It’s not polite to fixate on someone’s age too much – but The Rice Bowl in Manchester is really, really bloody old.
This Cross Street institution has been serving hungry diners with gigantic portions of authentic Chinese food since 1960, with no sign of slowing down.
Others that were doing a cracking job of staying in operation, like Simon Rimmer’s Greens restaurant in Didsbury, and Font (home of the bargain cocktail) in the city centre are gone for good now after literal decades of trade.
So to stay open not just through the Covid years but for 64 years is quite remarkable.
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The Rice Bowl is old enough to remember The Big Freeze, Beatles-mania, the assassination of JFK, England lifting a World Cup trophy, Concorde launching (and then crashing…), the Troubles, Britain joining the EU (and then leaving it again…), the miners’ strikes, Thatcher, the Channel Tunnel opening, Princess Diana’s death, the IRA bomb in Manchester, Dolly the sheep, the birth of Facebook (in fact, the birth of the internet in general), The Rachel, Harry Potter, and so many more world-changing events.
The Rice Bowl is down in a basement on Cross Street in ManchesterIts decor is as classically British-Chinese as you can imagineYou enter The Rice Bowl past a Buddha water feature
It’s not technically the oldest restaurant in town, with Sam’s Chop House claiming a 140-year history, but it is the one that’s remained with the same family for the longest.
The Rice Bowl was opened in Liverpool at first, when Wing Lau left Shangai to a backdrop of the Chinese Cultural Revolution.
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But after a few years, he moved across to Manchester, and although it’s now his family who are running the show, The Rice Bowl is largely unchanged.
You still get a slice of fruit with your bill, there’s a fish tank full of goldfish by the door, and the menus are thick, leather-bound tomes full of delights.
And on a wet and dreary Tuesday lunchtime, it’s full. There are lunch meetings in one corner, couples surrounded by shopping bags in another, colleagues grumbling about colleagues over steaming baskets of dim sum.
During the week, it’s the £19.50 set menu that lures us Mancs in time and time again.
For that price, you get a basket of prawn crackers, a starter, and a main – and the portions are so huge you could act like a bear, eating the whole lot before hibernating until your next meal in the spring time.
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We ate a sharp and tangy Peking hot and sour soup, which tastes like the exact opposite of Manchester drizzle, and a basket of gelatinous dim sum, the kimchi bao delightfully springy and chewy.
The Singapore-style vermicelli noodle bowl is so massive, you could use the noodles to knit a particularly vibrant yellow jumper.
The hot and sour Peking soup at The Rice Bowl. Credit: The Manc Group
Its flavours are earthy and comforting and really sing when you slap on The Rice Bowl’s punchy crispy chilli oil.
A Chinese classic next, with chunks of crispy chilli beef stuck together with a bright red sweet chilli sauce. It’s a full plate worth of food, and there’s one of those Mary Poppins bowls of rice on the side that just seems endless no matter how many spoonfuls you dump into your bowl.
The Rice Bowl isn’t fancy and isn’t particular beautiful to look at. There are no gimmicks and basically no online presence. But maybe, just getting your head down in the kitchen and focusing all your efforts on cooking good, honest food is its magic trick.
Indie food and drink festival to return to popular Greater Manchester town for second year
Emily Sergeant
A food and drink festival shining a spotlight on independent businesses is returning to Greater Manchester this summer.
Following the success of last year’s tasty debut, Urmston’s very-own independent food and drink festival, YUM! – Your Urmston Matters, is back for its second serving later this month, and will once again be transforming the Trafford town’s M41 site on Railway Road into a buzzing hub of ‘flavour, fun, and local pride’.
Organised by Love Urmston and hosted by Urmston resident and food and drink presenter, Matty White, this community celebration will bring together top local street food vendors, artisan producers, and drink retailers, alongside live cooking demos, family activities, and loads of entertainment.
Now in its second year, YUM! continues to shine a spotlight on Urmston’s indie food scene and the passion of the people behind it, but as well as local residents, it also invites the rest of Trafford and the wider Greater Manchester community to come together.
So whether you just live down the road, or you are discovering the town for the first time, everyone is welcome to pop down.
“Bringing YUM! back for a second year is incredibly exciting,” commented Fred Davids, who is the Chair of the Love Urmston committee.
“It’s a brilliant way to celebrate what makes Urmston special – its community, and fantastic food and drink scene, welcoming people from near and far to experience the town at its best.
“And as a committee, we’re proud to support our incredible local independent businesses who put their heart and soul into everything they do.”
YUM! is returning to Urmston for another delicious festival this month / Credit: Emma Boyle (via Supplied)
Just some of the independent businesses you’ll find at the festival throughout the day include English Rose Bakery, Inforno Pizzeria, Dan’s Cookies, Banga Curries, JJ’s Caribbean Kitchen, The Greek Village, Pomona Island Brewery, Kelder Wines, and so many more.
The festival is also proudly sponsored by Gecko Homes – a north west property developer that specialises in creating affordable and shared ownership homes across many of Manchester’s most popular suburbs.
You can read more about what Gecko Homes is doing across the region here.
YUM! – Your Urmston Matters is back this month on Saturday 21 June, and will be getting underway from 11am through to 5pm.
Featured Image – Emma Boyle (via Supplied)
Eats
The Stables – A brand-new Manchester pub on the site of the Rovers Return
Daisy Jackson
A brand-new pub is set to open in Manchester city centre net month, with treats in store like complimentary bowls of crisps, an outdoor terrace, and a games parlour.
The Stables Tavern is taking shape in the St John’s district, poetically on the same site that was once home to Coronation Street’s iconic Rovers Return pub.
They’re promising this will be a ‘historic tavern reimagined for today’s lover of a proper pint’.
The pub will come from Shiko Group, which is also behind Courts Club, where you can play tennis or basketball followed by court-side pints, and Side Street, a bar-restaurant-events space with a mid-Century interior.
Neighbouring the Bonded Warehouse, The Stables Tavern will join this rapidly blossoming new creative district, just across the yard from Caravan, The Trading Route and Aviva Studios.
Inside, punters will find multiple beer taps with local beers, served with complimentary bowls of crisps as well as a menu of pub snacks like handmade sausage rolls and local pies.
The pub will be split into three sections – an outside terrace, a main bar, and a parlour area at the back of the pub for live entertainment, old school games, and rounds of whiskey.
The Stables pub in Manchester
The Stables pub in ManchesterThe Stables pub in ManchesterThe Stables pub in ManchesterThe Stables pub in ManchesterThe Stables pub in Manchester
This might be a new district but it’s a historic area for the city – the same building was a busy watering hole back in the early 19th century for workers, merchants and visitors who made use of the nearby canals and cobbled streets.
It was then the home of the Rovers Return, back when this area was the home of Granada Studios.
Hayley Sammé, Marketing Director, said: “We’re so excited to bring The Stables Tavern back to St John’s. The area’s extensive historical backdrop and burgeoning hospitality scene provides the perfect landscape for a traditional British pub.
“It’s the perfect addition to the existing scene, and we hope it’s going to become a popular spot in our new creative district.”
The Stables Tavern will open at St John’s on Friday 6 June – you can sign up for one of 1,000 free pints HERE.