August has arrived, and with it, we’ve unearthed some cracking Manchester restaurant and bar deals.
Plenty of local bars seem to be capitalising on the terrible weather we’ve been having by launching rain-specific happy hours, and the proliferation of 50% off dining deals doesn’t seem to have slowed down at all.
There is also a pub in Salford giving its diners the chance to win £72,000 worth of prizes when they dine from its £22 set menu this month that is well worth a look-in.
Keep reading to discover the best dining deals and drink offers in Manchester this August.
50% off food and drink – Manchester August dining deals
Image: The Bay Horse
Image: The Firehouse
Corbieres
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The offer: Free pizza
T&Cs: Free pizza when you buy a drink, every Tuesday to Friday from 4-7pm
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Disorder
The offer: 50% off bottles of prosecco, 50p wings
T&Cs: Drinks offer only available when it’s pouring down with rain. Say ‘If it rains, it pours’ at the bar to get the deal. 50p wings every Wednesday.
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Ducie Street Warehouse
The offer: £5.55 selected drinks and dishes
T&Cs: Available Monday to Thursday from 5 to 5.55pm.
Elnecot
The offer: Soup and sandwich £8
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T&Cs: Available Monday to Friday, 11am to 3pm.
Italiana Fifty Five
The offer: 50% off food
T&Cs: Available Sunday to Thursday throughout August, booking required.
La Bandera
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The offer: 50% off food
T&Cs: Mondays and Tuesdays, maximum six per booking. Booking required.
Muse Uppermill
The offer: 50% off the menu*
T&Cs: *some exclusions apply. Available every Thursday
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On The Hush
The offer: 50% off food
T&Cs: Available to walk-ins 12pm to 2pm, Thursday and Friday
The offer: Three small plates £17.50, five for £27.50
T&Cs: Available Wednesday to Saturday, 4 to 10pm.
El Gato Negro
The offer: Three dishes for £18
T&Cs: Available Monday to Friday 12 to 4pm, all day Sunday.
Exhibition
The offer: A dish and a drink for £10
T&Cs: Available Wednesday to Friday, 12 to 4pm.
Habas
The offer: Main, side and a drink for £15.
T&Cs: Available Tuesday to Friday, 12 to 5pm.
Hawksmoor
The offer: Two courses for £26, £15 steak and frites ‘strike offer.
T&Cs: Set menu available for reservations made Monday-Saturday until 6.30pm and all day Sunday. Steak and frites offer applies whenever there is a rail strike (book quoting ‘strike steak’).
Henry C
The offer: £5 negronis (from a choice of ten)
T&Cs: Available Thursdays 4pm-late.
Juice Box
The offer: £5 negronis
T&Cs: All day every day, 12-10pm.
Our Neighbourhood Bar
The offer: 30% off pizza
T&Cs: Available every Monday in August
The Black Friar
The offer: Two courses for £22
T&Cs: Available from a set menu all day Monday, 12 to 6pm Tuesday-Friday. Walk-ins and bookings welcome
The Famous Crown
The offer: Four bar snacks for £22
T&Cs: Available throughout August.
The Jane Eyre Ancoats
The offer: £7 cocktails, £30 house wine with two snacks, £8 classic cocktails on Sundays
T&Cs: Tues – Thurs 3 to 6pm ongoing, every Thursday throughout summer, Sundays from 6pm.
The Jane Eyre Chorlton
The offer: Lunch menu 3 for £15
T&Cs: Tuesday to Friday, 12 to 5pm.
Public
The offer: £4 pints and wine, £6 daiquiris
T&Cs: Available only when it’s raining, weekdays until 8pm.
Santé
The offer: £15 for 3 small plates or tapas
T&Cs: Available weekly, starting from 4pm Tuesdays and finishing at 5pm Fridays.
Featured image – The Manc Eats
Eats
I went all the way to Paris to test out Big Mamma ahead of Manchester’s most exciting new restaurant opening
Daisy Jackson
Hospitality heavyweights Big Mamma Group are finally heading to Manchester, opening a Circolo Popolare Italian restaurant in the city centre – so we nipped over to Paris to see exactly what’s in store for us.
In the 10 years since launching their very first restaurant, East Mamma in the 11th arrondissement of Paris, the group have spread their wings wide.
There are Big Mamma Group restaurants, under several different names, all over Europe – and although they all belong to the same family, each one is treated like a total individual.
Some have maximalist, kitsch interiors with animal print furniture, gilded ceilings and retro prints of men in Y-fronts; others are more traditional trattorias with exposed brick, terracotta floors and crisp white tablecloths.
These interiors are fun, which is so refreshing in an industry which sometimes takes itself a bit too seriously.
On our tour of Big Mamma restaurants in Paris I came across delightful details like a loo wallpapered in pictures of Rod Stewart, a cocktail menu designed like a retro football sticker book, and an ice cream parlour built into an old train station carriage.
Every corner is packed with whimsy and wonder and there’s a whole team dedicated to sourcing these little touches from antiques fairs, second-hand shops and independent makers, stashing them all in an Aladdin’s Cave of a warehouse. Each restaurant even has its own crockery pattern.
East Mamma, one of Big Mamma’s Paris restaurantsNo Entry cocktail barA Big Mamma speakeasyPink MammaLa Felicita food hallLa Felicita food hall
So yes, the interiors in Manchester will be similarly interesting and lavish.
Big Mamma Group has already confirmed that the huge two-storey Circolo Popolare trattoria will be inspired by a Sardinian Festa, meaning cosy alcoves, more than 8000 bottles of vintage booze, and a vast room inspired by an overgrown Mediterranean courtyard.
As it takes shape in Gary Neville’s £400m St Michael’s development, they’ll be moving in big sharing tables, antique trinkets, reels of twinkling lights and even an Italian wishing well ahead of the big launch next month.
But not enough of us are talking about the food yet – this is a restaurant group that sources its produce from 160 different Italian artisans to ensure that everything you’re eating as authentic and delicious as possible.
Food at Big Mamma
While the menus shift between restaurants you can expect hearty bowls of handmade pasta laced with truffle or tomato or cheese, crispy-soft pizzas layered in creative sauce bases (like zucchini cream or black truffle cream, along with their classic San Marzano DOP tomato sauce), and per iniziare starters like giant burrata balls, melt-in-the-mouth croquettes, and slivers of cured meats – all prepared in an open kitchen run by Campanian-born Alfonso Esposito.
And a show-stopper for Manchester will be an outrageous six-inch lemon meringue pie, with a wibbly wobbly tower of Italian meringue on top.
Circolo Popolare will officially open its doors on 6 June – and before then, there’ll be a very limited soft launch where you can snag yourself 50% off your bill. Sign up HERE, with bookings live on Monday 12 May.
The massively underrated rooftop terrace in Manchester with great views and top cocktails
Daisy Jackson
Manchester city centre is generally STARVED of outdoor space, but we’ve found the perfect sun-soaked oasis where you can enjoy a bit of fresh air and a whole lot of great food and drinks.
Tucked up on the sixth floor of the award-winning boutique hotel King Street Townhouse, you’ll find a rooftop terrace with beautiful views of the city’s skyline.
As Manchester buzzes along beneath you, you can tuck in to everything from full charcuterie grazing boards to seasonal snacks and small plates, all served alongside an impressive wine and cocktail list.
This often-overlooked local spot is a firm favourite of those in the know, thanks to its sheltered location that basks in the sun all afternoon.
And although it’s in a prime city centre location, just a stone’s throw from Deansgate, St Peter’s Square and Market Street, it’s a luxurious escape from it all – as is the entire boutique hotel it’s part of.
Whether it’s a post-work social, a relaxed date night, or a cheeky afternoon cocktail, the King Street Townhouse Terrace is open to the public and available for walk-ins or bookings when it isn’t privately hired.
On the menu you can expect locally-sourced dishes like Pollen sourdough served with whipped butter, a meat or cheese grazing board loaded with British produce, and larger plates like a beef and bone marrow burger or a fried fish roll topped with crisps.
British charcuterie grazing boardSpritzes on the King Street Townhouse terrace
Pairing perfectly with a spritz or a beer are snacks like deep-fried Gordal olives, stuffed with fennel sausage, and a brioche garlic bread packed with cream cheese.
The hotel has a cocktail list that celebrates classic drinks and a few of their own signature concoctions, and it doesn’t feel much more luxurious than when you treat yourself to a glass of sky-high champagne with views like this.
The South Terrace can also be hired privately for leisure or corporate events, with tailored catering options including summer BBQs.
And you can ramp up your trip to this oasis by staying overnight in one of the boutique hotels’ rooms, or visiting the King Street Townhouse ESPA spa for a treatment.
Find out more about the terrace at King Street Townhouse HERE.
The terrace at King Street Townhouse hotelThe terrace at King Street Townhouse hotelDeep-fried olivesGarlic bread with creamed cheeseKing Street Townhouse hotel
Georgina Pellant -
5th August 2023 
