Celebrity chef Rick Stein has just named a restaurant in Manchester as one of his favourites in the UK, in a glowing endorsement for Higher Ground.
The restaurant started life as a pop-up at Kampus but has since put down roots on New York Street.
It’s a modern space with floor-to-ceiling glass windows on two sides, and a whole wine room where diners can pick out a bottle to take home.
In the kitchen Higher Ground is one of the UK’s brightest young chefs, with Joseph Otway creating an ever-changing menu of dishes made with whatever is fresh, local and in season.
Also behind the restaurant is front-of-house man Richard Cossins and wine expert Daniel Craig-Martin. Rick said they are ‘young and just wonderful’.
ADVERTISEMENT
And it’s not just Rick who approves of it – Higher Ground has already been added to the Michelin Guide and placed in the top 100 in the UK within months of opening.
Rick Stein just named Higher Ground as one of his favourite restaurants in the UK. Credit: Sam Harris
Speaking of Higher Ground to Conde Nast Traveller, Rick said: “This is in a really trendy part of Manchester, but I love it because Joe is one of those chefs who won’t cook anything that isn’t local.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Of course, it’s not one of those places that won’t use olive oil because it’s not local, but the main ingredients are strictly local. I really liked it, but it’s so unlike the sort of place that you would expect me to like.”
The legendary chef said he first visited when in Manchester for the cricket, and says Higher Ground ‘really shows how much food is improving in Manchester’.
Rick said of the food: “I had the most delicious homemade pasta, a pappardelle with heart, liver and lungs of lamb made into a Ragu. You wouldn’t know it was made of heart, lungs and liver if you didn’t know; it was really, really tasty.
ADVERTISEMENT
“They do organic wine, which is unusual for me, but currently trendy and apparently gives you less of a hangover.”
Rick Stein has travelled the length and breadth of the UK filming a new series Food Stories, where he’ll ‘meet the pioneers of the twenty-first century British food scene’.
And the Higher Ground team certainly fit that description.
A rosé festival where your ticket includes unlimited wine is returning to Manchester
Lydia Mastrolonardo
A festival dedicated to rosé wine is making a return to Manchester this summer – and your ticket includes unlimited wine.
This year marks the third year of The Beeswing’s Rosé Festival, which has quickly become a staple for all Mancunian wine-lovers.
This outdoor festival will transport you to a French vineyard, with acoustic live music from La Chanteuse, and a setting in amongst the leaft Kampus gardens. Even your four-legged friends are invited to the party.
Head on down to absorb some of that sunshine and get your hands on unlimited glasses of more than 20 different rosés, orange and sparkling wines, sourced from across the world.
Whether you consider yourself a connoisseur or just like the sound of some fizz in the sun, this garden party has plenty of new wines for you to try.
Sit back and relax, chat with suppliers, and if you choose to, you can purchase bottles of some seriously top-notch wines at exclusive reduced rates.
You can expect wines from Raymond Reynolds (Portuguese Wines), Alliance Wines, Hammonds of Knutsford, and Boutinot.
Beeswing in Manchester will host the rosé festival again. Credit: The Manc Group
In the run-up to the festival, The Beeswing are also holding various other opportunities for us to try some delicious wines, including an English Wine Tasting next Sunday.
Wine Tasting with Gusbourne – 28 June – Celebrate English Wine Week at an exclusive tasting experience from 4-6pm, with five Gusbourne wines and some nibbles. Tickets cost £40.
Click HERE to secure your Wine Tasting with Gusbourne tickets.
The Rosé Festival – 4 July – Hosted on the Kampus gardens in Manchester from 12.30pm-3pm. Tickets cost £35 and include unlimited wine and a welcome drink.
Tickets sold out quickly last year and booking in advance is necessary to attend.
Manchester’s tiniest coffee shop has opened in Ancoats serving £2.50 flat whites
Daisy Jackson
A tiny new coffee shop has opened in Ancoats, and it’s already turning heads with a simple mission – making quality coffee affordable again.
7ZZ (pronounced ‘seven zeez’) has quietly launched on Oldham Road in a space no bigger than your arm span.
Owner Joe Stephens is bringing speciality coffee prices back down to earth with flat whites starting from just £2.50 and matcha from only £4.
In a city where a morning coffee can easily set you back more than a fiver, the new independent hopes to bridge the gap between premium coffee shops and budget chains.
The compact café may be easy to miss at first glance, but its menu packs plenty of personality. Alongside classic espresso-based drinks, customers can pick up ceremonial-grade matcha, iced barista-made coffees, and vibrant ube lattes made properly (no purple syrup in sight).
Joe says the idea behind 7ZZ was to create a space where customers don’t have to choose between quality and affordability, with a price list that rivals Greggs.
Adding to the appeal is a selection of pastries from Sticky Fingers, the popular Stockport bakery known for its indulgent sweet treats.
Joe Stephens at 7ZZ in AncoatsIced matcha and ube lattes start at just £47ZZ has Sticky Fingers bakes on the counter
With fresh bakes like croissants and custard buns lining the counter each day, the new opening looks set to become a popular stop for commuters and locals alike.
As Ancoats continues to cement its reputation as one of Manchester’s best neighbourhoods for food and drink, 7ZZ is offering something increasingly rare – speciality coffee that doesn’t come with a speciality price tag.
7ZZ Coffee is now open at 116 Oldham Road, Ancoats, M4 6AG.
Daisy Jackson -
28th December 2023 
