When it comes to a lunch break in Manchester we really are spoilt for choice – but there’s a reason so many of us make the pilgrimage to the Piccadilly Street Food Markets every week.
This little huddle of colourful huts on the edge of Piccadilly Gardens is home to some of the best cheap eats in town.
The area has had a major upgrade in recent years from the days when it was just a couple of rows of gazebos, and now you’ll find the same familiar faces whipping up tasty lunches for queues of Mancs, five days a week.
Whether you’re after a healthy falafel wrap, an enormous Star Wars-inspired smash burger, or a proper Indian grill, the Piccadilly Street Food Markets have got your back.
Here’s a quick guide to all the traders currently operating here.
All the food at the Piccadilly Street Food Markets
Rita’s Reign
Rita’s Reign in ManchesterRita’s Reign in Manchester
There’s a reason Rita’s Reign attracts the biggest queues at the Piccadilly Street Food Markets – this is some properly good food.
You can get gigantic boxes stuffed with jollof rice, boneless jerk chicken, curry goat, vegan curry, plantain and more, with prices starting from £7. Unbelievable value for money.
The Bearded Feeder
The Bearded Feeder’s Wookiee burger at Piccadilly Gardens
A staple of the Piccadilly Street Food Markets, this stall is somewhere you can still get a filling lunch for a fiver – and you’ll get some pretty solid Star Wars puns on the side.
The Bearded Feeder serves the best smash burgers in the city from just £5, plus loaded fries, filthy hot dogs, tacos, and pulled pork.
Falafel King MCR
On the menu here you’ll find wraps stuffed with fillings that are great value for money.
Falafel wraps start from £5, but you can add in halloumi, aubergine, and fries, make it a meal deal, or order a falafel lunch box or salad instead.
Simply Delicious by Dine with Saira
Rice and three is a Manchester institution, but here lunch boxes include samosas, bhajis, seekh kebabs and loads more.
There’s a good choice of curries and grilled meats, plus samosas with the crispest pastry in Manchester.
Turkish Grill
‘Shawarma, doner, casserole!’ the team behind the counter at Turkish Grill holler out every lunchtime – a pretty effective marketing tactic, judging by the speed their meat dishes go flying out.
You can get a chicken shawarma wrap for £7, loaded with salad, meat, chips and homemade tzatziki.
Famous Philadelphia Cheesesteaks
It’s all about the meat here at Philadelphia Cheese Steak, served on chips, rice, or in huge sub rolls.
There’s a Buffalo chicken cheese steak, or a classic Philly cheese steak, which are both well worth your attention.
Nashville Chicken
The portions are as big as the flavours at Nashville Chicken, which serves a proper USA twist on all things chicken.
Expect chicken poutine, buffalo wings, Nashville chicken (obviously) and even a chicken cheese dog.
Piccadilly Bakes
You can’t walk past Piccadilly Bakes without their incredible cookies and cakes catching your eye.
Here you’ll find chunky cookies with gooey middles stuffed with pistachio creme, kinder Bueno and more, plus old-school chocolate cake and custard and loads more.
The Dutch Fishmen
Have you ever seen a potato being sliced into a spiral, jammed onto a stick, battered, and fried before? Well you have now!
The Dutch Fishmen are another familiar face around Manchester and also serve seafood dishes like cod bites, fried prawns and fish burgers.
Piccadilly Thai
Sometimes nothing will hit the spot quite like a hefty box of Thai food – and this place is a real craving-buster.
Their crispy chilli beef, bright orange sweet chilli chicken, Thai holy basil stir fry and many more dishes are available in mix-and-match boxes.
BangGaBangGa
This place used to operate under a different name and went insanely viral for its Korean corn dogs, which have molten mozzarella inside that will stretch for miles (okay not quite).
As well as these delicious snacks, they have authentic dishes like Tteokbokki, Korean rice cakes, served in a punchy and spicy sauce.
Chen’s Happy House
A hangover cure, boxed – each lunch at Chen’s Happy House is piled high with salt and pepper flavoured items, fried things, chips, rice, and noodles, with plenty of options.
A mobile Manc cocktail bar is rolling into a thriving new Greater Mancheser neighbourhood
Danny Jones
Greater Manchester has plenty of up-and-coming areas both here in the city centre and out in the boroughs, and one of those – Middlewood Locks over in Salford – is about to be treated to its own mobile cocktail bar.
You’ve got to love a Manc-born and bred independent business.
The canalside New Makers Yards apartments on Middlewood Locks are some of the most desirable new homes and flats you’ll find on the outskirts of the city, but with their on-site Seven Brothers pub sadly closing earlier this year, it is lacking one key thing: somewhere to drink.
However, with Cocktail Cartel MCR rolling into town for National Rum Day, residents can get a taste of, hopefully, what’s more to come.
Cocktail Cartel is a brand new, completely independent mobile bar that’s already starting to take the events industry by storm.
Serving unique and innovative creations (including plenty involving Captain Jack’s go-to tipple), they’ll be slinging cocktails to the New Makers Yards natives along the stunning and ever-thriving Middlewood Locks this month.
Created by Katie and Erik, who have been working in Manchester’s hospitality scene for nearly 20 years combined, these two have a passion for supporting fellow local indies and bringing amazing drinks to the table wherever the opportunity presents itself.
From their ‘Grown Up Coke Float’, which has all the punch of a classic Long Island Iced Tea only with a scoop of toffee ice cream, chocolate sauce and sprinkles thrown in there, to a Pedro Pascal-inspired tequila numbers (yes, really), they have a lot of fun behind that bar.
Better still, most of their spirits are coming from local legends, Spirit of Manchester, and for this particular upcoming event, it wouldn’t be right to host National Rum Day in 0161’s second city without a gorgeous bit of Salford Rum.
But it doesn’t stop at just cocktails; the Cartel will also be pouring pints from nearby Track Brewery among various other regional favourites.
Once again, they’ll be popping up at New Makers Yard on Saturday, 16 August from noon onwards, promising rum, cocktails, beer, wine, cider and softies – so let’s just hope we get plenty of sun for it.
Keep an eye on their socials for how you might be able to grab some freebies also…
If you visited the most recent edition of Middlewood Locks Fest, you know this place is buzzing when the weather hits just right and the drinks are flowing. See you there.
Featured Images — Cocktail Cartel MCR/Karen Wright Photography (supplied)
Eats
Manchester Arndale is slashing prices on food and drink across the shopping centre
Daisy Jackson
Manchester Arndale’s Summer Scran Fest is back – and that means there are some absolute bargains to be had on food and drink right across the shopping centre.
Throughout the month of August, restaurants, cafes and kiosks within Manchester Arndale will be offering some serious offers and deals.
This ranges from 25% off to buy-one-get-one-free deals, plus free meals for kids and plenty more.
Venues taking part in the Summer Scran Fest include Archie’s, Subway, Barburrito, Pizza Hut, HOP Vietnamese, Michaels Coffee House and plenty more.
And the leisure destinations within Manchester Arndale are getting stuck in too – think free drinks, combos and more at venues including King Pins and Urban Playground.
There are plenty of Manchester-born businesses getting involved and offering bargains to us all, like Archie’s giving out free soft serve when you spend £10, Barburrito offering a £10 meal deal (burrito, tortilla chips and a soft drink), and Lazy Sundae giving a free scoop of ice cream with any large drink purchase.
Big brand deals include a £5 meal deal at McDonald’s (4 Chicken McNuggets, Cheese burger or Mayo chicken; fries; and medium cold drink), and 25% off at Pizza Hut.
There’s 20% off at Sides in the Manchester Arndale Summer Scran FestLazy Sundae will do a free ice cream with a large drink purchase
Then there are newcomers to Manchester Arndale taking part in the Summer Scran Fest.
HOP, a new Vietnamese street food venue on Market Street, is doing 25% off, while Michaels Coffee House will knock 15% off their seasonal favourites like an Iced Maple Oat Matcha or an Iced Rose Coconut Matcha.
There’s also a 20% discount at Sides, the chicken shop backed by YouTube sensations Sidemen.
And as for leisure destinations – Urban Playground is doing 18 Holes of putters tech-infused mini golf, plus any three small plates from The Butcher menu for £28.20.
Kind Pins has 20% off food and drink, and Immersive Gamebox will do 20% off plus a free drink when you book a 60 or 30 minute gaming session.
Pick up a voucher booklet in the centre or download your offers from the Manchester Arndale website from 1 August.
Daisy Jackson -
28th June 2024 
