Eats

A traditional cafe serving retro favouties has opened on the third floor of Affleck’s

One of Manchester’s most famous café spots rises again.

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 2nd December 2022

A brand-new cafe has opened on the third floor of the iconic Afflecks building, offering an all-day menu of British classics, from breakfast through to closing time.

Serving cafe classics, Third Floor Rising will dish up quality breakfasts with specialities including meat, vegetarian and vegan fry-ups and breakfast rolls, BLT, teas, coffees – basically everything required to kick start the day.

There’s also a solid list of homemade favourites – such as Tommy’s homemade pies, paninis, toasties and filled rolls, alongside Sarah’s tray bakes and cakes.

Image: Third Floor Rising
Image: Third Floor Rising

Third Floor Rising has been brought to Afflecks by husband and wife team Tommy Heaton and Sarah Abell – long-time Afflecks fans who felt that it was the perfect space for their new venture. 

With a wealth of experience in hospitality spanning over 20 years, the pair decided now was the time to open their first space and atop one of the city’s most iconic buildings was too good an opportunity to miss. 

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As one of Manchester’s most famous café spots rises again, the inspiration for the name comes from the book of the same title written by author Hilary Mantel when she worked at Affleck and Brown. 

The cafe will be serving breakfast from 10.30am when Afflecks opens, as well as lunch and drinks all day long, designed to refuel hungry shoppers, visitors and traders alike.

The drinks menu includes coffees, smoothies, milkshakes and coolers. All of this will be brought to customers in a relaxed, homespun atmosphere with carefully considered vintage inspired interiors.

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Image: Supplied
Image: Third Floor Rising

From handwritten, daily-changing menus, to original 70s printed wallpaper, owners Tommy and Sarah wanted to emulate their own home and love of all things retro in the surroundings for the city’s new community cafe.

The welcoming space also reflects the amazing light and history within the building with its panoramic windows looking out onto the Northern Quarter. Plants and artwork from fellow Afflecks traders City and Bloom and Egoiste Gallery adorn the space.

Read more: Manchester has a stunning new rooftop restaurant as Climat opens its doors

Commenting on the launch, Tommy said: “Since we’ve joined we have loved getting to know everyone, from the cleaners to the management to the stall holders and the techs! 

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“It feels like a family – a family we are proud to be part of. We are excited about the next few years as we plan to serve up hearty, homemade food in one of our favourite places in the world and we hope other people will love it too.” 

Read more: This Chorlton bar will serve a Sunday roast for you AND your dogs

AJ Martyn, General Manager at Afflecks, added: “We are thrilled to welcome another amazing independent business to the Afflecks community.

“Third Floor Rising is the perfect fit for the cafe space and we think the classic menu will really appeal to our customers. Tommy and Sarah have poured so much into the concept and we’re excited to be supporting them on their journey.”

Feature image – Supplied

Eats

I tried the Manchester roast with a dedicated cauliflower cheese menu named the ‘UK’s best’

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant

Right, let’s talk cauliflower cheese for a moment. A non-negotiable on a roast dinner, I like mine steaming hot and encased in cheesy bechamel, slightly charred on top and oozing in the middle.

Truth be told, I’m more attached to cauliflower cheese than Yorkshire puddings (blasphemy up north, I know). Miss a Yorkshire off my roast and – as long as I’ve not ordered beef – we’ll be absolutely fine. But forget the cauliflower cheese? Well, I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive you.

Given my proclivity for the stuff, when Ducie Street Warehouse first launched its menu dedicated to cauliflower cheese my interest was piqued, to say the least.

Then at the start of this year, its Sunday roast offering was named the best in the UK. So, in the interests of roast-loving Mancs everywhere, I dutifully trotted down to give it a go. The things I have to do in the name of journalism, honestly.

Macaroni cauliflower cheese at Ducie Street Warehouse. / Image: The Manc Eats
Rosemary roasted leg of lamb roast with the biggest Yorkshire pudding I’ve ever seen at Ducie Street Warehouse. / Image: The Manc Eats

Mentally prepared to eat my body weight in cheese, I’d already familiarised myself with the menu. Ok, technically two menus. Ducie Street Warehouse has a separate one just for its cauliflower cheeses: with eight different styles to choose from.

We’re talking cauliflower cheese with vintage cheddar, freshly shaved black truffle, bacon frazzles, garlic and herb crumble, four kinds of cheese, blue cheese, macaroni, plus a cheezy option for the vegans.

According to the team, it’s ‘the ultimate Sunday side that deserves a place of its own.’ I couldn’t agree more.

As for the rest, its separate ‘Sunday with Sides’ menu also seemingly has it all. Dry-aged local shorthorn beef sirloin, W.H. Frost premium chicken breast, rosemary roasted leg of lamb and a weekly-changing vegan roast ‘with all the trimmings’.

Add to that its promising-sounding ‘Slice Of ‘SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE’ – a carvery-style mixed-meat plate priced at £27.50 – and it does seem like they’ve really thought of it all.

Read more: A Manchester restaurant is doing bottomless pancakes for Pancake Day

Cauliflower cheese topped with Frazzles and bacon bits at Ducie Street Warehouse. / Image: The Manc Eats
Cauliflower cheese topped with freshly grated black truffle at Ducie Street Warehouse. / Image: The Manc Eats

I opt for a pink leg of lamb, whilst my cheese-eating partner in crime goes for the beef (which also comes out beautifully pink). Both are served with crispy roasties on a mountain of seasonal veg, topped with the biggest singular Yorkshire puddings I think I’ve ever seen.

Gravy is generous, but there’s an extra jug plopped onto our table too – just in case. Being a gravy glutton, I pile it on. It comes out a bit thick for my liking, but still tastes delicious nonetheless.

As for the cauliflower cheese? It’s worth every bit of hype it gets. We try the umami-rich black truffle, blue cheese, macaroni and Frazzles options, filling our tiny table for two with an absolute mountain of cauliflower.

As ever, my eyes are bigger than my belly, but I give it a good go: packing up the rest to take home and eat in bed later.

Read more: This Manchester restaurant is serving a Sunday roast with bottomless drinks

I won’t beat around the bush. This is a deceptively BIG roast. Granted, we did order four portions of cauliflower cheese on the side, but still. Some roasts look good but lack substance. Not this one. This is the roast that keeps on giving.

Further add-ons include Tuscan pork stuffing, honey-roasted heirloom rainbow carrots, maple roasted parsnips, lemon and garlic broccoli gratin, macaroni cheese, plus extra Yorkshire puddings and gravy, not that we can manage it.

I’d definitely go back with a group, though, and see if we can get through it all. I honestly can’t think of a better way to spend a Sunday.

Feature image – The Manc Eats

Eats

Japanese-Brazilian hybrid, SakkuSamba, is putting on a special Valentine’s menu

Danny Jones Danny Jones SakkuSamba Valentine's Day

For anyone who hasn’t made it down to SakkuSamba, not only are you missing out but you might have also just found the perfect place to take your special someone this Valentine’s Day.

If you haven’t heard of this unique Spinningields restaurant before, SakkuSamba is the Japanese-Brazilian hybrid where surf and turf meet in an intimate and stylish setting.

From the moment you walk in to see the pink-hued lighting and floral surroundings, you immediately feel like you’ve been transported to a different world. And what better way to be greeted into that world than with a rose and a glass of fizz? Say no more.

That’s right, as part of their Valentine‘s offer, the menu not only kicks off with you being presented with a rose by the ever-welcoming staff, which you can then hand to your partner as if you planned the whole thing especially for them (we won’t say a word), but you also get a glass of prosecco on arrival too.

Credit: The Manc Group

SakkuSamba’s Valentine’s offering runs from 13-15 February and promises their unlimited dining experience as well as a special sharing dessert. You can book a lunchtime meal for £42.50 or secure yourself an incredible dinner for £55.50.

In case you’re wondering what makes it ‘unlimited’: part of what makes their dining experience so unique is how expansive their menu is, bridging across two beloved but equally varied cuisines.

Lucky for you, you’ll be able to order pretty much everything they have on it through a simple tablet on your own table, meaning you can spend even more time just the two of you on your special night.

As for the limited edition Valentine’s dessert, SakkuSamba’s Manchester restaurant will be creating its very own special sharing dessert and that’s all we’re allowed to tell you about it — all we know is that it’ll undoubtedly be delicious.

Credit: “

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It isn’t often you find a place that serves up both high-end sushi and proper steak cooked in keeping with Brazilian tradition, among numerous other big and varied flavours.

Better still, they have a seriously appetising drinks menu for you to get stuck into. After all, it’s Valentine’s, it’d be rude not to treat yourselves to a tipple.

You can book you and your significant other in for a special Valentine’s menu and all-round wonderful dining experience HERE.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Image — The Manc Group

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