Eats

All the May Manchester restaurant deals, discounts and offers you need in 2023

From 50% off to bottomless wings and brunches, and set menus at some of Manchester's top restaurants, there is loads to try.

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 15th May 2023

When it comes to dining out in Manchester on a budget, there are plenty of great restauraunts offering deals and set menus to help you save a few pennies without comprising on taste.

This May, we’ve handpicked some of the best Manchester restaurant deals, discounts and offers to help you head out and support your local independents without breaking the bank.

From bottomless brunches and wing feasts, to 50% off the whole menu at Northern Quarter favourites Trof and The Pen and Pencil and half-price tasting menus at Masterchef winner Simon Wood’s First Street restaurant, there’s so much to get stuck into this May.

Keep reading to find out the best Manchester bar and restaurant deals to put on your list this month.

50% off food and drink – Manchester May dining deals

Image: Bab
Image: Bab

Bab

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What is it: Casual venue with an industrial vibe, prepping meze & kebabs with homemade sauces & marinades.

The offer: Two courses and bottomless drinks for £40.

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T&Cs:  Available Fridays only in May between 3-10pm (last sitting at 8pm). 

The Blues Kitchen

What is it: Dedicated blues bar serving hickory-smoked comfort food, plus regular live music & DJs.

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The offer: 90 minutes of bottomless wings for £12.

T&Cs: Offer available every Sunday from 12-6pm.

La Bandera

What is it: Market-fresh, classic Spanish cuisine in airy, contemporary space with yellow booths and banquettes.

The offer: Drink and pintxos for £5.

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T&Cs: Available from 4pm until close every Thursday and Friday.

The Pen and Pencil

What is it: New York-influenced all day kitchen serving imaginative menus, as well as craft beers & cocktails.

The offer: 50% off all food.

T&Cs: Available every Monday in May when you pre-book.

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Trof

What is it: Venue with a dedicated bourbon bar, gigs, open-mic nights and quizzes, plus food from breakfast on.

The offer: 50% off food.

T&Cs: Available all day on Tuesdays throughout May when you pre-book.

Wood

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What is it: MasterChef Simon Wood’s high-end restaurant down at First Street, perfect for a pre-theatre treat.

The offer: 50% off Wood’s tasting menu (£110 down to £55).

T&Cs: Available every Wednesday throughout May.

More Manchester May dining deals

Image: Volta
Image: Volta

20 Stories

What is it: High-style destination in a shopping complex for modern British dining & cocktails & sweeping views.

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The offer: Three courses for £22.50.

T&Cs:  Available Monday to Friday between 12-3pm.  

The Alan:

What is it: Hotel and restaurant favoured by Jay Rayer, located across the street from Manchester Art Gallery.

The offer: Four dishes for £25.

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T&Cs: Available seven days a week between the hours of 12-4pm and 5-6pm.

Image: Albert’s Schloss
Image: Albert’s Schloss

Albert’s Schloss

What is it: Bavarian-style beer cellar for traditional German food and pilsner beers on tap and in bottles.

The offer: Three courses for £27.

T&Cs: Available every Sunday from 12-9pm.

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Asha’s

What is it: Contemporary Indian cuisine in a sophisticated, low-lit venue with plush drapes and gold finishings.

The offer: Three courses for £23.95 and a complimentary glass of Indian lager.

T&Cs: Available every Friday between 1-5pm.

Bird of Prey

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What is it: Fried chicken and smashed burger joint at Circle Square on Oxford Road.

The offer: Selected burger, fries and soda for £10 / Three wings, fries and a soda for £5.95.

T&Cs: Available seven days a week from 11.30am-2.30pm. 

Block Steak Shop at Canvas

What is it: Affordable steak shop that doesn’t comprise on quality.

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The offer: Two mains and house wine for £25.

T&Cs: Available every Wednesday, no bookings required.

Bundobust

What is it: Casual craft beer bar serving Indian street food menu amid bare brick and wooden benches and tables.

The offer: Two dishes for £8.50.

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T&Cs: Available Monday to Friday, 12-4pm.

Cibo

What is it: Modern cafe/restaurant and prosecco bar, for Italian pizzas, grill dishes and sharing plates.

The offer: Three courses for £19.99.

T&Cs: Available Sunday to Friday between 5-7pm.

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Colleen’s Ramsbottom

What is it: A modern British restaurant located in Ramsbottom, north of Manchester.

The offer: Three courses for £18.

T&Cs: Available from the ‘menu of the day’ only, Wednesday to Friday between 5-6.30pm.

Image: Cottonopolis
Image: Cottonopolis

Cottonopolis

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What is it: Lively destination for Asian-inspired menus in a warehouse-style venue with a full bar.

The offer: Two dishes and a side for £13.  

T&Cs: Available on the express lunch menu, served from 12-3pm Monday to Friday.

Dokes Pizzeria

What is it: Restaurant serving seasonal pizzas using the finest British ingredients from the team behind Manchester favourite Elnecot.

The offer: 30% off bottles of wine when dining in.

T&Cs: Available all day Wednesday throughout May.

Edinburgh Castle

What is it: Historic 19th-century haunt offering pub grub, plus weekly live folk music & outdoor seating.

The offer: Two courses for £30.

T&Cs: From the set menu, served 5-6.30pm Wednesday to Thursday, and 12-3pm and 5-6.30pm Friday and Saturday.

El Capo

What is it: Mexican and Latin American dishes, plus tequila menu, in casual, bare-brick space with a tiled bar.

The offer: £1 tacos (usually £7.50 for three)

T&Cs: Available Monday – Thursday from 5pm.

Elnecot

What is it: Narrow, industrial spot offering cocktails, British small plates, weekend brunch & Sunday roasts.

The offer: Soup and a sandwich for £8. 30% off bottles of wine.

T&Cs:  Lunch deal available weekdays from 11am to 3pm. Wine deals available every Wednesday throughout May.

Image: Elnecot
Image: Elnecot

El Gato

What is it: Tapas & drinks are provided in this 3-storey converted townhouse that has stylish interiors.

The offer: Three plates for £18.

T&Cs:  Available between 12-4pm Monday to Friday and all day Sunday. 

Hawksmoor

What is it:

The offer: Three courses for £29, £5 corkage on Mondays.

T&CS: Set menu available during lunch opening hours only (except Sundays). 

Tattu

What is it: Modern Chinese cuisine and cocktails in sophisticated, dark wood bar/restaurant with carved screens.

The offer: Three plates for £28.

T&Cs: Available Sunday to Friday from 12-4.30pm and Saturday 12-2.45pm from the Moon Stand menu only.

The New Cross

What is it:  Anew taproom style beer bar in Manchester city centre not far from Ancoats serving up chargrilled kebabs and beers.

The offer: Kebab and a pint or selected drink for £10.

T&Cs: Available every Thursday from 5-9pm.

Volta

What is it: Small plates, deli boards and charcuterie in an intimate bistro bar with wall lamps and a terrace.

The offer: £30 for eight to 11 sharing dishes, designed for a minimum of two.

T&Cs: Available all day every day at Volta throughout May.

 

Featured image – Volta

Eats

The Pack Horse – the Michelin-recommended Peak District pub serving the best pre-hike breakfast in the North

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson The full breakfast at The Pack Horse Hayfield. Credit: The Manc Group

There’s a pub in the Peak District that’s comfortably established itself as one of the very best in the UK, and this banging local isn’t just about pints and Sunday roasts.

The Pack Horse in the village of Hayfield is also a purveyor of an excellent breakfast, perfect to fuel you up before a big hike in the surrounding hills.

Want a little taste of this pub’s accolades? In the space of just one week, The Pack Horse placed in the Top 50 Gastropubs and then got added to the Michelin Guide – a stunning double header.

The restaurant in Hayfield was praised by Michelin inspectors for being ‘a true village local’.

Just this week, it was also added to the Good Food Guide’s list of the best Sunday roasts in the UK.

Headed up by chef and co-owner Luke Payne, The Pack Horse in the village of Hayfield is an outstanding establishment.

Here is a pub where you can have a world-class meal that shows off the best of British produce, while sipping an ale, with muddy boots on your feet.

Inside The Pack Horse Hayfield. Credit: The Manc Group
Inside The Pack Horse Hayfield. Credit: The Manc Group
Outside the Pack Horse in Hayfield
Outside the Pack Horse in Hayfield

It doesn’t really matter who you ask, The Pack Horse is readily and consistently named one of the best pubs in the entire UK and anyone stepping through its door would struggle to argue with that. 

Because although the price point sits a little higher than your average boozer, it still has all the trappings of a proper country pub. 

Yes, there are crisps behind the bar. Yes, there’s a pub quiz. Yes, there’s a resident pub dog (Lola the Labrador will sit and stare you out if there is anything edible in your immediate vicinity). 

But what we haven’t seen anywhere near enough people harp on about is the breakfast at The Pack Horse.

The ingredients on their breakfast menu are all sourced so locally you could probably hike to any of them with a bit of grit and determination.

From Port of Lancaster smoked kippers to bacon cut thick and laced with maple, everything is of the highest quality.

You can’t go wrong with The Pack Horse signature breakfast, which has eggs, bacon, Manchester sausage, crispy hash browns, Doreen’s black pudding, wild mushrooms, confit tomato, trotter beans, AND sourdough.

A bacon and egg muffin at The Pack Horse Hayfield
A bacon and egg muffin at The Pack Horse Hayfield
Coffee, juice and a breakfast menu at The Pack Horse. Credit: The Manc Group
Coffee, juice and a breakfast menu at The Pack Horse. Credit: The Manc Group

You can have the full portion for £20 or just take one of each item for £10 and then immediately regret not having more.

The bulk of the menu beyond that centres around the pub’s homemade English muffins, toasted and buttered and filled with whatever breakfast item takes your fancy (scrambled egg and bacon for me, always).

It’s a breakfast worthy of the fanciest hotels and most popular of brunch spots. 

Once you’re suitably fuelled and ready for a walk there are two hikes nearby that aren’t too strenuous and crucially don’t take too long (those daylight savings hours really mess with a big hike, eh). 

The Sett Valley Trail starts just across the road and is a consistent and mostly flat out-and-back.

Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group
Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group
Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group
Kinder Reservoir in the Peak District. Credit: The Manc Group

You can follow it all the way to the Torrs Millennium Walkway in New Mills if you fancy, or just turn back when you’ve had enough.

Or you can head the other way through Hayfield out towards Kinder Reservoir – the loop will take you over streams and stepping stones and little wooden bridges, past the huge body of water, through woodland and fields, and place you within sight of Kinder Downfall waterfall. 

This is the poster child of the Peak District and one of the National Park’s best, most comprehensive walks. 

You’ll also be close to Kinder Scout, but this is a more challenging hike and at this time of year we’d really recommend setting off nice and early to get maximum daylight hours.

And that would mean no time for a Pack Horse breakfast, which just won’t do. 

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Featured image: The Manc Group

Eats

Peek inside the space-themed festive tipi bar that’s appeared in Manchester city centre

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester

A gigantic new festive tipi has appeared in Manchester city centre, and this one’s out of this world.

Nova Star is an intergalactic, space-age tipi, filled with twinkling stars and shimmering galaxies.

The space-themed pop-up bar has appeared in Sadler’s Yard, right outside New Century.

Inside, you’ll be able to get your mitts on festive food specials from beloved Christmas Markets favourites Parmogeddon.

Their menu includes raclette-covered roast potatoes, with additional toppings like hot honey, brie, stuffing crumbs and gravy.

There’ll also be pigs in blanket hot dogs topped with cranberry and chilli ketchup and stuffing crumb, with an indulgent pot of gravy for dunking, plus profitteroles with a homemade brandy cream filling.

Nova Star’s bar will have a menu of shimmering cocktails and ice-cold beers too, with a full menu of Cosmos, including a Nebula Cosmo (which tastes a lot like a pina colada but is blue), a Cosmic Amore (close to a classic Cosmopolitan), and the Milkyway (a sweet and creamy concoction with hazelnut and vanilla).

Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester
Loaded raclette roasties at Nova Star, Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester
A pigs in blanket hot dog. Credit: The Manc Group
Nova Star, a new festive teepee pop-up bar in Manchester
Profiteroles from Parmogeddon. Credit: The Manc Group

Nova Star will be serving up their very own signature ‘Nova Staro’ pints, created in collaboration with Czech Pilsner specialists Staropramen in their first ever rebrand.

It’s a far cry from your typical Bavarian Christmas experience, swapping out holly and ivy for stars and shimmers.

Visitors will also be able to enjoy a line-up of festive entertainment.

Abby Moore, managing director at New Century, said: “Nova Star is all about celebrating Christmas at its most magical – and for us that means with all the dazzle of the space age.

“It’s a chance to escape the traditional and enjoy a spectacular atmosphere, stellar cocktails and incredible food.

“We can’t wait to welcome the people of Manchester to our space-age Christmas destination.” 

Nova Star opens at Sadler’s Yard on Friday 22 November.

Read more

Featured image: The Manc Group

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