The Hive – a new neighbourhood restaurant and bar – has reopened at Stretford Mall
After four patient months of sitting tight, the new Stretford eatery finally got to reopen this week - giving the Manchester town a much-needed boost post-lockdown.
But then, well, everyone knows what happened next.
The Hive didn’t get to enjoy the grand curtain-raiser it anticipated, and within days of setting up, it was forced to shut down.
But, after four patient months of sitting tight, they finally got to reopen this week – giving the Manchester suburb a much-needed boost post-lockdown.
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More than a year in the making, The Hive has been launched by a group boasting decades of experience in hospitality – and the result is a refreshing change of pace for a region that’s been crying out for brand new bars and experiences.
They’ve chosen to cast a wide net and capture the attention of almost everyone in the area – and perhaps a few people further afield, too.
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After taking our seats at the pre-launch event, we catch many of the other guests gazing at the ground.
At first it looks like a bit like they’ve all been reprimanded for refusing to follow the one-way system – but on closer inspection, it becomes clear they’re actually checking out the rows of vinyls embedded into the restaurant floor.
It’s a lovely design touch – giving diners the rare experience of tucking into meals whilst sitting above classic music from decades gone by.
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When the rules relax a bit, some of these records will be played overhead, too. And the volume will rise high as the sun goes down.
The breezy ambience at The Hive is reinforced by its exposed brickwork, lovely thick seating (with a vital tipping function to lean back when you’ve hit a wall after devouring a big meal) and the sunny, helpful staff – who manage to keep tabs on the dining area whilst adhering to all the necessary rules and regs.
Big wide windows keep natural light streaming into the venue at all times – helping to light up the vibrant, eye-catching artwork adorning the walls.
As for the grub, the choice is plentiful.
The sharing platter alone has more than half a dozen different deep-fried small bites to tuck into – which we tackled together with relish before moving onto fish burger, chicken kiev and steak mains.
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With a breakfast, lunch and dinner menu, The Hive has a bit of everything depending on what you fancy.
There’s a few different full English options and butties served at the crack of dawn, with sandwiches, burgers, a nice selection of small plates, desserts and kids menu available right up until 9pm.
Sunday Roasts are also in the mix – with options covering topside beef, lamb leg and roasted vegetable galette.
The Hive is all part of a big plan to get Stretford buzzing again.
The corporate crowd can pop in for a catchup over coffee with a client. Groups can book the private room upstairs and kick back with some beers and sport. And the night owls can congregate for cocktails before floating off into the big city.
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It’s a diverse, refreshing addition to Manchester in an uncertain climate – and it could turn out to be a real neighbourhood favourite.
If you fancy taking a peek at the new nest in Stretford, head over to their website and book yourself a table.
Eats
A new restaurant serving seafood boils is opening at Printworks in Manchester
Daisy Jackson
Shrimp Shack is set to open its first restaurant outside London this summer, with a new site in Printworks in Manchester.
The new restaurant will be serving seafood boils, as well as huge £19.95 platters, £10 lunch deals, and cocktail pitchers.
Shrimp Shack is set to open in the former Frankie & Benny’s site, beneath Printworks’ dazzling digital ceiling.
The restaurant is already cult-followed with its London locations, where it’s built a solid reputation for generous portions and bold flavours.
Shrimp Shack favourites include various seafood boils, a dish with its roots in the Southern states of the USA, including their shrimp boil, seafood boil, and the lux lobster boil.
Each boil is loaded with shrimp, seafood, sausages, corn on the cob, boiled eggs, spiced rice and peri chips, in the brand’s signature secret sauce.
There’s also set to be a Shack Savers Selection, with five huge dishes (battered fish and shrimps, a 12oz Wagyu steak, grilled salmon with prince shrimps, surf and turf, and grilled shrimp and calamari) priced at just £19.95, including two sides and a choice of sauces.
At lunchtimes, there’ll be £10 dishes like the Sprimp Rich Po’ Boy sandwich, the double cheese smash burger, and a veggie option (or you can upgrade to a lobster roll for £5).
And there’ll be refillable soft drinks, freshly-blended smoothies, milkshakes, mocktails, and sharing pitchers.
Shrimp Shack opens in Printworks this summer, serving seafood boils and platters
Rish Gola, co-founder of Shrimp Shack, said: “Shrimp shack was born in London to redefine how people enjoy premium seafood; served fresh and fast, where bold flavours are brought together with everyday dishes.
“Shrimp Shack has a strong appeal with ethnic communities, family diners, and groups of friends who come together over big flavours and generous seafood feasts.
“Our accessible pricing and high-quality dishes create apremium fast experience that welcomes everyone.”
Dan Davis, general manager at Printworks, said: “We’re delighted to have secured Shrimp Shack as Printworks’ latest tenant, its first location outside of London and another exciting restaurant to add to our offering.
“Shrimp Shack’s unique and distinctive offering is perfectly aligned with our aim to deliver high quality experience-led concepts right in the heart of Manchester.”
Top Manchester restaurant ‘so chuffed’ after receiving glowing national review
Daisy Jackson
Top Manchester restaurant Skof has received a stunning review from a national critic, with the team saying they are ‘so chuffed’.
The acclaimed NOMA restaurant, headed up by chef Tom Barnes, has rapidly become one of Manchester’s most decorated restaurants.
Not only does it proudly display its first Michelin star – earned in less than a year after opening – but it’s also been named the coveted AA Restaurant of the Year.
And now Skof can add a rave Guardian review to the list too, with critic Grace Dent heaping praise upon the business.
She said that Skof is ‘well worth the hype’, describing it (much like its parent restaurant L’enclume) to be ‘one of those intensely relaxed yet still ferociously fancy restaurants’.
Dent praised ‘hugely scoffable’ snacks like a cheese biscuit topped with broad bean, pike roe and shiso, as well as a lightly set custard with truffle and mushroom dashi (‘a quiche filling on steroids’).
In her Guardian review, she also loved the final course always served at Skof no matter how much the menu changes with the seasons – the tiramisu served from a giant bowl, tableside.
“The final hurrah: that scoop of Tom’s dad’s tiramisu, served from a big bowl,” Grace Dent wrote.
“It’s a clunky, sentimental and, ultimately, glorious end to the meal. Many Michelin-starred restaurants bookend your visit with a gift of seeds, teabags or fancy chocolate, but at Skof they send you on your way with this tiny taste of boozy stodge that’s both incongruous with everything that went before but at the same time is also symbolic of Tom Barnes’ life and everything that went before.”
Grace Dent heaped praise on Skof in a recent Guardian reviewSkof placed 29th in the National Restaurant Awards
The amazing review also said: “Fine dining can at times be truly maddening, and leave diners hungry and hoodwinked, but Skof is proof that this often precarious blend of pacing, staging and portion size can be properly magical.”
She signed off by saying: “Skof is clever and emotional… It’s also well worth the hype, so do try to nab a table, if you can. It’s fancy, yes, but it also fills you up. This is fine dining that even a naysayer would like.”
Skof has said that it’s ‘so chuffed’ to receive the review, which landed in The Guardian on the restaurant’s second birthday.
They wrote: “Our 2nd birthday just got a quite a bit more special with an absolutely amazing review from @gracedent. We’re so chuffed with the write up. Hope the man from the traitors comes down, so we can serve him a crumpet.”
You can read Grace Dent’s full Skof review in The Guardian here.
The Manc -
29th July 2020 
