One of the north’s best-loved breweries has branched over to Manchester and opened a new taproom at Circle Square.
North Brewing Co, founded in Leeds way back in 1997, has opened its 10th bar at the new neighbourhood just off Oxford Road.
The stylish, Scandi-inspired space at North Taproom has been kitted out with plywood and plants, with seating for up to 100 punters at a time.
There’s heated outside space too, as rows of benches and tables take up the patio outside overlooking the new Symphony Park.
Little Bao Boy. Credit: Chloe ChapmanNorth Taproom in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
The focal point of the taproom – as it should be – is the huge bar, where there are 24 draught lines, flanked by glowing fridges filled with cans to take away.
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The doors to North Taproom officially opened this week, showcasing the brewery’s own beers as well as specials and guest beers.
North Taproom in Manchester. Credit: The Manc GroupNorth Taproom in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
As well as the beers, there’s an ever-changing line-up of wines, cocktails, ciders and spirits, including an impressive low and no alcohol offering, so there’s plenty to go at.
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Food comes from Little Bao Boy, another much-loved Leeds business, who will be serving up contemporary Asian street food like bao, gyoza and loaded fries seven days a week.
North Taproom is the latest opening to join Circle Square, a new neighbourhood from Vita and Bruntwood on the former BBC site.
The area is also home to Hello Oriental, a huge three-storey Asian food hall, with a bakery and cafe, a Vietnamese restaurant, a Chinese supermarket, and a food court.
The family-friendly and dog-friendly North Taproom bar is now open on a walk-in only basis at Circle Square.
Featured image: The Manc Group
Eats
A pub in Stockport has launched a full Scotch egg menu
Daisy Jackson
It’s one of the world’s greatest snacks, especially when paired with a decent pint – and now a local pub is doing a whole Scotch egg menu.
The Davenport Arms over in Stockport is running a ‘Scotch Egg Week’, with a whole host of different Scotch eggs.
There’s even a dessert one, made with a Creme Egg instead of a real one.
The historic pub, which is known locally as The Thief’s Neck (and displays both names on its signs), is filled with cosy corners and snug rooms.
It’s an independently-run pub that operates under the Robinson’s Brewery family, with beers brewed just down the road in Stockport.
And now the local boozer is doing a full menu of homemade Scotch eggs, for one week only, each served with the perfect condiment.
There’ll be ‘The Classic’, where pork meat is wrapped around a perfect jammy-yolked egg, served with house piccalilli.
The Manchester EggA classic Scotch eggThe Davenport Arms, known locally as The Thief’s NeckInside the pub
Or you can get the much-loved Manchester egg, which features black pudding and a pickled Scotch egg, served with mustard mayo on the side.
Fish fans can grab a smoked haddock Scotch egg served with a curried mayo.
And for vegetarians, there’s one made with cheese and onion instead of meat, served with a house tomato relish.
There’s even a sweet one – a Creme Egg encased in brownie mix, and then wrapped in a Biscoff crumb, served with ice cream.
And if you really can’t decide, The Davenport Arms will do you a full platter of all of the above, for £29.95.
The Scotch Egg menu is available from Monday 30 March until Saturday 4 April and you can see more HERE.
One of Manchester’s grandest restaurants has finally reopened TWO YEARS after fire
Daisy Jackson
One of the most historic restaurants in Manchester has reopened at last, two years after a fire forced its closure.
Mount Street Dining Room & Bar – which many of us may remember as Mr Cooper’s – stands within the Grade II-listed Midland Hotel.
The grand dining room dates all the way back to 1903, when it opened with the hotel as the Grill Room.
The restaurant was at the epicentre of the Industrial Revolution and was frequented by railway travellers, perhaps best-known for hosting a lunch between Charles Rolls and Henry Royce in 1904, who went on to form the world-famous Rolls-Royce brand.
The Midland’s restaurants has gone through several changes in the decades since, undergoing a major £14 million refurb in 2020 to relaunch as Mount Street Dining Room & Bar.
Its interiors are inspired by the hotel’s early 1900s art deco and railway heritage, with a menu that focuses on locally-sourced British produce.
But the restaurant has been shut since early 2024, when a fire damaged the entrance and trellising around its main entrance on Mount Street.
The beautiful bar areaA glimpse of the menu at Mount StreetCocktails and British food
The Midland has finally managed to get the restaurant back open again this month, with a new food and cocktail menus, which aims to offer refined but simple British dining.
Expect dishes like pork and black pudding bonbons, white onion soup with crispy potatoes, smoked British salmon with lemon gel and dill mascarpone, and slow cooked beef daube with confit garlic mash.
Plus desserts such as rice pudding with Anise glazed pearsand Bakewell pudding with cherry syrup.
It’s been a long time since we’ve seen inside this beautiful, storied dining room – and it looks just as beautiful as we remember.
Daisy Jackson -
5th January 2023 
