Manchester’s first wunderbar has taken to the street with the opening of its brand new outdoor terrace.
Now that ‘Step Two’ in the government’s roadmap to lifting England’s current national lockdown has commenced – which crucially allowed hospitality businesses to reopen for outdoor service only – Manchester’s iconic bier palace, Albert’s Schloss, has unveiled a glorious Alpine-inspired outdoor terrace in the heart of the city centre – Schloss Straße.
Inspired by Alpine summers and al fresco dining of continental Europe, Schloss Straße is a 100-cover, partially-heated terrace situated on Peter Street directly outside the venue.
There’ll be a summer-themed drinks menu, biers and Alpine cook haus delights.
For drinks, Schloss Straße will serve a range of Bavarian tap biers, Fresh Unpasteurised Pilsner Urquell, plus Schloss’ very own Manchester Rein, highballs, spritz and Sommer cocktails – including Strawberry Spritz, Pear Old Fashioned, Chinotto White Negroni and Alpina Colada.
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‘Gülden Hour’ boozing will take place every Monday to Friday 4-7pm, with highballs and spritz for £5, Kozel for £4, and bottles of prosecco for only £20.
Albert’s Schloss
The acclaimed cook haus will serve a range of Alpine-inspired delights, from small plates including meatballs and cambozola, garlic bread and hummus and flatbread, to classics like fish fritz and pan-fried Schnitzel.
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The Cook Haus will also be serving up a rotating sandwich of the week, a Cook Haus special, and a selection of classic burgers and wursts.
As night falls, Schloss Straße will welcome live entertainment, DJs and promenaders.
Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, some of Manchester’s finest DJ’s will be on the Straße decks, including Jonjo Williams, Hattie Pearson and DJ Paulette, and this weekend will see the return of the infamous ‘Sunday Service’ with a selection of Sunday roasts available throughout the day and DJ Paulette DJ’ing in the afternoon to keep your weekend hanging on as long as possible.
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Albert’s Schloss
Advanced booking is required, with drinks bookings available all day from 12-9:45pm and food bookings available from 12-9:15pm up until Sunday 16th May.
After this date, outdoor tables will operate on a first-come-first-served basis.
Inside Popeyes as fried chicken restaurant opens its first Manchester drive-thru
Daisy Jackson
Popeyes is ready to open its first-ever Greater Manchester drive-thru restaurant, where you can pick up its legendary Louisiana-style fried chicken and shakes.
To celebrate its launch, Popeyes will be giving away free chicken sandwiches for a year to the first people in the queue – and when it launched at Piccadilly Gardens, someone waited outside for 16 hours.
People really love this chicken…
In the blink of an eye, the colourful orange and blue building has taken shape on Bury New Road, where hungry diners can pick up meals in the drive-thru or order ahead for curbside collection.
Customers dining in can order through a QR code or touch-screens, before sitting down at one of the many orange booths to tuck into trays piled high with sandwiches, tenders, mac and cheese, and more.
There are 72 indoors plus an outside dining area, dual-ordering lanes, and designated bays for pre-orders.
Popeyes is famed for its viral ‘shatter crunch’-coated fried chicken, its Southern US biscuits and gravy, and its brekkie menu where British classics are given a New Orleans twist.
Inside Greater Manchester’s new Popeyes drive-thru
The doors and lanes to the new chicken shop will officially open on Friday 26 April at 11am.
The first three people queueing both on foot and in cars will win free chicken sandwiches for a year, and the first 25 in both queues will get a free chicken sandwich and exclusive merch.
This new Popeyes marks the brand’s 11th opening in 2024, and 47th since launching in the UK in 2021.
You’ll find it at 288-292 unit Bury New Rd, M7 2YJ, right next to the McDonald’s and Tim Horton’s on the border of Prestwich.
Skof, Manchester’s most hotly-anticipated restaurant, confirms opening date and menu prices
Daisy Jackson
A restaurant with a serious Michelin pedigree is set to open in Manchester very soon, as chef Tom Barnes readies to launch Skof and gives a glimpse into its menu.
Tom’s impressive CV includes time spent at L’Enclume, the three-Michelin star Lake District restaurant widely considered one of the best in the world, and he’ll bring that same farm-to-table ethos to the city centre with his debut restaurant.
Skof will be taking over a historic building in the NOMA neighbourhood, right by Manchester Victoria, with an official opening date now locked in.
Skof is set to launch on Wednesday 29 May, with bookings going live today and tables available all the way through to 14 September (and likely to fill up fast).
Tom Barnes has also teased what’s to come on his menu, with two different tasting menus available.
Skof will have a 12-course tasting menu priced at £120, and a 15-course menu for £165 – plus a £50, four-course lunch offering.
The restaurant will be owned and operated by Tom but falls under Simon Rogan’s UMBEL Restaurants group, and he’ll be weaving in new suppliers as well as using daily deliveries of produce grown specifically for him from Simon Rogan’s Our Farm in the Cartmel Valley.
He’ll be using small-scale suppliers such as Cinderwood Market Garden in Nantwich and Lake District Farmers to fill his exciting menu of home-grown dishes.
The first set of menus will include dishes like roasted Sladesdown duck, peach leaf, Ibis celeriac, and wholemeal bread; Berkswell cheese sable biscuit, crushed broad beans, whipped roe, and bronze fennel; and a lightly set custard, served with Hen-of-the-Woods mushrooms, truffle, and mushroom dashi.
Tom Barnes with the team outside Skof, a new restaurant opening in Manchester in May which has confirmed its launch date and menu prices. Credit: Supplied
There’ll be a lot of thought that goes in to the drinks pairings too, working with restaurant manager Sean Oakford and assistant restaurant manager Max Lawrence (both ex-L’Enclume), on a range of drinks options to include alcohol-free or mixed-alcohol pairings, or matching wines to go with the menu.
Tom has also collaborated with Manchester brewery, Track to create Sidney, a light and refreshing beer intended as an alternative to kick off the meal.
Tom Barnes said: “It’s been a long time coming, so I’m excited to be able to finally release our reservations. I can’t wait to share what we’ve been working on and to return some of the incredible hospitality I’ve received from the people of Manchester.
“With Skof, my purpose is to create an incredible experience that focuses on great quality ingredients but above all, puts a smile on peoples faces.”
Skof will open in Manchester’s NOMA district on Wednesday 29 May.
Emily Sergeant -
21st April 2021 
