Summer has finally arrived and with temperatures set to soar in Manchester, people will be flocking outside to beer gardens.
With a heatwave on the horizon, the city’s streets will likely be packed with revellers sipping on cocktails and drinking pints out in the fresh air.
We all know the pain of walking pub-to-pub trying to find a seat on a sunny and/or warm Manchester day, so we’re rounding up the best beer gardens in the city to get a seat.
Some of them are massive, some of them are overlooked, but either way, you might actually stand a chance at getting a seat in one of these – if you’re quick enough, that is.
Thomas Street, Edge Street and Stevenson Square
Thomas Street. Credit: David Dixon via Geograph
This was one of the few positives to come out of the pandemic – removing vehicles from a back-to-back stretch of the Northern Quarter.
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It means that the bars along Thomas Street, Stevenson Square and Edge Street can now fill the roads with tables and chairs in one giant beer garden.
You’ll find the likes of Common, Flok, Terrace, Smithfield Social, the Bay Horse Tavern and Wolf At The Door all being given the al fresco treatment.
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The Mews
Image: The Mews
Wine and charcuterie bar The Mews sites on the often-forgot Deansgate Mews walkway, wedged between the tail end of Deansgate and the Great Northern Warehouse.
Its large, secluded outdoor area is the perfect place to try when everywhere seems full – as this hidden gem delivers in spades on food, drink, and sunshine too.
Up here you’ll also find the likes of Siam Smiles cafe, Whistlepunks, Another Hand and Lion’s Den.
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Crazy Pedros, Bridge Street
Image: Crazy Pedro’s
Drenched in sun for the best part of the day, the beer garden at Crazy Pedro’s also happens to be huge – having benefited from a pavement extension thanks to Covid.
You can drink margaritas and enjoy slices of pizza all day here whilst soaking up the rays, but we do recommend trying for a table early – it does tend to get pretty packed come the late afternoon / evening.
Castlefield
Two beer garden institutions both stand in the canal-side setting of Castlefield.
Both The Wharf and Dukes 92 are stuffed to the brim with pub-goers in spring and summer, thanks to their massive terraces – with the terrace at Atlas Bar also a good consideration, being somewhat hidden at the back of the bar, it’s often overlooked by sun seekers.
It always helps that Castlefield is one of the prettiest spots in the city centre, too.
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Escape to Freight Island
This hospitality giant was initially purpose-built with social distancing in mind (wasn’t 2020 a wild ride?!), leading to a seriously roomy outdoor space.
While the bulk of the action has now shifted indoors to the Ticket Hall, Freight Island’s colourful outdoor space is back in its element – now open seven days a week.
You’ll find street food traders like One Star Doner Bar, Madre tacos, Batard, Voodoo Ray’s pizza, Burgerism and Mi & Pho all trading here, on this formerly-forgotten patch near Manchester Piccadilly.
The Oast House
Beer gardens seem to be everywhere in Manchester these days, which is of course a good thing, but we still have a soft spot for the original outdoor watering hole.
Cast your mind back a few years and The Oast House (and its grassy Spinningfields counterpart The Lawn Club) was one of the few venues that really focused on an open-air offering.
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It’s still the same today – masses of tables in the heart of Spinningfields, with live entertainment and a belting Aperol Spritz too.
Hatch
Hatch. Credit: Jody Hartley
Hatch’s little village of shipping containers, each one home to an independent business (from food and drink to retail), is a true all-weather venue.
Part of it is sheltered by the Mancunian Way that soars overhead, other parts are heated by patio heaters, and parts are left in optimum position for soaking up some sunshine.
The rooftop terrace that overlooks the whole space is our personal favourite.
This ‘secret garden’ bar opened right in the heart of the Northern Quarter last year.
Tucked behind those big mint-green wooden boards on Dale Street is a cluster of picnic tables and wooden huts festooned with fairy lights and plants.
It might not be the tropics, but they’ve got the cocktails to trick your tastebuds into thinking it is – we’re talking frozen strawberry daiquiris and frozen pina coladas. Oh, and there’s beer too.
The Corn Exchange
Another corner of the city where bars and restaurants spill outside alongside one another is the Corn Exchange.
Its residents – including Salvi’s, Banyan and Cosy Club – almost all have their own terraces, but it’s the ones on the Exchange Square side who get the most sunshine.
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You might have to queue a little while, but with so much seating, you’ll be sipping a drink in the sun before you know it.
Featured image: Escape to Freight Island
Eats
Stockport town centre’s first ramen spot sat above a coffee shop that we can’t get enough of
Danny Jones
If you’re a local Stockport resident or have even walked along the increasingly cultured cobbles of Underbank, chances are you’ve passed a place called Ōdiobā, but did you know that by night, its loft turns into a stylish listening bar that also serves some of the best ramen around?
Seriously: not only is it, to our knowledge, the only venue serving traditional ramen in Stockport town centre, but it’s some of the best we’ve had in years. Literally, YEARS.
Central Manchester has the benefit of being spoiled by numerous noodle masters – New Wave, Ramenshop (formerly known as Tokyo Ramen), Shogun, etc. – but we’d genuinely wager that this relative newcomer known simply as Uma is right up there with them.
In fact, it might currently be vying for the top spot itself.
We really try our best to shy away from the most ultimate of superlatives where we can, especially because we’re lucky enough to come across so many culinary gems and new restaurants all the time, but the more we’ve revisited this place, the more we’re convinced it’s utterly brilliant.
On a personal note, in a post-Cocktail Beer Ramen + Bun world, we feel like we’ve come very close to finding a new go-to that’s on a par with the late, great CBRB; perhaps we’ll never quite get there, or maybe we’re falling victim to the rose-tinted lens of nostalgia, but Uma is at least in the conversation.
Something we can say for sure is that they’ve gone with the tried and tested method of doing just a few things extremely over trying to cater to everyone.
Offering a small but stunning menu, with just three small plates and three options when it comes to ramen, each one is well-balanced and portioned, guaranteeing a filling bowl of ramen finished with great quality toppings.
You’re not left needing a single noodle more, nor do they cut you a single spring onion shy – but let’s be honest, this cuisine also leaves you craving more broth.
This might be a small thing, but we even like how the deep bowls come with built-in grooves/utensil holders for you to rest your spoons and chopsticks in. It’s only a little extra, we know, but it’s a nice touch, nevertheless.
Having now done a couple laps of the menu over the course of just a handful of visits, there are few taste bud journeys as satisfying as those gently-seasoned edamame beans, with the vibrant, lightly-acidic pickled daikon radishes and cucumber cutting through, before the savoury bomb of those mains.
And above all else, it’s the broth. My word… that broth.
Most impressively of all, perhaps, is that while we were expecting to enjoy the shoyu or red miso option the most, it’s the vegan ramen that we found to be the most flavourful.
The white miso and vegetable soup base is about as rich as you could hope for from any broth, as are the surprisingly satisfying slices of sweet soy tofu.
The smell of this freshly-charred chashu. Wow. The ideal thickness – great, minimal chew, too.Is Stockport town centre’s first ramen spot also one of the best in Greater Manchester right now? It might just be. (Credit: The Manc Eats)
Put simply, this particular bowl truly puts the Uma in umami.
It really is perfect as is, complemented by the shitake mushrooms, mustard greens, bamboo shoots and aromatic roasted sesame.
However, we honestly believe we have mastered a flawless order: choosing the vegan bowl and then adding pieces of chashu pork, a gooey ramen egg and maybe some chilli oil for good measure.
Try it for yourselves and tell us we’re anything other than absolutely bang on.
As for the space itself, you’ll struggle to find another spot as simultaneously casually aesthetic and atmospheric as the top floor of this building.
It’s well worth a visit to try the sophisticated selection of cocktails co-curated by founder Nam Tran – who first won over foodie fans with his conveniently self-titled Vietnamese venue in Ancoats, which sadly closed in 2024 – or sample his handmade hi-fi system alone, but the bonus of ramen takes the cake.
With DJ sets from the man himself as well as other selectors and artists, not to mention jazz nights and other live music during the week, it’s an effortlessly cool couple of floors that just so happens to serve some of our favourite food to the highest order.
Now, we will confess that we’ve only seen Ōdiobā in its ‘shadow self’ form, for lack of a better phrase, and are yet to sample the artisan café side of this business, but we assure you that it is a failure on our part and one we’ll be making up for as soon as possible.
Let’s just say, if the coffee is as good as the other liquids we’ve drunk here, be it the booze or the very last drop of broth from the bottom of the bowl, it’s probably some of the best in Stockport.
You can guarantee we’ll be coming back to this place time and time again whenever we visit the borough.
Music legend Billy Ocean pays a visit to Mama Flo’s in Stockport
Danny Jones
Cult Stockport foodie favourite Mama Flo’s has been visited by yet another shock famous face when music legend Billy Ocean ‘Suddenly’ popped into the takeaway this week.
What a lovely surprise for the local hero.
Mama Flo’s is not just a go-to eatery for many in the Great Moor neighbourhood; its glowing reviews and long-standing reputation have meant that it’s frequently patronised by out-of-town tourists as well as plenty of celebrities.
Florence Beryl Coke, now in her 70s, is no stranger to welcoming household names, but given the Caribbean royalty in question, she was clearly blown away when the ‘Love Really Hurts Without You’ singer came through the door.
Billy Ocean, 75 himself, played the O2 Apollo in June on his most recent headline tour, but the Trinidadian-born British soul and pop singer has still but up and down the country throughout the year.
We’re not too sure why he was up in Greater Manchester this week, but we’re glad he was.
Writing on Facebook, Flo wrote: “What a good night, tonight. Feeling so tired and having a break – then guess who walked in? The greatest Billy Ocean, and boy, we had a great night chatting away with his entourage. Thank you, Billy, for a splendid night.”
Following up with another grateful post on Friday morning, 14 November, she quoted the title of his most famous hit, before adding: “We love you, Billy Ocean. Thanks for the support last night and [thank you to] your team, love.”
Knowing how hard Flo works, having become famous for her incredible work ethic and regularly working overtime to serve the community, this will no doubt have felt like a well-earned reward after another long, hard day.
Kyle Walker is one of many footballers who’ve been.Couldn’t agree more.Credit: Mama Flo’s
She doesn’t just get one-time visitors either: regulars include The Stone Roses’ Ian Brown, nearby actor Will Mellor, and a plethora of regional soap stars.
In this case, Billy Ocean was just the latest celeb to get out of her dreams and into her shop – and yes, that may be a rather stretched pun, but it was worth it, nevertheless.
So, if you’ve still never been to one of the best food spots in Stockport, Mama Flo’s now has the certified Billy Ocean seal of approval to its name, as well as having featured on our very own Takeaway Champions a little while back. We can’t think of any better advert to go and try it for yourself.
Daisy Jackson -
15th July 2022 
