Eats

Affordable steak house Flat Iron confirms opening date for first Manchester restaurant

It's happening! Stay calm everyone!

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 6th March 2024

Flat Iron, the steak house that is renowned for its affordable prices, has confirmed new details of its very first Manchester restaurant.

The restaurant brand, which has sites across London as well as in Leeds and Cambridge, is taking over the old Blacks outdoor clothing shop on Deansgate.

Landing slap bang in the heart of Manchester – and just a few doors down from arguably the city’s best steak house, Hawksmoor – Flat Iron has confirmed it will be open for business early this summer.

The menu is simple, and led by their signature Flat Iron steak priced at just £14, which sees the underrated featherblade cut of beef cooked and butchered with skill.

There are sides including beef dripping chips, creamed spinach, truffled macaroni cheese, and crispy bone marrow garlic mash.

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There’ll be a selection of wines including their very own Malbec, blended in the south of France, alongside draft beers and signature cocktails.

When it opens, Flat Iron will have 150 covers in the two-storey restaurant on 200-204 Deansgate.

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The Grade II-listed building was first opened in 1908 as the Royal London Friendly Society, and its interiors have now been remodelled by architects Macaulay Sinclair, who will be displaying as many of the original features as possible.

Original timber flooring, glazed brick walls, riveted steel columns and original parquet floors have been revealed and restored.

Flat Iron is opening a restaurant in Manchester (this is the Leeds site). Credit: The Hoot Leeds
Flat Iron is opening a restaurant in Manchester (this is the Leeds site). Credit: The Hoot Leeds
Flat Iron sides include mac and cheese. Credit: The Hoot Leeds
Flat Iron sides include mac and cheese. Credit: The Hoot Leeds

Speaking of the opening, Flat Iron’s Founder, Charlie Carroll says: “Opening a restaurant in my home town of Manchester is a big deal to me and a long time coming.

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“The food and drink scene is so exciting at the moment and just keeps getting better. I can’t wait to be a tiny part of it.

“I fell in love with a beautiful historic building on Deansgate in 2018 and six years on we are finally opening this summer.

“Flat Iron is about unpretentious, top quality steak, available to all.

“I am passionate about delicious beef and proud to bring Flat Iron to the city where I grew up and where so many of my friends and family live.”

Flat Iron will open on Deansgate in Manchester in Summer 2024.

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Featured image: The Hoot Leeds

Eats

Stockport town centre’s first ramen spot sat above a coffee shop that we can’t get enough of

Danny Jones Danny Jones Uma ramen restaurant inside Odioba coffee shop Stockport review

If you’re a local Stockport resident or have even walked along the increasingly cultured cobbles of Underbank, chances are you’ve passed a place called Ōdiobā, but did you know that by night, its loft turns into a stylish listening bar that also serves some of the best ramen around?

Seriously: not only is it, to our knowledge, the only venue serving traditional ramen in Stockport town centre, but it’s some of the best we’ve had in years. Literally, YEARS.

Central Manchester has the benefit of being spoiled by numerous noodle masters – New Wave, Ramenshop (formerly known as Tokyo Ramen), Shogun, etc. – but we’d genuinely wager that this relative newcomer known simply as Uma is right up there with them.

In fact, it might currently be vying for the top spot itself.

We really try our best to shy away from the most ultimate of superlatives where we can, especially because we’re lucky enough to come across so many culinary gems and new restaurants all the time, but the more we’ve revisited this place, the more we’re convinced it’s utterly brilliant.

On a personal note, in a post-Cocktail Beer Ramen + Bun world, we feel like we’ve come very close to finding a new go-to that’s on a par with the late, great CBRB; perhaps we’ll never quite get there, or maybe we’re falling victim to the rose-tinted lens of nostalgia, but Uma is at least in the conversation.

Something we can say for sure is that they’ve gone with the tried and tested method of doing just a few things extremely over trying to cater to everyone.

Offering a small but stunning menu, with just three small plates and three options when it comes to ramen, each one is well-balanced and portioned, guaranteeing a filling bowl of ramen finished with great quality toppings.

You’re not left needing a single noodle more, nor do they cut you a single spring onion shy – but let’s be honest, this cuisine also leaves you craving more broth.

This might be a small thing, but we even like how the deep bowls come with built-in grooves/utensil holders for you to rest your spoons and chopsticks in. It’s only a little extra, we know, but it’s a nice touch, nevertheless.

Having now done a couple laps of the menu over the course of just a handful of visits, there are few taste bud journeys as satisfying as those gently-seasoned edamame beans, with the vibrant, lightly-acidic pickled daikon radishes and cucumber cutting through, before the savoury bomb of those mains.

And above all else, it’s the broth. My word… that broth.

Most impressively of all, perhaps, is that while we were expecting to enjoy the shoyu or red miso option the most, it’s the vegan ramen that we found to be the most flavourful.

The white miso and vegetable soup base is about as rich as you could hope for from any broth, as are the surprisingly satisfying slices of sweet soy tofu.

odioba uma ramen stockport
The smell of this freshly-charred chashu. Wow.
noodles places stockport
The ideal thickness – great, minimal chew, too.
Is Stockport town centre’s first ramen spot also one of the best in Greater Manchester right now? It might just be. (Credit: The Manc Eats)

Put simply, this particular bowl truly puts the Uma in umami.

It really is perfect as is, complemented by the shitake mushrooms, mustard greens, bamboo shoots and aromatic roasted sesame.

However, we honestly believe we have mastered a flawless order: choosing the vegan bowl and then adding pieces of chashu pork, a gooey ramen egg and maybe some chilli oil for good measure.

Try it for yourselves and tell us we’re anything other than absolutely bang on.

As for the space itself, you’ll struggle to find another spot as simultaneously casually aesthetic and atmospheric as the top floor of this building.

It’s well worth a visit to try the sophisticated selection of cocktails co-curated by founder Nam Tran – who first won over foodie fans with his conveniently self-titled Vietnamese venue in Ancoats, which sadly closed in 2024 – or sample his handmade hi-fi system alone, but the bonus of ramen takes the cake.

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With DJ sets from the man himself as well as other selectors and artists, not to mention jazz nights and other live music during the week, it’s an effortlessly cool couple of floors that just so happens to serve some of our favourite food to the highest order.

Now, we will confess that we’ve only seen Ōdiobā in its ‘shadow self’ form, for lack of a better phrase, and are yet to sample the artisan café side of this business, but we assure you that it is a failure on our part and one we’ll be making up for as soon as possible.

Let’s just say, if the coffee is as good as the other liquids we’ve drunk here, be it the booze or the very last drop of broth from the bottom of the bowl, it’s probably some of the best in Stockport.

You can guarantee we’ll be coming back to this place time and time again whenever we visit the borough.

The Sicilian street food spot tucked away on the rooftop of a beloved Manchester boozer
There’s something extra fun about finding a great rooftop spot, isn’t there?

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Featured Images — The Manc Group

Eats

Music legend Billy Ocean pays a visit to Mama Flo’s in Stockport

Danny Jones Danny Jones Billy Ocean visits Mama Flo's takeaway in Stockport

Cult Stockport foodie favourite Mama Flo’s has been visited by yet another shock famous face when music legend Billy Ocean ‘Suddenly’ popped into the takeaway this week.

What a lovely surprise for the local hero.

Mama Flo’s is not just a go-to eatery for many in the Great Moor neighbourhood; its glowing reviews and long-standing reputation have meant that it’s frequently patronised by out-of-town tourists as well as plenty of celebrities.

Florence Beryl Coke, now in her 70s, is no stranger to welcoming household names, but given the Caribbean royalty in question, she was clearly blown away when the ‘Love Really Hurts Without You’ singer came through the door.

Billy Ocean, 75 himself, played the O2 Apollo in June on his most recent headline tour, but the Trinidadian-born British soul and pop singer has still but up and down the country throughout the year.

We’re not too sure why he was up in Greater Manchester this week, but we’re glad he was.

Writing on Facebook, Flo wrote: “What a good night, tonight. Feeling so tired and having a break – then guess who walked in? The greatest Billy Ocean, and boy, we had a great night chatting away with his entourage. Thank you, Billy, for a splendid night.”

Following up with another grateful post on Friday morning, 14 November, she quoted the title of his most famous hit, before adding: “We love you, Billy Ocean. Thanks for the support last night and [thank you to] your team, love.”

Knowing how hard Flo works, having become famous for her incredible work ethic and regularly working overtime to serve the community, this will no doubt have felt like a well-earned reward after another long, hard day.

She was praised not only throughout lockdown for her tireless efforts in cooking up vital meals in the local area, but she was also presented with a surprise award by Good Morning Britain that left her in tears back in 2022.

famous people who have eaten at mama flo's in stockport
Kyle Walker is one of many footballers who’ve been.
mama flos community work stockport
Couldn’t agree more.
Credit: Mama Flo’s

She doesn’t just get one-time visitors either: regulars include The Stone Roses’ Ian Brown, nearby actor Will Mellor, and a plethora of regional soap stars.

In this case, Billy Ocean was just the latest celeb to get out of her dreams and into her shop – and yes, that may be a rather stretched pun, but it was worth it, nevertheless.

So, if you’ve still never been to one of the best food spots in Stockport, Mama Flo’s now has the certified Billy Ocean seal of approval to its name, as well as having featured on our very own Takeaway Champions a little while back. We can’t think of any better advert to go and try it for yourself.

You can see the episode in full down below.

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

Featured Images — Mama Flo’s (via Facebook)/The Manc Eats

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