If you’re looking for cheap eats in Manchester, you’ve come to the right place.
From sushi to shawarma, curries, sandwiches, jerk chicken, burgers, rice, noodles and more, if you’re dining out on a budget (and let’s be honest, who isn’t right now) then we’re here to help.
We’ve pulled a list of some of our favourite go-to spots for a solid scran that won’t break the bank. Keep reading to discover where to put on your list next.
This tiny bakery and shawarma shop in Rusholme is almost too easy to miss. Don’t pass it by, though. This might be one of the best bargains to be had in Manchester.
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The freshly-made naans, filled with shavings of delicately spiced chicken or lamb, salad and sauce, make a great cheap eat – priced at just £2.50 each. Falafel sandwiches will set you back £2, or you can get 3 naan for just £1. Bargain.
Wasabi, Chinatown / Printworks
Credit: Wasabi Manchester
A little bit of Japan in Manchester, Wasabi is known for its sushi and tonkotsu ramen – cooked for a minimum of 18 hours.
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With two sites in the city, one in Chinatown and another in the Printworks, it also has some great value sushi boxes. Even better, at lunch you can get sushi off the belt from just £1.20 a plate.
EatGoody, Universities
Cheap eats near the universities in Manchester at EatGoody. Credit: EatGoody
This popular Korean eatery by the unviersities sells boxes in two sizes. Choose from cubed potatoes, rice, spicy rice or noodles for your base, then opt for specials like chicken curry, tofu tempura bimbim, or veg dumpling curry, depending on the day.
Priced from £5.40 for a regular or £7.40 for a large, you get a lot for your money here either way – but can also opt for add-ons like kimchi salad, boiled and fried eggs.
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Tzatziki’s, Fallowfield
Credit: Eat MCR
Credit: Tzatziki’s
This family-run business in the heart of student land is credited with getting more undergrads through their degrees than any other local eatery.
The gyros here are legendary, but there is loads more to discover too. Dishes are cooked by Greek chefs and draw mostly from Greece, with some wider Mediterranean inspiration. Prices start from just £4.30.
This & That, NQ
This & That is one of Manchester’s best cheap eats restaurants. Image: EATMCR
Probably the first place any self-respecting Manc will point you if you ask for a cheap eats recommendation, This & That’s rice and three cafe is fabled here in the city.
As the name suggests, you get three curries and rice for a fixed price – £4.50 for veg, £5 for two veg and one meat etc. – from a set list of curries that change on a daily basis. Tucked just off the beaten path, find it on Soap street by Trof.
Recently featured in The Guardian, this beloved Hulme Carribean institution is famous for its jerk chicken, veggie stew and lamb chops – and that’s just for starters.
Find stuffed cornmeal patties, blackened whole plantains, rice and peas, fried dumplings, fried squid, fried chicken and more with prices starting from just £1. Meals tend to sit around the £7.50 mark, whilst retro puddings like school dinner cake will cost you £2.50 a pop.
This legendary curry house on Manchester’s curry mile has seen more high-profile musicians walk through its door than most. A favourite of Hit&Run head honcho Rich Reason, for years it was a late-night favourite of clubbers – staying open until 5am.
Post-pandemic, that’s changed and you can only get a scran until 1am now. It’s still a top spot, though. The lamb karahi is the stuff dreams are made of, ditto the chargrilled lamb chops. Curries start from £6.50, burgers from £2.
Rack, Stockport
At Rack, it’s all about the sandwiches. All handmade to order, find ingredients stacked between sourdough or squashed into shiny, buttery brioche.
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Grilled cheese is another speciality, the three-cheese classic served with red onion dipping gravy on the side. Breakfast boxes and salads are also available, with prices starting from £4.40.
Habesha, Gay Village
Image: Flickr
This Ethiopian restaurant, hidden above a takeaway in Manchester’s gay village, has been quietly ticking away for years.
Serving up richly-spiced traditional curries on soft, spongy sourdough-fermented injera bread, at this no-frills joint, it’s all about the food – not your social media pictures. Prices start from £9.
Offering a mix of traditional Tibetan dishes and those with Himalayan roots, Tibetan Kitchen has gained a cult following in South Manchester where it is based.
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Influenced by the food of neighbouring India, China and Nepal, the ever-growing menu is great for vegetarian and vegans and offers many meat and fish options too. Prices start from £6.50.
Go Falafel, NQ / Deansgate
Our go-to in the city centre for fresh falafel, it’s not just the herby chickpea goodness that does it for us here – it’s all the salads, pickles and other ecoutrements too.
Falafel wraps are stuffed with your choice of pickled cabbage, potato, salad, tahini, chilli sauce and lashings of fresh hummus, plus extras like grilled aubergine. There’s salad boxes and freshly squeezed juices too. Prices start from £5.50.
Disney On Ice is returning to Manchester this winter on latest UK arena tour
Danny Jones
Whether you’re looking for something to give your children a thrill, or you’re a fully fledged ‘Disney adult’ yourself, you’ll be glad to hear that the smash-hit Disney On Ice show is coming back to Manchester city centre later this year.
Returning globally for its 45th anniversary and celebrating over three and a half decades here in the UK, Disney On Ice is set for its 16th edition here in Manchester this winter.
Bringing iconic characters, storylines and scenes to life with incredible choreographed ice-skating routines, as well as all-singing-all-dancing musical numbers, you won’t find many more spectacular family-friendly live shows than this one.
Well and truly a staple of the annual entertainment calendar around the globe, these performances attract millions every year, and now thousands more will get to watch the latest version at the AO Arena.
As written on the social media post confirming the next batch of dates, the venue wrote: “Follow the quest for Tinker Bell through the dazzling worlds of Coco, Moana, Frozen, and Beauty and the Beast.
“Experience thrilling skating and memorable moments from Aladdin, Toy Story, and The Little Mermaid. Watch Stitch crash the action with mischievous surprises. It’s non-stop fun for the whole family!”
Dubbed ‘Discover The Magic’, this upcoming iteration of the Disney format is said to be all about “celebrating love and bravery”; expect more than 170 dazzling costumes made by over 100 artisans using thousands of yards of fabric, adorned with hundreds of thousands of hand-set Swarovski crystals.
One of the most impressive parts about these performers – besides their obvious gifts for music and movement – is how quickly they change outfits, transforming in under 30 seconds before stepping back out onto the impressively designed stage, which is estimated to weigh in excess of 12,000 pounds.
You can take a glance at the scenes from their most recent spring tour of a similar name down below.
Such an impressive display all-round.
You can find the full list of UK shows here – we’ve highlighted all the Northern ones for you:
Disney On Ice UK tour dates – winter 2026/27
Birmingham bp pulse LIVE: Oct 28 – Nov 8, 2026
Newcastle Utilita Arena: Nov 11 – Nov 15, 2026
Nottingham Motorpoint Arena: Nov 19 – Nov 22, 2026
Aberdeen P&J Live: Nov 26 – Nov 29, 2026
Belfast SSE: Dec 3 – Dec 6, 2026
Sheffield Utilita Arena: Dec 9 – Dec 13, 2026
Manchester AO Arena: Dec 16 – Dec 20, 2026
London The O2: Dec 24 – Jan 3, 2027
With the likes of other big Disney Concerts and the Entertainment group productions coming to Manchester over the next year or so, including the recently announced Worlds Collide UK crossover tour, there are plenty of opportunities to immerse yourself in all kinds of classic movie magic.
The pre-sale opens from 10am this Friday, 12 June, which you can prepare for now; as for general admission, tickets will be available from the same time on the last Friday of the month (26 June).
All-new VIP magical passes have also been added for the very first time this year, meaning guests of all ages can enjoy all the glitz and glamour possible.
Whatever package you and/or the kids fancy, you can get ready to grab yours right HERE.
For anyone interested in seeing other animated and digital favourites brought to life in the flesh right here in the city centre, this one might interest you, too…
Calling all self-declared otakus, cinephiles and gamers – this one looks right up your street. 🎼
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied via AO Arena)
City Centre
The legendary Hulme community pub The Old Abbey Taphouse has been reborn
Daisy Jackson
The closure of The Old Abbey Taphouse was a real blow for Hulme and the surrounding university district area; the community pub was a bit of a local institution thanks to its grassroots music and inclusive atmosphere.
But now it appears that the spirit of the venue lives on, under the new name of The Abbey.
Some of the city’s most experienced independent operators – who have been behind venues like YES and The Deaf Institute, and music promoters Now Wave – will be the new custodians of this beloved local landmark.
The pub, which closed early last year, has now been carefully and lovingly restored ahead of its big relaunch, which will start in true Manc vision with an exclusive opening night gig.
The Abbey is reborn. (Credit: The Manc Group)
The vision for its new chapter will be ‘Old Pub, New Music’, creating a new home for grassroots live music and emerging artists.
There’s also affordable, hearty pub grub, including Pieminister pies, and a huge range of beers from local breweries and beyond.
Bringing The Abbey back to life are a core team of four: Ruth Hemmingfield, Wesley Jones, Jonathan Wickstead and Gareth Butterworth.
Ruth, Jon and Wesley are co-owners of YES; Ruth previously launched and programmed landmark Manc venues including The Deaf Institute, Gorilla and Albert Hall; while Wesley and Jonathan, through Now Wave, promote hundreds of independent gigs and live events each year.
As for Gareth, he’s the founder of the multi-venue festival Manchester Psych Fest, meaning that all of them have plenty of hospitality, late-night, live music and events experience between them.
The team behind The Abbey pub. Credit: Piran Aston
The rear of the site of The Old Abbey Taphouse will be extended to create a new dedicated live music and events venue, while the cherished beer garden is given a facelift with new decking and its own bar.
The Abbey has stood in Hulme since the 1890s, playing an important role in the area’s heritage – this is where activist Len Johnson managed to overturn the shameful ‘colour bar’ policies of the 1940s.
Its restoration and relaunch are part of the flourishing Manchester Science Park development.
Matthew Pazos, Senior Retail Commercial Manager at Bruntwood SciTech, said: “Ruth, Wesley and Jonathan are the perfect custodians to breathe new life into The Abbey.
“Their reputation for running independent spaces in Manchester, alongside their live music expertise, will ensure this much-valued pub once again becomes a beating heart for Hulme and the wider neighbourhood.
“The reopening of The Abbey will create an inclusive new hub that welcomes everyone – from the Hulme locals who have looked after the pub over the years, to the Manchester Science Park community, university students, and the many residents and workers across the Oxford Road Corridor.
“We are delighted that such a culturally significant and important pub is set to open its doors once again.”
Ruth from the new Abbey team commented: “We love a good pub. With The Abbey, we’re excited about bringing a brilliant old pub back to life, protecting what people loved about it, and creating something special: a great local, alongside a vital grassroots music venue for the area.
“We’re honouring the pub’s history while building its future.”
Georgina Pellant -
15th February 2022 
