Five Greater Manchester street food markets have been named amongst the best in the UK, it has been revealed.
Yes, the top spot may have gone to Kommune in Sheffield but there are plenty of Greater Manchester places included in the list – including Bury Market and Northern Quarter favourite Mackie Mayor.
Other local food halls featured include Trafford’s Altrincham Market, Oxford Road’s Hatch, Piccadilly’s Freight Island, and the ever-iconic Bury Market.
Ranking at number three underneath Sheffield’s Kommune and Belfast’s St George’s Market is Mackie Mayor, which was praised for its rare breed steaks, fried chicken burgers, and flavoursome tacos, not to mention its location within a restored Grade II-listed building.
Elsewhere, Altrincham Market – run by the same team as Mackie Mayor – ranked at number 6 on the list whilst Hatch, Freight Island and Bury Market ranked at numbers 7, 8 and 9 respectively.
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Bury Market
Bury Seafoods
Image: The Manc Eats
The findings have come from new research commissioned by South Western Railway (SWR), which analysed each against their Google rating, number of Google reviews, Google search volume between Jan 2022 and May 2023, number of Instagram hashtags, and TikTok views.
The number one spot on the list, Kommune, is described as follows: “Kommune street food market can be found in a Grade II listed building in the city centre.
“It’s home to eight independent food traders including Fat Hippo which serves up stacked burgers and waffle fries, The Monkey Jar for a spicy fix of various Indian curries, and Edo Sushi which serves up sushi, sashimi, katsu curry, and other classic Japanese cuisine.
“Aside from the kitchens, there’s two bars, one beer stall and one coffee stall. Kommune accommodates vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free diners.
“It also hosts a quiz night every Thursday at 7pm, salsa classes every Wednesday evening, and yoga and brunch the first Sunday of each month.”
Also featured at number 4 on the list is Sheffield’s Cutlery Works, which comes from the same operators behind Liverpool’s The GPO and Salford’s Kargo Mkt, which is set to open in Media City this month and is one of the most hotly anticipated new arrivals of the summer.
Plans to build tower next to Manchester’s historic Britons Protection pub scrapped
Danny Jones
Punters, rejoice: plans to build a large apartment tower next to Manchester’s Britons Protection pub have reportedly been scrapped after a long, drawn-out process and widespread protests.
What a relief.
One of the city’s oldest boozers, the Britons Protection was due to be dwarfed by a large development reaching 26 storeys tall, which not only would have encroached on the cultural landmark and storied watering hole, but also blocked out its popular beer garden to the rear.
We’ve seen a similar loss of outdoor drinking space with the recent St Michael’s development, which has essentially removed the equally historic Sir Ralph Abercromby pub – though it is at least getting a refurb – but in truth, the ‘Protect the Protection’ fight has been going on much longer.
As per a notice published on Manchester City Council’s website this week, it now appears that the plans for 72 new flats have been cancelled, with developers Arrowsmith Management having officially withdrawn their application.
Run by Bahraini businessman Mohamed Abbas Haji, the company is now said to be reassessing its options for the ‘Apex Tower’ proposals.
Speaking to the BBC, Mark Brennan – who took over the pub back in January 2025 – said: “I’m quite happy to be honest, a lot of people say the pub might be busier with more people about, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to people coming in here.”
“It would have looked horrendous… It’s Grade II-listed, so the pub should always be here. It wouldn’t have been a good look, having a big ugly building on top of our building.”
Countless Mancunians have echoed the sentiment over the past few years, with appeals dating back to post-pandemic and a big awareness push in 2021.
Standing for more than two centuries and holding countless awards, it was never going to go quietly.
It also happens to be quite comfortably on our list of the cosiest pubs in Manchester and has been since day dot.
Anyone who’s been in will know the sense of a warm welcome the place always puts out, and we’re overjoyed to hear that years of petitions and campaigning to save it have paid off.
These stories don’t always end with the right outcome (not often enough, anyway), so we’ll definitely be raising a glass to the Britons Protected this weekend.
Unfortunately, we do still have some other sad news from the hospitality sector, as our oldest Manc publican has passed away at a fellow favourite pub.
Featured Images — CGI (via Arrowsmith Management)/Gerald England (via Geograph)
City Centre
Blossoms to play special ‘intimate’ 10th anniversary gig at The Deaf Institute, Manchester
Danny Jones
Local indie and alternative lads Blossoms have announced a special one-off anniversary show at none other than The Deaf Institute right here in Manchester.
Coming to the iconic small-cap venue this summer, the Stockport band will be marking the 10th birthday of their self-titled debut album by playing one of the smallest gig spaces in the centre, but one that was a massive milestone for them back in the day.
Now a full decade on from the breakout LP, released on 5 August 2026, Blossoms will be rolling back the years by playing the biggest hits from the record, along with a selection from the many other bangers that they’ve gone on to release since.
This is going to be one very special night for the SK natives.
We’re playing an intimate gig at The Deaf Institute on Weds 5th August to celebrate 10 years of our debut album! We’re going to record the show & release it as a special edition double CD of our new album. Pre-order it now for exclusive pre-sale access. https://t.co/ztAkh95RWspic.twitter.com/kuZNnJJBok
Blossoms have never shied away from championing their Stopfordian roots, but neither have they forgotten the city that helped establish them as one of the biggest bands in Britain.
For instance, this upcoming Deaf Institute show – which promises to be a much more intimate show than they’re used to doing these days – comes not even two years on from the mini Manc residency, when they played five nights here in Manchester over the course of a single week.
As we come up to the sixth studio project, Songs From The Wedding Cake, and already have two singles from the next release, we have no shame in admitting we still listen to those first tracks as much as ever.
With that in mind, it’ll be a surreal full circle for everyone, we’re sure, when Tom, Chaz, Myles, Josh and Joe take the stage in that hallowed hometown room with a capacity of just 250 next month; they’re even playing it EXACTLY 10 years on the precise date that maiden outing dropped: 5 August 2026.
Combine this with them pulling stunts like playing people’s weddings and popping up with a surprise set from inside a van outside 42s nightclub on Deansgate, and it’s hard to think of an artist nailing it as well as Blossoms are right now.
Fans can enjoy exclusive early access by pre-ordering the new Blossoms album on their website, and those who have already done so qualify for presale automatically – just keep an eye out for the code in your email inbox.
This limited window will open from 9:30am this Thursday, 30 July, with general admission tickets for their return to Deaf Institute going live at the same time the following Friday (31 July).
Oh, and in case you somehow missed it, they’re also set to play their biggest ever arena shows across the UK later this year, including a huge gig at Co-op Live. Find out all the info down below.
Georgina Pellant -
2nd August 2023 
