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

Man replicates Manchester pizza restaurant’s loo in his own home

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson A man has recreated the loos at Nell's in his own home. Credit: Instagram, @hattathome

A man has fallen so in love with the loos at a Manchester pizza restaurant that he’s recreated it in his own home.

Yep, while most of us spend our time trawling Pinterest or Instagram for our interiors inspiration, local Matt Hatt got his inspo on a trip to the toilet in town.

He was so obsessed with Nell’s vibrant orange bathroom interiors that he’s now created his very own cookie cutter version in his own house.

And Nell’s has been so impressed, they’ve even got stuck in to lend a hand with the finishing touches.

We are totally on board with Matt’s appreciation for a good restaurant loo – you can spend all the money in the world fitting out a dining room, but it really can fall apart if you head to a toilet with a wonky seat or a door that doesn’t shut or hideous fluorescent lighting.

Thankfully you don’t find too many of those around town these days.

From the ultra-luxury bogs around Spinningfields to the cheeky nude-covered toilets in the Northern Quarter, Manchester has a load of brilliant restaurant loos to explore.

The loos at Nell's Pizza in Manchester. Credit: Nell's
The loos at Nell’s Pizza in Manchester. Credit: Nell’s
Matt Hatt's recreation of the Nell's loo in his own home. Credit: Instagram @hattathome
Matt Hatt’s recreation of the Nell’s loo in his own home. Credit: Instagram @hattathome

One of the best is Nell’s, the New York-style pizza joint down at Kampus, which is painted a vibrant shade of orange.

Matt has nailed that bright toilet decor in his Victorian home in Manchester, down to the white subway tiles, the rounded wall mirrors, and the globe light fixture.

He even slid into Nell’s DMs to let them know about his project, and they offered to give him a branded pizza box, which Matt framed and hung on the wall.

Sharing his inspiration in a video filmed at Nell’s, Matt said: “If you’ve never been in a men’s toilet before, welcome. This is Nell’s Pizza in Manchester and this is the inspiration for our downstairs loo. Isn’t it fab?

“I really love the orange absolutely everywhere, the white contrasting tiles and the chrome detailing. Even the bloody floor’s orange!

“This is also a really good reminder that inspiration for your home can come from anywhere – even the men’s toilets.”

You can see the full step-by-step transformation through his Instagram account @hattathome.

Would you copy any local restaurant decor into your home?

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Featured image: Instagram @hattathome

Eats

Manchester’s smash burger and ice cream legends Big Licks launch huge crowdfunding effort

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

Big Licks, the Manchester restaurant that’s found the ‘sweet spot’ between amazing burgers and delicious desserts, is sailing through a huge crowdfunding campaign. 

The restaurant, which has an eye-catching location down on Liverpool Road as well as two sites in Scotland, has already raised a whopping £135,000 for its expansion dreams. 

It’s now pushing to hit £150,000 so that it can open new restaurants and franchises across the UK. 

Big Licks was first launched by two teenagers in 2009 as a takeaway – it’s now gone on to be a rapidly expanding name bringing in £3m in sales and more than 400,000 customers in the last 12 months alone. 

On their menu you’ll find incredible smash burgers (with up to four patties in each bun) made with free-range grass-fed beef that they source directly from farm, or buttermilk chicken topped with their signature ranch sauce. 

There’s also an impressive menu of house-churned ice cream made with quality local ingredients, and cakes, cheesecakes and brownies all baked in house daily. 

All that is alongside fried chicken, loaded fries, and other mouth-watering sides. 

Manchester’s smash burger and ice cream legends Big Licks launch huge crowdfunding effort
Manchester’s smash burger and ice cream legends Big Licks launch huge crowdfunding effort

Next on the agenda for Big Licks is expansion across the country, offering up the chance to become a shareholder in this bright young business. 

They want to use the money raised to prepare the business for franchising, with a target to open 18 restaurants by 2027.

Then any extra money raised will be used to open more company-owned restaurants.

And there are rewards on offer for those who choose to invest in Big Licks. 

If you invest £100, you’ll get a Big Licks White Card which gets you 10% off in store, as well as owning a share of the business. 

Then the rewards continue with other things like free burgers and shakes all the way to merch and much bigger discounts. 

Co-founder Anees Ahmed said: “It is clear that the potential is great.”

He added: “We believe one of the key ingredients to a successful restaurant is creating a hangout spot, a vibe. That will always be our aim when you come to Big Licks.”

The businessman then said: “We won’t compromise on quality. We will always keep sourcing within head office. This means we keep producing our own ice cream using locally sourced organic milk and the finest Italian flavours.

“We’ve found that sweet spot. The combination of sweet desserts and smashing burgers that opens up audience’s doors, covering off every craving. 

“We want you to be part of the journey and become a shareholder in Big Licks.” 

You can find out more about the Big Licks crowdfunder through Crowdcube here. 

Big Licks Crowdcube from Big Licks on Vimeo.

*Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. 

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