Eats

First look at Flat Iron, Manchester’s brand new affordable steak restaurant

Beautiful steaks in a beautiful space.

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 27th June 2024

Flat Iron is ready to open the doors to its first-ever Manchester restaurant – and it’s announced a huge Wagyu steak giveaway to celebrate.

The restaurant is famed for having affordable prices but still great quality meat products, utilising the often-overlooked featherblade as well as other cuts of beef.

With prices for a steak from just £14, it’s set to undercut other steakhouses by some margin, working closely with a farm just up the road in Yorkshire to source their meat.

The meat is cured in a special handcrafted meat ageing cabinet (the only Flat Iron restaurant to have one) and can be cooked quickly over a bespoke charcoal grill (also the only one in any Flat Iron restaurant).

The steaks at Flat Iron in Manchester will be served alongside sides like beef dripping chips, crispy bone marrow mash, creamed spinach, truffled macaroni cheese and green salads, plus classic sauces like Bearnaise, peppercorn, and a homemade smoked chilli mayo.

The new 150-cover restaurant spans two storeys in a Grade II-listed building on Deansgate, formerly home to Blacks outdoor clothing.

Steak and sides at Flat Iron in Manchester
Steak and sides at Flat Iron in Manchester
Flat Iron steak and garlic mash
Flat Iron steak and garlic mash
The bone marrow garlic mash
The bone marrow garlic mash

It’s a beautiful space – wooden floors, dark teal walls, huge windows, and orange leather banquettes.

That’s all tied in with the original features like ceramic tiles and huge iron pillars around the space.

At the heart of the ground floor restaurant is a magnificent marble-topped bar with a stained glass window behind.

There’s a sizeable basement dining room too for a cosy, moody dining experience.

Guests are greeted with a cup of fresh popcorn on arrival, then handed a tiny meat cleaver at the end of their meal, which can be traded in for an ice cream either on the spot or at a later date.

Upstairs in Flat Iron in Manchester
Upstairs in Flat Iron in Manchester
Flat Iron is ready to open on Deansgate in Manchester
Flat Iron is ready to open on Deansgate in Manchester
The basement dining room at Flat Iron Manchester
The basement dining room at Flat Iron Manchester

Rotating daily specials will feature dishes like a truffled triple cheeseburger, Scottish ribeye, and an exclusive 375g rib steak.

Flat Iron’s Head of Beef, Fred Smith, said: “I spend an unusual amount of time trying to source incredible beef and our Wagyu is properly special.

“To celebrate our new restaurant opening its doors, we will be giving away shed loads of this uber-tender beef to the good people of Manchester. Join us on 2nd July and let us know what you think.”

Flat Iron will be hosting a giveaway of 500 Wagyu steaks ahead of its official opening.

The first 500 customers in the queue from 5pm on Tuesday 2 July will be given a free steak, and a sneak preview of the new restaurant.

Flat Iron Manchester officially opens on Wednesday 3 July.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

Eats

Manchester tapas spot Maricarmen open second city centre site

Danny Jones Danny Jones Maricarmen opening second site in Manchester

Affordable Manchester tapas spot Maricarmen has just finished launching its second site in town, doubling its city centre presence with the official opening on Thursday, 4 September.

Maricarmen launched on Great Ancoats Street back in June 2023 and quickly became a firm Manc favourite, famous for their £3.50 dishes

When it comes to their small plate approach, they serve up some of the best tapas in Manchester, and even the shopfront seats at their popular roadside location are regularly full regardless of passing traffic.

However, if there’s ever been one gripe we’ve had with the place, it’s that the outdoor area isn’t the most peaceful, even if it is a stunning suntrap on a warm day – that’s where the new restaurant comes in.

tapas in ancoats
Ancoats…
tapas in nq
… vs NQ
New but familiar (Credit: Supplied/The Manc Eats)

We’ve been semi-regular visitors of Maricarmen ever since it started out life as a pop-up just around from Cutting Room Square, and they’ve gained speed and reputation ever since.

Known not only for authentic, value-for-money tapas, but welcoming plenty of punters for a simple drink as one of the best places for a sangria in central Manchester, they’ve managed to stay relatively just not just when the weather is bright but throughout most seasons.

Overhauling the old 63 Degrees bistro in the Northern Quarter, which sadly had to shut its doors back in February, we’re glad to see that the building has now been reborn.

While the Ancoats restaurant is known for the aforementioned roving ‘El Tableo’ style of service inspired by southern Spain, the newest location will be slightly different, revealing not only lighter colours and Alicante beach influences with a focus on alfresco eating, but lots of new specials.

All we’ll say for now is bring on the pintxos, pints, patatas bravas and pretty much anything we had for their first birthday celebrations.

Created by Marian Diaz and Jose Nunez, who previously owned a tapas restaurant in Madrid, La Porcineria, which was sadly curtailed by Covid.

On the bright side, Manchester has been the greatest beneficiary of their fresh start, and we can’t wait to see what venue number two delivers.

Co-founder, Diaz, said of the new opening: “Maricarmen is about compassion, hard work, strength, reinvention, opening our minds & hearts and connecting with people. It’s more than just food, for us, it is the beautiful moment when we see our customers and our coworkers smile because they are here.” 

She went on to add, “To us, Manchester signifies the ability to reinvent and grow. The people here support you without expecting anything in return. It’s really beautiful. I have never felt this before in my life. […] We’ve built up such a loyal customer base of locals – many have become dear friends. 

“And to be in a position to open a second site within two years and share our love of good food and great times with Manchester’s Northern Quarter is quite unbelievable.”

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There really is a Costa Blanca beach house vibe to this bright, new yellow-accented corner of NQ and having tried some of their dishes, we can’t wait to get stuck in.

Be sure to follow them on socials too, not only for more announcements and updates but because it’ll give you an even better flavour of the vibes over there.

For now, best get building your appetite.

21 of the best tapas places in Manchester city centre and beyond
Yes, of course, they featured on the tapas round-up, and we’re sure the second Maricarmen site will too.

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

Featured Images — Maricarmen (supplied)/The Manc Group

Eats

Popular Manchester cafe and bakery Gooey brilliantly responds to ‘2/10’ TikTok review

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Popular Manchester cafe and bakery Gooey brilliantly responds to '2/10' TikTok review

Gooey, easily one of Manchester’s busiest bakeries and brunch spots, has clapped back at a negative review on TikTok with a refreshingly honest statement.

The local business shot to fame initially with its chunky, gooey cookies, but has since expanded from its hatch to have its very own cafe, famed for its enormous French toasts and its sandwiches made with baked-in-house Shokupan bread.

Generally, Gooey gets an incredibly good rap, with queues that speak for themselves stretching from its doors down High Street.

But one TikToker has shared a less favourable video review of the business, slamming it as ‘one of the most disappointing food experiences I’ve ever had in my life’.

The reviewer in question specialises in finding places you could eat comfortably as a solo diner, and ranked Gooey an overall 8/10 – but slated the food at a 2/10.

And now Gooey has shared their side of things, defending themselves against the reviewer’s claims that the food is ‘expensive’ and ‘tastes like it could have been made at Greggs’.

“Not everyone is going to like what you do and that is absolutely fair enough,” they wrote in a statement.

Gooey continued: “We’re not usually in the business of responding to negative reviews.

Gooey clapped back at the review that said its sandwiches were 'too expensive'
Gooey clapped back at the review that said its sandwiches were 'too expensive'
Gooey clapped back at the review that said its sandwiches were ‘too expensive’

“What has made us respond to this review is how often I’m seeing local businesses like ours targeted on costs.”

The cafe then justified the £10.90 cost for a bacon and egg sandwich, pointing out the bacon is cured in-house and cut thick every day by hand; the bread is also baked in-house daily; even the ketchup and brown sauce are made from scratch.

“With all that said, yes, we do have to charge more than you would pay for a bacon butty at Greggs.

“Listen, I understand this criticism. I used to get a bacon and egg butty before college for £1.95 from my local butty shop.

“We cannot do that here. We are paying Manchester City Centre rent. We employ a team of chefs, bakers, front of house, and more.

“And we are trying to make the best version of a bacon sandwich that we could.”

Chunky cookies at Gooey
Chunky cookies at Gooey
Popular Manchester cafe and bakery Gooey brilliantly responds to '2/10' TikTok review
The Gooey French toast that the review claimed was ‘too sweet’

As for the complaints that the French toast is ‘too sweet’, Gooey clapped back: “Yes, our French Toast is sweet. It’s filled with dulce de leche and topped with maple syrup.

“We personally love it and it’s our most popular item but if you don’t like sweet things, you might not like it!”

Finally, in defence of rising prices across the hospitality industry, they signed off with this brilliant piece of insight.

“Every single independent cafe, restaurant and bar across this country is charging more than they would like to be doing for their dishes.

“In 99.99% of cases, this is not greed, or us being thick, or trying to rip people off. It is simply the only way to survive with the costs we are facing.

“Even then, many of us are struggling to make it work.”

Anyone fancy meeting at Gooey for a bacon sandwich later then?

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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