Rigatoni’s has announced the shock closure of its pasta restaurant in Ancoats, saying ‘we have failed not just ourselves, but more importantly our customers and our staff’.
The restaurant used to be known as Sugo Pasta Kitchen, later rebranding to Sud and then on to Rigatoni’s.
At the time of its latest rebrand the restaurant group had four locations around Greater Manchester, but closed its sites in Sale and then at Exhibition food hall.
Ancoats had been Sugo’s second restaurant and was a key part of the neighborhood’s regeneration.
In a statement shared online today, they wrote that the last year had been ‘brutal’ and a ‘massive uphill battle’.
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They wrote that Rigatoni’s had been an attempt to ‘create a more affordable, accessible, but still quality product that could be replicated across many sites’ – but added: “I/we now have to accept that we have failed in this mission.”
Rigatoni’s in Ancoats will close its doors for good on Saturday 25 May.
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As for their final restaurant over in Altrincham, it sounds as though the team will be bringing back in a little bit of the Sugo DNA that made them so loved in Manchester – ‘Pugliese crockery / the small, ever changing and considered menu will be scrawled all over our chalkboard / deliveroo will no longer be a part of what we do’, they wrote.
Rigatoni’s statement in full as they close Ancoats restaurant
I know you all must be sick of the sight of yet another announcement from us, and I can definitely understand why.
The last 12 months (and even going back to covid) have been brutal to say the least. We’ve been on a constant mission to try to make our restaurants sustainable – for us, for our customers, and for our staff, in what has felt like a massive uphill battle, in the midst of conditions that obviously have not been unique to us.
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Rigatoni’s Ancoats is closing for good. Credit: The Manc Group
The latest attempt to do this was in the guise of going all out to create a more affordable, accessible, but still quality product that could be replicated across many sites. I/we now have to accept that we have failed in this mission. The hardest part is that we have failed not just ourselves, but more importantly our customers and our staff, and for this we are truly sorry.
What this means is that unfortunately our Ancoats restaurant will be closing this week, with the last day of service being Saturday the 25th May. We’ve an incredible and talented team of people there, who I know will go on from us to do great things – a huge thank you to them for doing there absolute all in trying to make work whatever we have put before them.
After the journey of the last few years, we’ve really spent time recently considering what the most important values were to us that we held closest when we first started out.
Quite honestly it was simply to create unique, high quality southern Italian inspired dishes, with a small, deeply passionate and committed team, that cannot be found elsewhere. And this is what we want to breathe back into our Altrincham restaurant – to give you a product and a service that you and us can be proud of. We’re not going to be trying to compete with anyone else – we will simply endeavour night and day to be the best possible version of ourselves that we can be, offering a unique experience that will only be found in the walls of our small Altrincham restaurant.
To give you a feel for what I’m talking about – we’ll be bringing back our Pugliese crockery / the small, ever changing and considered menu will be scrawled all over our chalkboard / deliveroo will no longer be a part of what we do / we’ll be committed to the principle of offering nothing ‘standard’. Oh, and our Dad is coming up to help us make this happen!
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We won’t be changing our name (we’ve done this way too many times plus we want to focus all our attention on delivering the above), but I’m sure you’ll be glad to hear that the red will be going! This mission begins in Altrincham from 5pm on Wednesday the 5th June. Until then we will run a normal service.
Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant team to take over iconic NQ venue
Daisy Jackson
The team who earned Cantaloupe a Michelin Bib Gourmand are moving into Manchester city centre – and into a site we all know pretty well.
The Cantaloupe team are about to embark on a new venture with Rasade, a new French restaurant in the site of the former TNQ in the Northern Quarter.
The old neighbourhood restaurant announced its shock closure earlier this year, after more than two decades serving Manchester.
But now the beautiful corner building on High Street is under new ownership, and in very safe hands.
Shortly after pivoting Cantaloupe into Bar Caput (a more casual neighbourhood offering), the duo behind it, Joshua Reed Cooper and Mike Thomas, have announced they’re launching Rasade in Manchester city centre.
Rasade in French refers to a glass filled to the brim, traditionally of wine or another drink.
The new French restaurant will showcase regional French cooking and seasonal local produce, drawing inspiration from France’s diverse regions.
This won’t be a stuffy French restaurant though – they’re aiming to create the relaxed spirit of a bistro with their serious commitment to traditional cooking.
Early menus show dishes like oysters with mignonette, langoustine with Karri-Gosse, and pâté de campagne, plus brill with rancio sec and mushroom fricassée, and pork chop with garniture Mirabeau.
And as for desserts, expect classics like a tarte Tatin designed for two to share, alongside flan pâtissier and Opéra religieuse.
Alongside the cooking, an extensive French wine offering will span the many, many wine regions of the country, featuring both small and unusual producers as well as more established names.
Mike and Josh now want to build on the success they quickly found in Stockport with this new city centre venture, bringing the same focus on good produce, thoughtful cooking and an informal approach to hospitality.
Rasade will open at 108 High Street in the Northern Quarter later this year.
First look inside Social Osteria, Stockport’s buzzy new Italian restaurant
Lydia Mastrolonardo
That’s right Stopfordians – we’re gaining yet another brand new addition to our town’s blooming food and drink scene, as Social Osteria opens its doors at Weir Mill.
It’s safe to say we’re in good hands, with the geniuses behind The Social Trattoria, named best Trattoria at the Italian Awards UK 2025, being the ones to bring this new taste of Italy to South Manchester.
Just because we are no longer experiencing the weather to match an Italian summer, doesn’t mean we can’t continue eating like we’re there.
Social Osteria can now be found overlooking the River Mersey, as a beautiful 2,000 sq ft space within the buzzing new canalside development, fully equipped with the classic exposed red brickwork, vaulted ceilings and even the restored original kiln.
As you approach the restaurant, you are greeted by a sunken courtyard and riverside seating, making for the perfect alfresco dining spot, when the warmer weather finally rolls back around.
With the meaning of Osteria being an Italian tavern, for locals to gather and enjoy each other’s company, good wine and honest, flavourful food – the team have stayed true to the name. You can expect dim, ambient lighting, an open kitchen, fresh small plates, flavourful 48-hour pizzas, and traditional pasta.
Vibrant dishes at Social Osteria in Stockport. Credit: The Manc Group
This glamorous new restaurant is promising a spectacular menu, from cacio e pepe butter beans to guanciale topped pizzas and their very own slow-cooked beef shin and pork shoulder paccheri ragu, you know we’re in the right place.
With Italian food running in the family, the team’s cooking practices are rooted in traditional methods, passed down through the generations and then presented to us, with the freshest of ingredients.
It suits Capital&Centric, who’ve taken the same approach to Weir Mill itself – embracing the character of the historic mill whilst transforming it into a vibrant community, for generations to come.
Inside Social Osteria at Weir Mill. Credit: The Manc Group
Set below Stockport’s iconic viaduct, the £60m neighbourhood is now home to 253 apartments alongside bustling cafés, wine bars and stunning restaurants akin to Social Osteria, accompanied by plenty of outdoor seating, green spaces, and riverside viewpoints.
Where Osteria Social now calls home is part of Stockport’s £1 billion Town Centre West masterplan, adding to the town’s growing reputation as one of the best locations to live in the UK.
Social Osteria will officially open Thursday 22 October, at Weir Mill. Be sure to book your tables early as we fear this one might get a little booked up.
Daisy Jackson -
20th May 2024 
