A former Grade II-listed banking hall in the heart of Manchester is to be transformed into a steak and seafood restaurant The Cut & Craft.
Already an established name in York and Leeds, the all-day dining spot will open this year on the corner of Mosley Street and York Street.
The huge venue will be serving premium locally-reared steaks, as well as a menu of expertly delivered seafood specials and meat butchered in-house.
The Cut & Craft is currently taking shape inside the former Manchester and Salford bank, one of the city’s finest examples of Victorian architecture, which dates back to 1862 and is now known as Bond by Bruntwood SciTech.
The restoration of the former banking hall includes transforming the former subterranean vaults into private dining and entertainment spaces, including a state of the art ladies room, ‘gossip room’ and sommelier lounge.
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The building itself is a stunning example of a palazzo-style building, having been originally designed by famed Mancunian architect Edward Walters, who was famed for his adopted Italian style.
The Cut & Craft will proudly show off some of the space’s original features, from the cornicing on its double height ceiling to its floor-to-ceiling windows.
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As for the food, the restaurant will focus on quality steak and affordable seafood, served from lunch through to the evening.
The grand former banking hall that will soon be home to The Cut & Craft. Credit: SuppliedThe grand former banking hall that will soon be home to The Cut & Craft. Credit: Supplied
Dishes will include freshly-shucked oysters, Exmoor caviar and hand-cut beef tartare with breaded yolk and sesame croutons, plus grilled monkfish, king scallops, fish and chips, grilled lamb cutlets and a signature 10 oz flat iron steak, which is butchered by an expert team in house.
In a LinkedIn statement, Oscar Akgul, co-founder at Lucia and The Cut & Craft said: “Manchester is soon to have The Cut & Craft and in all honesty we simply cannot wait.
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“Our new venue is located on Mosley Street inside the iconic Grade II * building. Filled with history and its original features including vaults, soon to host private dining, combined with state of the art ladies room, ‘gossip room’ and sommelier lounge.
“Our new restaurant will be filled with elegant yet timeless style settings giving you the ultimate luxury at accessible prices.
“Working closely with the local authorities to bring back this rare building to its glorious days. Once this is completed, I believe we’ll make Manchester proud, as well as all the people who’ve worked on this amazing restoration project.
Steak and seafood restaurant The Cut & Craft is already well-established in Yorkshire. Credit: The Hoot LeedsSteak and seafood restaurant The Cut & Craft is already well-established in Yorkshire. Credit: The Hoot Leeds
“We’re months away from opening and we cannot wait to welcome you all.”
The stunning restoration project for The Cut & Craft is in collaboration with Bruntwood SciTech who have carried out a complete reimagining of the building. With the arrival of Cut and Craft the Bond building is now complete, creating a new destination for the city as well as an exceptional offering for those working in the building.
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Ciara Keeling, Chief Operating Officer at Bruntwood SciTech commented: “We are thrilled to be welcoming The Cut & Craft to Bond.
“In breathing new life into this iconic building, Bruntwood SciTech have created an inspiring new workspace and leisure destination, one which deserves an exceptional hospitality operator at its heart.
“Preservation of this building’s extraordinary heritage and architecture has been front of mind throughout the whole restoration project, and the ground floor banking hall space is no exception.
“In The Cut & Craft we have found a partner that will bring quality, elegance and laid back glamour to this magnificent space, completing Bond’s status as an exciting new destination for the city centre.”
Marco Pierre White praises Manchester restaurant serving ‘the best pizza’ he’s EVER had
Danny Jones
Legendary chef Marco Pierre White has given his verdict on where he thinks does THE best pizza not just in the UK but perhaps in the entire world, and it’s right here in Manchester
Rudy’s, Nell’s, Double Zero and now this – we really are spoilt for slices in 0161, aren’t we?
Pierre White, who was not only the first Brit to ever win three Michelin stars but the youngest person to achieve the feat in history, recently visited the restaurant in question and was more than happy to share his bold claims, dubbing it “the very best I’ve ever had in my life”.
That’s saying quite something, not only from one of the most famous chefs in the world, but given his own family heritage. He even saw fit to sign the menu and write the man in the kitchen a thank-you note.
A recent London export, which only just launched in spring 2025, the 63-year-old chef, entrepreneur and TV personality says that Forbici is now his number one, stating simply: “Let the pizzas do the talking.”
Noting that he’s been all over the world and eaten at some of the most highly-rated venues in the world (especially given the fact that he is of Italian heritage on his mother’s side), including some of the most authentic you’ll find in the likes of Naples, Rome, and so on, he still seemed confident in his declaration.
Citing other famous names in the world of cooking, like Nancy Silverton of Pizzeria Mozza fame, as well as fellow TV chef and restaurateur Mario Batali, he says that the creative takes on Neapolitan ‘pies’ that master baker Davide Argentino is currently cooking up are nothing short of “delicious.”
Having first become famous down in the capital for its name, which simply translates as ‘scissors’ – also the chosen utensil given to diners for cutting up their pizzas – it proved a smash hit when it made its way up North, garnering massive opening day queues outside its restaurant on the corner of Cross Street.
Better still, you can now order it to take away, too… Game-changer.
Now, it goes without saying that we’re lucky enough to have many restaurants serving some of the authentic food from various regions all over Italy, not to mention a plethora of incredible pizza spots in the city centre and the wider boroughs.
It’s no exaggeration, therefore, to say that we struggle picking our absolute favourite from week to week at this point.
What we will say is that we bloody love Forbici, too, and are glad to see them getting so much recognition since arriving in the region.
You can get 25% off your bill when eating out at this well-known Italian restaurant with a secret code
Danny Jones
Fancy going out for tea but still trying not to spend too much money at this time of year? Well, Manchester, you can get 25% off your bill at an already affordable British restaurant chain by simply saying a special phrase.
This deal is only available this week, though, so we wouldn’t wait around.
We’ve all been there: you’re fed up of getting home after working and having to cook, so you start trying to justify ‘just one‘ night out, but it can be a real pull between enjoyment and ease versus trying to save those pennies – especially with the festive period looming.
Luckily, well-known Italian restaurant group Carluccio’s, who have a site right here in central Manchester, is offering a significant discount by simply asking for the bill in Italian. Simple as.
As a recognisable name on the UK high street, the authentic Italian eatery dates back nearly three and a half decades, the London-born deli and food shop going on to open its first-ever sit-down venue called Carluccio’s Caffè back in 1999.
In addition to their long-standing Manchester location in Piccadilly Station, the brand was also a shop-window establishment for the Trafford Centre, sitting front and centre as one of the first places to eat as you walked in the Orient entrance.
Now, as for how you access this welcome bit of money off your bill, it’s very straightforward and can be secured as fast as you can say “The bill, please”; well, actually, you need to ask for it in Italian, as it is this phrase that Carluccio’s has dubbed the ‘secret code’.
Following a study by language learning app, Preply, which recently carried out research into menu anxiety and struggling to make a decision when dining out, they’ve teamed up with Carluccio‘s to help push people to feel more confident ordering dishes not in their native tongue.
They found that almost half (49%) have felt embarrassed about not speaking another language, with one fifth of those surveyed lacking the confidence to try and pronounce foreign words, while one in six worried they’d be judged for getting it wrong.
Well, there’s no getting it wrong in this instance, as the Carluccio’s and Preply are giving you the specific keywords not only to ask for the bill in Italian – “Il conto, per favore” – but to unlock the bonus of a quarter off the final sum.
Anna Pyshna, spokesperson at Preply, says: “People may know how to say gnocchi in theory, but when the waiter’s standing there, confidence can vanish. We want to show that getting things wrong is part of learning and sometimes, even worth a discount.
“By turning a simple phrase into a real-world reward, we’re helping people take that first, brave step to speak up. It’s a reminder that the language learning process doesn’t start with perfection, it starts with the willingness to try.”
So, that really is it: dine at any of their restaurants across the country (including here in Manchester) and ask for the bill in Italian to get 25% off your bill; once again, the offer is only on until 9 November. You can find your nearest Carluccio’s location HERE.
Daisy Jackson -
10th July 2024 
