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The family-run gem doing tapas, craft beer, cocktails and live music just outside Manchester

A PROPER good neighbourhood venue

Daisy Jackson - 3rd September 2026

A good neighbourhood restaurant should be somewhere you can pop in to at any time of day, for just about any occasion. 

Whether it’s coffee and a bake after the school run, a tapas night with your mates, a cosy cocktail with your partner, or even somewhere to end the night listening to live music, Gin & Brews is one such neighbourhood gem.

This brilliant family-run venue opened in an old bank in Garstang in 2023 and quickly spilled over into the unit next door, expanding its offering as it went. 

It’s gone from a cosy bottle shop and microbar to a true neighbourhood haunt, with fantastic deals (like two pizzas and a bottle of wine for £25 on Thursdays) and cocktails made with their own distilled spirits. 

The food is a big part of the appeal, particularly the tapas.

There’s bread and oils, chorizo and prawns, goat’s cheese and loaded potatoes, with plenty designed for sharing – you might want to order more than you think you need, but at £12 for three dishes, that’s no hardship.

Then there’s the homemade honey and sea salt butter. It’s the sort of butter you try once and immediately want to tell everyone about. 

For daytime visits, the brunch menu brings out perfectly poppable eggs and seriously good French toast, with the lemon curd a particular must-try.

And if you have dietary requirements, Gin & Brews is unusually well set up for gluten-free diners, with almost everything on the menu gluten free – even the beer – plus a generous selection of gluten-free bakes.

The drinks offering is where things get particularly interesting.

The team make their own spirits under the Garstang Gin name, with the distillery growing from just three spirits to an impressive 46.

It’s a natural progression for the owner, who previously worked in the drinks industry before leaving to set up her own gin distillery.

Those spirits now make their way into the cocktails at Gin & Brews, giving the bar plenty of its own character and making it a particularly good shout if cocktails are your thing.

There’s also a constantly changing selection of craft beer, with the range switching up regularly, alongside the bottle shop, so there’s always something new to discover.

For somewhere that has grown so quickly, Gin & Brews still feels firmly rooted in its community.

Much of what goes onto your plate is sourced from businesses on the high street, including local butchers and egg suppliers. Even some of the cakes and cookies are made by one of the members of staff.

It feels fitting for a venue in Garstang, which is recognised as the world’s first Fair Trade Town.

And while Wednesday and Thursday evenings are already busy, the team are keen to bring more people through the doors during the day. They certainly have the offering for it.

There are coffee-and-cake afternoons, brunch dates, tapas lunches, craft beer, cocktails and plenty of gluten-free treats to take away.

Then, when the sun goes down, the music comes on, with live performances at weekends and regular events bringing the place to life.

If you’re looking for a reason to venture out of Manchester for something a little different, this might just be it.

Gin & Brews has only been around for a few years, but it already feels like one of those places that has been part of the local scene forever.

And if the homemade butter doesn’t convince you, the cocktails probably will.

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Featured: The Manc Group