One of Prestwich’s best-loved independent restaurants has announced the end of its current chapter, saying that it’s become too difficult to operate with tighter and tighter margins.
Dokes, a pizzeria that also served arguably the town’s best roast dinner, has said that it’s going to ‘have to call it a day’ after three years in the proudly independent neighbourhood.
The news comes just months after Rudy’s opened its first Prestwich restaurant just across the road from Dokes, though that of course may just be a coincidence…
The restaurant comes from the same team behind Elnecot in Ancoats, and opened in 2022, promising delicious pizzas made with (wherever possible) British ingredients.
In a statement issued today, chef and owner Michael Clay said that ‘it’s just not been possible for us to make the money required for the size of team needed to run as a pizza restaurant’.
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He wrote: “We are a small restaurant and the margins that were there pre-Covid are not achievable anymore at this scale and only getting tighter month on month.”
He then teased that they would be keeping the Bury New Road site on, with plans to reopen as a new concept.
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Prestwich has been growing in popularity in recent years, with a blossoming food and drink scene and healthily increasing house prices.
It’s on the precipice of a £100m overhaul too, which will see the Longfield Centre transformed and new facilities built near the tram stop, including a community hub, a new village square, a market hall, flexible retail and leisure spaces, landscaped outdoor and green spaces, a new travel hub off Fairfax Road and around 200 homes.
It’s always been a village packed with local small businesses until this year, when both Rudy’s and Gail’s opened up – prompting this heartfelt statement from another local indie.
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Dokes’ full statement reads: “After nearly 3 years of trying our hardest, unfortunately we’re going to have to call it a day.
“Having originally taken on the premises in between the two lockdowns (remember them?!), we’ve been extremely proud of what we have achieved under sometimes unbelievably difficult circumstances. Our staff have been the cornerstone of this and we would like to thank them for all of their hard work. The feedback we have received over the past couple of years on their food, service and hospitality has been absolutely incredible and we are extremely grateful for the hard work they have put in and the commitment they have shown.
“We feel like we have created a product that you have absolutely loved and a space that you have enjoyed coming to and we now really feel like a part of the Prestwich community – and for that we can’t thank you enough! You came for the pizzas and stayed for the roasts and it’s been a lot of fun.
“Try as we might though, it’s just not been possible for us to make the money required for the size of team needed to run as a pizza restaurant. We are a small restaurant and the margins that were there pre-Covid are not achievable anymore at this scale and only getting tighter month on month.
“So it is with a heavy heart that we are closing the door on this chapter BUT…we aren’t going to be leaving you completely…
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“We have plans for the place which we will be updating you about very soon so please watch this space for more details. We hope you’re going to love it.
“As Dokes, Sunday 9th March will be our final service so please come down over the next couple of weeks, grab a pizza or a roast and say hello. It would be lovely to see you all. Bookings are open and the cellar is stocked so lets fill the little place up and go out with a bang!
It’s since expanded, launching in Sheffield earlier this year – and now Forbici has set its sights on the Trafford Centre.
The Neapolitan pizzeria will be taking over the former Franco Manca site in The Orient, bringing its biga dough and biga crusts with it to its third location.
Pizza dough here is slow-fermented to create a light, risen crust, before being topped with quality ingredients like San Marzano tomatoes and Italian produce.
Forbici will be bringing their Manchester special, the Lancashire Hotpot, to the Trafford Centre – a pizza topped with crisps.
Other signatures include the Provola e Pepe (topped with San Marzano tomato, smoked provola, black pepper and fresh basil), as well as indulgent white-base pizzas such as the Porcini e Tartufo, loaded with Fior di latte, porcini mushrooms, Italian truffle sauce and chives.
Forbici translates as ‘scissors’ in Italian, and pizzas here are always served with scissors rather than a knife and fork – diners are encouraged to snip their dinner into quarters for the ultimate pizza experience.
Toni Dennan at Forbici said: “We don’t believe pizza should ever be ordinary. Forbici is rooted in the traditions of Naples, made with real craft and precision, but it’s also built with the energy, creativity and ambition of the cities and locations we call home.
“Every detail matters to us, from the dough and ingredients to the atmosphere in the pizzeria. Opening at Trafford Centre gives us the opportunity to bring that experience to even more people and show that pizza, when it’s done properly, can still surprise, delight and create a real sense of occasion.”
Simon Layton, Centre Director at Trafford Centre, said: “We’re delighted to announce that Forbici will be joining us at Trafford Centre, adding to our ever-evolving range of fantastic restaurants.
“As a local success story, we’re thrilled to be championing another Manchester success story, and look forward to sampling some of their delicious pizzas when they open this summer.”
Forbici will open at The Orient at the Trafford Centre this summer.
‘Theatrical’ rotisserie chicken restaurant to open just off King Street
Daisy Jackson
A new ‘bold and theatrical’ restaurant with dishes cooked over fire and a full-scale rotisserie is opening in Manchester later this year.
Plans have been revealed for The Counter, a 62-cover new restaurant inside a new building on John Dalton Street.
When it launches, The Counter will offer all-day dining, from breakfast flatbreads to rotisserie-led feasting, large sharing plates and nostalgic desserts like a knickerbocker glory.
It comes from Open Restaurant Group, a hospitality collective led by restaurateurs Sam and Emma Morgan alongside Executive Chef Andrew Sheridan.
Set to launch in September, The Counter hopes to be a ‘bold, theatrical and unmistakably Mancunian’ destination for long lunches, late-night dinners, and cocktails.
The 1,700 sq metre space, designed by the Open Restaurant Group, will feature polished concrete, aged brass, leather finishes and dramatic lighting.
At the centre of the restaurant will be towering four-metre elm trees, plus curved booth seating and a brass wine display.
There’ll be space for between six to eight guests at a chef’s counter, plus room for 20 more customers out on the terrace outside.
The restaurant will also feature dedicated meat and fish dry-ageing cabinets alongside a full-scale rotisserie, showcasing traditional rotisserie chicken, large joints of meat, whole cuts, seasonal game, slow-roasted fish and changing produce-led specials cooked over fire.
The Counter is opening in Manchester this autumn
The rotisserie will also be the star of The Counter’s Sunday lunch experience.
The team behind the restaurant want it to be an ‘ambitious, design-led restaurant that genuinely feels built for Manchester’s creative community’.
Sam Morgan said: “Manchester is one of the greatest cities in the world for music, creativity and culture. We wanted to create a restaurant that genuinely reflects that energy.
“The Counter is about atmosphere as much as food. It’s glamorous but still grounded. High quality but relaxed. Somewhere people can come three times a week, whether that’s for breakfast, drinks, dinner or a long Sunday lunch. We want this to feel like a restaurant Manchester can really own.”
Executive Chef Andrew Sheridan added: “The food at The Counter is all about cooking the things we genuinely love eating.
“We want guests to order naturally, share everything, stay longer and enjoy the experience. It’s ingredient-led, produce-led and chef-led, but most importantly it’s fun.”
The Counter Manchester will officially open in September 2026.
Daisy Jackson -
21st February 2025 
