Mother’s Day is nearly upon us, meaning it’s time to start getting your ducks in a row if you haven’t already.
Organising cards, presents and table reservations are just a handful of ways of showing we care, but really there’s nothing better than just spending a bit of quality time with your mum to let her know how much you love and appreciate her.
As we hurtle ahead towards April, with things only set to get more expensive, Manchester’s restaurants are doing us a solid by laying on various free meals, drinks and gifts for the special ladies in our lives to give us a helping hand. Goodness knows we need it.
From bottomless mimosas and endless Yorkshire puddings to Molton Brown goodie bags and complimentary glasses of fizz, keep reading to find out who’s giving away what this Mother’s Day.
Peter Street Kitchen
Image: Peter Street Kitchen
This lauded contemporary Japanese and Mexican fusion kitchen on Peter Street is offering all mums a complimentary glass of fizz when they come to dine on Mothering Sunday.
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Fine wines, Japanese whiskeys and signature cocktails abound on the bar, whilst on the menu, you’ll find a selection of exciting, modern small plates that combine the best of two, very different, cuisines.
All served within the stunning settings of the five-star Radisson Blu hotel, if you love a spot of people watching make sure to request to sit in the stone alcoves facing onto Peter Street.
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Ducie Street Warehouse
Image: Ducie Street
Image: Ducie Street
Mums can enjoy bottomless mimosas on the house this Mothering Sunday when they dine at Ducie Street Warehouse.
Those out celebrating can tuck into classic roast meats like dry-aged shorthorn beef sirloin, cornfed chicken, leg of lamb, and smoked free-range gammon, alongside a hefty selection of sides that includes its own dedicated cauliflower cheese menu.
Bottomless mimosas are only available in the first hour of the table booking for mums only. You must book online in advance, quoting how many mums are attending:
La Bandera
Image: La Bandera
Image: La Bandera
Mums can eat for free at Spanish and Catalan tapas restaurant La Bandera this Mother’s Day.
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When you order a minimum of six tapas plates, the restaurant will knock the three cheapest off the bill as a small way of saying thank you to Manchester’s tireless mums.
The offer is available all day on 27 March, but you must quote ‘MD22LB’ when booking to redeem it. Terms and conditions apply.
The Botanist
Image: The Botanist
At The Botanist in Manchester, mums will receive a special free gift as a token of appreciation when dining out.
The restaurant and cocktail bar is open for lunch and dinner bookings, with a special set menu offering Sunday roasts and hanging kebabs.
Two courses are priced at £25, three for £30, both served with tea and coffee included. Live music will fill the restaurant throughout the day, with a special roast just for children.
Zouk is on a mission to show the mums of Manchester how loved they are, chucking in a free boxed-up cupcake as well as a glass of prosecco or Shloer for all mums on 27 March.
The much-loved Indian restaurant will be serving up its famous Sunday roast sharing platters, built for two, four or six people.
Each one is loaded with three roasted meats and all the trimmings – with a Zouk twist.
The restaurant has also installed a beautiful flower arch and bench in its reception area so you can take a Mother’s Day family photo together as a keepsake.
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Cibo Manchester
Image: Cibo Manchester
This Mother’s Day, Italian restaurant Cibo Manchester will offer a surprise ‘gift for mum’.
Mums dining at the restaurant on 27 March will be given a ‘lucky dip’ scratch card on arrival that will reveal either a glass of fizz or a complimentary dessert.
They can opt for any dessert from the menu, with choices including panna cotta, tiramisu, profiteroles and gelato.
Motley Manchester
Image: Motley Manchester
Motley Manchester will celebrate Mother’s Day with unlimited Yorkshire puddings and gravy this year, as part of its Sunday roast offering.
In honour of Manchester’s mums and all the hard work they put in to keep us in check, on Sunday 27 March from 12pm until sell-out, guests can heap their plates high with as many fluffy Yorkshire puddings as they can muster.
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The offer is open to everyone dining – not just mums. Simply ask your server for more and they’ll happily oblige.
20 Stories
Image: 20 Stories
Manchester’s highest restaurant has partnered with Molton Brown to offer its diners luxury goodie bags this Mother’s Day.
Guests can opt to dine from the Sunday roast menu or tuck into dishes from the restaurant’s A La Carte offering. A special Mother’s Day rose and rhubarb cocktail, created by the bar team, has been paired to match Molton Brown’s latest fragrance.
There will be live music in the restaurant between 1-4pm, and the Molton Brown team will also be on hand offering hand and arm massages and fragrance profiling throughout the afternoon.
Feature image – 20 Stories
Eats
Zouk’s brilliant bottomless deal is back for National Curry Week
Danny Jones
One of the best-loved Indians in Manchester has relaunched its bottomless curry offering and is chucking in free rice, samosas, naans and beer to boot.
Yes, to celebrate National Curry Week in the best way possible, Zouk has brought back its endless curry, rice and naan deal to their Manc restaurant and it’s genuinely one of the best in the city.
Costing just £25 a head, you can feast until your heart’s content on the tea bar and grill’s award-winning, authentic curries, showcasing dishes from all over the Indian subcontinent.
From 12pm until midnight between Monday, 2 October and Friday, 6 October, you can choose from a bottomless helping of four different curries (two meat and one vegetarian) each day.
What exactly can you get on Zouk’s bottomless curry offer?
As mentioned, each booking also includes unlimited rice, naan and samosas to go with your curry of choice and better still, the first 120 people through the door each day will receive a free bottle of Cobra or a soft drink. Jobs a good’en.
Tables are for 90 minutes per booking, giving guests plenty of time to take on the increasingly popular bottomless curry challenge.
With an ever-rotating selection of curries inspired by various distinct regions and speciality cuisines, you’re not short on variety either. You can Zouk’s current bottomless curry menu in full down below:
Monday
Chicken Karahi – A speciality from the Northwest region of Pakistan. Tender pieces of chicken cooking in a sizzling wok over hot flames with tomatoes, crushed peppercorns, cumin, ginger and garlic.
Lamb and Potatoes – Tender chunks of lamb cooked with new potatoes, yoghurt, tomatoes and garlic.
Mutter Paneer (V) – Indian Paneer cheese with new potatoes, yoghurt, tomatoes and garlic.
Chole Masala (VG) – From Delhi to Punjab, this authentic channa masala is a tasty street food classic.
Tuesday
Chicken Jalfrezi – Chicken fillet cooked with capsicum, onions & eggs in a thick spicy sauce.
Lamb and Spinach Karahi – A speciality from the Northwest region of Pakistan. Tender pieces of lamb cooking in a sizzling wok over hot flames with spinach, tomatoes, crushed peppercorns, cumin, ginger and garlic.
Tarka Dall (V) – Channa and mung lentils cooked in a spicy sauce.
Gobi Manchurian (VG) – Spicy cauliflower pakoras sauteed in a spicy sauce with peppers and onions.
Wednesday
Chicken and spinachcurry – A beautifully flavoured dish with chicken pieces cooked in spinach, fenugreek, ginger and fresh cream.
Lamb Rogan Josh – A speciality from Jammu and Kashmir, with chillies and juicy tomatoes.
Tarka Dall (V) – Channa and mung lentils cooked in a spicy sauce.
Mili Juli Sabzi (VG) -Fresh vegetables fused together with herbs and spices.
Over the halfway hump, room for more? (Credit: The Manc Group)
Thursday
Chicken Tikka Masala – A simple classic chicken tikka masala. Chicken pieces marinated in yoghurt tossed inside a balti of garlic and ginger.
Keema and Peas – Minced lamb curry with peas in a spicy tomato masala.
Dall Makhani (V) – Black lentils in a smooth and creamy sauce.
Palak Aloo (VG) – Spinach leaf and fenugreek cooked with new potatoes and coriander.
Friday
Chicken Handi – Punjabi-style chicken curry slowly cooked over burning flames with tomatoes, onions, garlic and Zouk’s special garam masala.
Lamb Handi – Punjabi-style lamb curry slowly cooked over burning flames with tomatoes, onions, garlic and Zouk’s special garam masala.
Bengan Masala (V) – Aubergine cooked to perfection in a masala of aromatic mixed herbs.
Bindi (VG) – Traditional Punjabi dish of Okra cooked with onions, tomatoes and spices.
And now we’re stuffed…
If you’re looking for somewhere to get bottomless curry in Manchester, this is the place for you. (Credit: The Manc Group)
Zouk has become one of Manchester’s leading restaurants since it opened in 2009, even drawing in famous fans like Rihanna, Drake, Manchester United stars and, of course, many a Mancs each and every day – because there’s never a bad time for a curry.
Available all throughout National Curry Week (Monday, October 7-Friday, October 11), you can make the most of this incredible bottomless deal like we do every year and trust us, Manchester it genuinely NEVER disappoints.
You can find more information, including all terms and conditions on the website and book your visit HERE or over the phone on 0161 2331 090.
Greater Manchester’s quaint canal boat cafe with floating flat whites and unbelievable bakes
Danny Jones
There are a lot of good cafes in and around Greater Manchester but you won’t find many that serve up straight out of a canal boat.
Meet Libby and the ‘Cast No Shadow’ canal boat that is now the foremost river-based coffee and cake shop in our region, and with so many waterways around the 10 boroughs and beyond, you’ve got plenty of opportunity to meet both.
Currently moored up over on a picturesque corner of the Bridgewater Canal in Castlefield, just between the distinct white suspension bridge and The Wharf, this narrowboat cafe has only been up and running since May but has already earned queues of regulars who line up every weekend.
It also just might be one of the most wholesome things we’ve stumbled across in a long time.
Local legend Libby has had this pretty little vessel for three years and the cafe life is still pretty new to her as well, but she’s already nailed a really lovely niche.
You’ll find her serving up coffees freshly roasted right here in Manchester, snacks and soft drinks for the hotter days, as well as plenty of specials depending on the season or stuff going on around her.
Back when Sound of the City 2024 was still going on, we even saw her serving up handy little pots of mac and cheese to gig-goers on the way to Castlefield Bowl to fuel up before a long night of dancing and drinking.
Now that’s just legendary behaviour, if you ask us.
But aside from stunning pistachio lattes, colourful iced coffees and pure cosy vibes being served up right out of her small hatch, you can’t order from this canal boat cafe without grabbing one of the many delicious homemade loafs, cupcakes, cookies and more straight from fellow native The Vakery MCR.
With an ever-rotasting selection of sweat treats and regular favourites that sell-out almost immediately, almost everything baked is vegan, flawless and genuinely so good we couldn’t even tell the difference.
Complete with her little sausage-shaped companion and sea-furring captain/very laid-back guard dog Bob, and a small terminal so you can still pay buy card like any other shop, we love everything about this little slice of canal and coffee-fuelled life.
She’s previously been spotted in other spots like Altrincham, Macclesfield and various other spots around Greater Manchester and Cheshire, and may very well be moving on to the likes of Ancoats soon, but at the minute she’s found a perfect home and regular customer base in Castlefield.
To sum it all up, Libby is one of the friendlist people you’ll ever meet, the boat is a solar-powered little stunner that’s a welcome addition to the city, everything is reasonably priced and we love that she’s also helping support other local indie businesses like The Vakery.
So, if you’re in the area or are looking for the perfect stop-off on your next Sunday stroll, make sure to swing by to say hello and enjoy the cutest canal boat cafe in the country – we don’t care if there are others, this one’s ours.
The definition of service with a smile.The real star of the show (sorry, Lib x)Credit: Canal Life UK (via Instagram)/The Manc Group
Georgina Pellant -
18th March 2022 
