If someone were to ask me the root cause of most of my adult hangovers, I would turn and point at Albert’s Schloss quicker than you could say ‘stiegl’.
I’m not the only one either – this nightlife hotspot on Peter Street is busy all. the. time.
Whether it’s a few happy hour drinks straight after work or dancing on the benches into the early hours, there is always something going on in this Bavarian beer hall.
With a ‘Showtime’ programme of events that includes some sort of live entertainment every night of the week, it’s easy to see why most of us start and end our nights out here.
It all started back in 2015 and quickly grew, becoming one of the country’s most voracious venues with a footprint in multiple cities almost a decade later.
But despite us all knowing Albert’s Schloss so well, do we really know and appreciate everything it’s got going on beyond the party atmosphere?
Because I’ll bet a load of you didn’t know that Albert’s Schloss is also whipping up one of Manchester’s very best Sunday roasts.
Schweins in blanketsThis huge pork knuckle is one of Albert’s Schloss Sunday roastsCauliflower fondue
And that’s along with a pretty impressive, Bavarian-inspired food menu that’s always ticking away in the background.
I already proved that the city is slightly oblivious to the venue’s culinary prowess when The Manc Eats posted these pictures of the pastries made fresh here, and our audience were flabbergasted to learn that Schloss can be as much about viennoiserie as it is about Viennese beers.
So, back to those Albert’s Schloss roasts.
The huge venue hosts Sunday Service every week, where the house band serves up grooves to go with the gravy.
Alpine croquettesHummus and pickles
As you’re serenaded by goosebump-worthy harmonies, you can tuck into gigantic roasts and other comforting plates, like sides of fondue cauliflower and schweins in blankets.
The roasts themselves centre (obviously) around meat, with dry-aged beef, roast chicken, and a no-nut roast on offer, but the star of the show has and always will be the schweinshaxe, an enormous pork knuckle roasted to perfection and served with apple sauce.
If you’re not fancying a roast (who are you), there are other mains like a humble kroissant pie, pan-roasted salmon, and the venue’s signature cheeseburger.
Push for gravy buttons as the Albert’s Schloss Sunday roast
Groups should come ready to banquet. There’s a Bavarian Feast for sharing, which comes with – brace yourselves – roast pork knuckle, chicken schnitzel, bratwurst, kaiserwurst, chilliwurst, pork belly, sformoto, braised red cabbage, seasonal greens, bier jus, kraut, and pickles.
Oh and please, please, if you have even a hint of a sweet tooth, don’t leave without trying the black forest brownie, liberally flavoured with Amarena cherries.
There are also pretzel doughnuts ripe for dipping in a pot of melted chocolate, and classic apple strudel with vanilla sauce.
And all of it’s available for £29 for three courses.
So now with evening beers, late-night dancing, pastries, lunches AND Sunday roasts covered, Albert’s Schloss is bringing back the old 24 Hour Party People mantra.
Desserts included in Albert’s Schloss Sunday roasts menu
Manchester tapas spot Maricarmen open second city centre site
Danny Jones
Affordable Manchester tapas spot Maricarmen has just finished launching its second site in town, doubling its city centre presence with the official opening on Thursday, 4 September.
Maricarmen launched on Great Ancoats Street back in June 2023 and quickly became a firm Manc favourite, famous for their £3.50 dishes
When it comes to their small plate approach, they serve up some of the best tapas in Manchester, and even the shopfront seats at their popular roadside location are regularly full regardless of passing traffic.
However, if there’s ever been one gripe we’ve had with the place, it’s that the outdoor area isn’t the most peaceful, even if it is a stunning suntrap on a warm day – that’s where the new restaurant comes in.
Ancoats…… vs NQNew but familiar (Credit: Supplied/The Manc Eats)
We’ve been semi-regular visitors of Maricarmen ever since it started out life as a pop-up just around from Cutting Room Square, and they’ve gained speed and reputation ever since.
Known not only for authentic, value-for-money tapas, but welcoming plenty of punters for a simple drink as one of the best places for a sangria in central Manchester, they’ve managed to stay relatively just not just when the weather is bright but throughout most seasons.
While the Ancoats restaurant is known for the aforementioned roving ‘El Tableo’ style of service inspired by southern Spain, the newest location will be slightly different, revealing not only lighter colours and Alicante beach influences with a focus on alfresco eating, but lots of new specials.
Created by Marian Diaz and Jose Nunez, who previously owned a tapas restaurant in Madrid, La Porcineria, which was sadly curtailed by Covid.
On the bright side, Manchester has been the greatest beneficiary of their fresh start, and we can’t wait to see what venue number two delivers.
Co-founder, Diaz, said of the new opening: “Maricarmen is about compassion, hard work, strength, reinvention, opening our minds & hearts and connecting with people. It’s more than just food, for us, it is the beautiful moment when we see our customers and our coworkers smile because they are here.”
She went on to add, “To us, Manchester signifies the ability to reinvent and grow. The people here support you without expecting anything in return. It’s really beautiful. I have never felt this before in my life. […] We’ve built up such a loyal customer base of locals – many have become dear friends.
“And to be in a position to open a second site within two years and share our love of good food and great times with Manchester’s Northern Quarter is quite unbelievable.”
There really is a Costa Blanca beach house vibe to this bright, new yellow-accented corner of NQ and having tried some of their dishes, we can’t wait to get stuck in.
Be sure to follow them on socials too, not only for more announcements and updates but because it’ll give you an even better flavour of the vibes over there.
Popular Manchester cafe and bakery Gooey brilliantly responds to ‘2/10’ TikTok review
Daisy Jackson
Gooey, easily one of Manchester’s busiest bakeries and brunch spots, has clapped back at a negative review on TikTok with a refreshingly honest statement.
The local business shot to fame initially with its chunky, gooey cookies, but has since expanded from its hatch to have its very own cafe, famed for its enormous French toasts and its sandwiches made with baked-in-house Shokupan bread.
Generally, Gooey gets an incredibly good rap, with queues that speak for themselves stretching from its doors down High Street.
But one TikToker has shared a less favourable video review of the business, slamming it as ‘one of the most disappointing food experiences I’ve ever had in my life’.
The reviewer in question specialises in finding places you could eat comfortably as a solo diner, and ranked Gooey an overall 8/10 – but slated the food at a 2/10.
And now Gooey has shared their side of things, defending themselves against the reviewer’s claims that the food is ‘expensive’ and ‘tastes like it could have been made at Greggs’.
“Not everyone is going to like what you do and that is absolutely fair enough,” they wrote in a statement.
Gooey continued: “We’re not usually in the business of responding to negative reviews.
Gooey clapped back at the review that said its sandwiches were ‘too expensive’
“What has made us respond to this review is how often I’m seeing local businesses like ours targeted on costs.”
The cafe then justified the £10.90 cost for a bacon and egg sandwich, pointing out the bacon is cured in-house and cut thick every day by hand; the bread is also baked in-house daily; even the ketchup and brown sauce are made from scratch.
“With all that said, yes, we do have to charge more than you would pay for a bacon butty at Greggs.
“Listen, I understand this criticism. I used to get a bacon and egg butty before college for £1.95 from my local butty shop.
“We cannot do that here. We are paying Manchester City Centre rent. We employ a team of chefs, bakers, front of house, and more.
“And we are trying to make the best version of a bacon sandwich that we could.”
Chunky cookies at GooeyThe Gooey French toast that the review claimed was ‘too sweet’
As for the complaints that the French toast is ‘too sweet’, Gooey clapped back: “Yes, our French Toast is sweet. It’s filled with dulce de leche and topped with maple syrup.
“We personally love it and it’s our most popular item but if you don’t like sweet things, you might not like it!”
Finally, in defence of rising prices across the hospitality industry, they signed off with this brilliant piece of insight.
“Every single independent cafe, restaurant and bar across this country is charging more than they would like to be doing for their dishes.
“In 99.99% of cases, this is not greed, or us being thick, or trying to rip people off. It is simply the only way to survive with the costs we are facing.
“Even then, many of us are struggling to make it work.”
Anyone fancy meeting at Gooey for a bacon sandwich later then?
Daisy Jackson -
17th May 2024 
