty quickly.
It’s also become a vital community corner for those trying to come off drink, already in recovery or even just the sober-curious, as they host numerous events throughout the year to help people learn more about zero-alcohol living as well as socialise and meet new people on similar journeys. A wonderful spot.
2. Feel Good Club – Northern Quarter
Next up is a place that’s been at the forefront of wellbeing culture in the region since it first opened in 2020, came back fighting after an unfortunate break-in and has been serving up Mancs, healthy food, non-alcoholic bevs that will knock your socks off and nothing but good vibes ever since.
Located just on the corner of Hilton Street in the NQ, where it’s fair to say you’ll find some of Manchester’s very best pubs and bars, the regular crowds and easily enticed newcomers Feel Good Club pulls in will never make you feel like you’re missing out or should have wandered in elsewhere.
You can come in here for a tipple if you want but, honestly, there’s nothing like enjoying something off their all-day lunch and brunch menu followed by a ‘sober dolly’, ‘sober elton’ or one of their regularly rotating zero-alcohol cans of IPA. They even published their debut book, A guide to feeling good and being okay with it when you’re not in 2022 and do their own merch. Look good feel good and all that.
Feel Good Club has all the best bits of a bar, cafe and hangout spot only you can do it all alcohol-free. (Credit: Feel Good Club/Instagram)
3. New Century – Victoria
In at number three is one of the city centre‘s best new food vendor halls, bars and entertainment venues, which just so happens to be doing a very good deal to kick off the year too, which they’ve appropriately dubbed ‘Dry Scranuary’.
We’re talking about New Century over in the heart of the regenerated NOMA district and not only is the ground floor of this big open-plan venue the perfect place for you and a bunch of mates to pile into and have a bite, but they’re also giving you an extra incentive to do so whilst staying off the sauce.
Throughout all of January, you can get a free non-alcoholic beverage with any main all-day from Wednesday to Sunday and, hey, you can always head upstairs for a gig afterwards as well. Sold.
Now, if you fancy sipping and savouring something fancy whilst still feeling like you’re treating yourself to something a bit posh and special as somewhat of a reward for another day of Dry Jan down, why not do it at a bar that’s been named best in the UK two years running and one of the best in the world?
Schofield’s is the kind of place where you’re not going in to get drunk in the first place: you’re there to take in the atmosphere and aesthetic, appreciate the immaculate service and admire the expertly made drinks. Lucky for you, they have an entire menu packed with non-alcoholic concoctions.
Stylised as their ‘Temperance’ selection, you can enjoy everything from a colourful Club Tropicana to a classic Virgin Mary or even a ‘Frosty Toddy’: honey, ginger, lemon and soda. Sweet, simple and sublime. If there’s anyone who can make a drink that doesn’t need any alcohol in it, it’s these wizards.
The fifth and final entry on our whistle-stop tour of Manchester bars that are great at low percentage and alcohol-free libations is the one and only Zouk Tea Bar and Grill over on Chester Street.
Serving up some of the best Indian and Pakistani food you’ll find in any of the 10 boroughs, not to mention a firm favourite amongst almost everyone in the office, this popular restaurant situated just off the Oxford Road Corridor doesn’t just serve up banging food but some of the best mocktails you’ll find.
With five different types of mojito – including their much-loved ‘special’ – cosmos, daiquiris, pina coladas and our personal preference, the ‘Summer of 69’ (mango and pineapple juice with passion fruit, lime and a shot of grenadine), there’s something for everyone. The perfect kind of refreshment to pair with mounds of bottomless Zouk curry or brunch. Might as well whilst you’re there.
Not strictly a bar but Zouk are just as skilled at alcohol-free as they are their cuisine. (Credit: The Manc Group)
As always with these lists, this is just a taste of the low and alcohol-free options Manchester has to offer these days as Britain continues to reassess its bar and binge culture.
For starters, places like the Printworks have such a healthy selection of mocktails, low and no-alcohol drinks at the likes of O’Neills, Bierkeller, Hard Rock Cafe, Boom Battle Bar and more that you’d never had to walk for more than a few yards between tipples. They’re even offering £20 off through their app.
Other honourable mentions have to go to the likes of the award-winning brains behind Blinker Bar, the stylish but unpretentious cocktails specialists at Stray, the charming Parisian-inspired drinks at The Daisy, the marvellous mocktail menu at Etçi Mehmet and so many others.
But a month goes by in a flash and we didn’t want to ram a load of bars down your throat, so this handful should do you just fine. Instead of making Dry January feel like a slog or a chore, let’s keep that lovely feeling of having a social drink going and remember it’s about who’s cheersing the glass, not what’s in it.
Lastly, we couldn’t talk about alcohol-free bars without touching on the pop-up that arguably started it all: LoveFrom, which sadly announced its closure back in July 2024.
But fear not, founder Karl Considine says the one-time Kampus resident has insisted they will be back in the near future and we can only thank people like Karl for getting the ball rolling when it comes to the alcohol-free bar scene here in Manchester city centre.
If you’re looking to make the most of your visits to bars and restaurants around Greater Manchester in January, you can find all the best deals down below.
Best of luck for the rest of Dry Jan and whether you’re counting down the days to that first drop or turning over a new leaf, we know you can do it.