A roast dinner is held dear to the hearts of many Mancunians.
This quintessentially British meal marks a time to gather your nearest and dearest around the table to enjoy one of the heartiest meals you’ll probably have all week, yet with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic having once again forced all hospitality businesses to close their doors to diners since January, aside from takeout and delivery services, it’s been a while since we’ve let someone else chef the roast up for us.
In no particular order, here’s eight more places to choose from.
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Elnecot
Ancoats
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Ancoats’ industrial-themed neighbourhood bar and kitchen should always been on your list of places to hit up if you’re after a Sunday roast, as this two-course feast means you choose from a choice of starters, before tucking in to either beef, poussin, pork belly, roast of the week, or the vegetarian / vegan nut roast.
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All roasts come with a rich range of sides and accompaniments to top it all off.
You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via the Elnecot website here.
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The Refuge
Oxford Street
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“Those dreams of sharing a Roast Platter once more are just weeks away”.
The Refuge is known throughout the city for its slap-up Sunday roasts, with the highlight undoubtedly being the ‘Roast Platter’, which lets you combine a choice of meats on offer with a rich range of sides and accompaniments to top it all off.
A vegetarian / vegan roast option is also available, alongside extensive drinks and dessert menus.
You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via The Refuge website here.
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Volta
West Didsbury
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Ask Didsbury folk about the Sunday roasts served up at Volta, and you’ll only hear good things.
Catering for all tastes, you can choose from either grass-fed rump of Yorkshire roast beef, roasted poussin with lemon and thyme, or the vegetarian / vegan wild mushroom wellington, all complete with a rich range of sides and accompaniments to top it all off, as well as a selection of mouth-watering puddings.
You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via the Volta website here.
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The Jane Eyre
Ancoats
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The Sunday roasts at popular Ancoats hangout, The Jane Eyre, are no doubt some of the finest the city has to offer, with everything from roast beef, roast pork fillet, the special roast of the day and the vegan nut roast all making up the menu, served alongside a rich range of sides and accompaniments, as well as a selection of small plates on offer.
Don’t forget to try out the extensive drinks and desserts offering too to top it all off.
You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via The Jane Eyre website here.
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Hawksmoor
Deansgate
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If it’s fine dining your after for your first Sunday roast in the city once restrictions lift, then you really need look no further than Hawksmoor Manchester, where a slow-roast rump or prime rib for up to three people comes complete with beef dripping roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, carrots, greens, roasted shallots and lashings of bone marrow and onion gravy.
There’s also a range of puddings to finish off with as well.
You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via the Hawksmoor Manchester website here.
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The Bay Horse Tavern
Northern Quarter
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Offering up a modern take on the Victorian pub atmosphere, and with roasts of either chicken, beef sirloin or a mushroom wellington, accompanied by “all the trimmings”, served all day every Sunday, it’s not hard to see why The Bay Horse Tavern is a much-loved Northern Quarter hangout.
A wide range of starters, desserts and drinks are also available alongside your choice of roast.
You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via The Bay Horse Tavern website here.
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TNQ Restaurant & Bar
Northern Quarter
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Sundays are pretty special at TNQ as it prides itself on providing “top notch proper award winning roasts” and was even named runner up for the ‘Best Sunday Lunch’ in the Observer Food Monthly Awards both in 2018 and 2019.
The sought-after roasts include a rump of beef, pork belly, a leg of lamb and the vegetarian kale, chestnut and mushroom wellington, alongside a range of sides served separately.
A selection of mouthwatering starters and desserts are also on offer.
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You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via the TNQ Restaurant & Bar website here.
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Hispi
Didsbury
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Elite Bistros are renowned for their Sunday offerings, and the popular Didsbury hangout, Hispi, is certainly no exception, with a everything from roast beef, pork belly, smoked haddock, sea bream and the vegetarian miso glazed squash all making up the main menu, alongside a selection of sides, as well as a wide range of starters, desserts and drinks.
You can find Sunday menus, more information about COVID-safe guidelines and book your table ahead of reopening via Hispi website here.
Food & Drink
Chester Zoo’s award-winning gastro pub is extending its opening hours due to ‘phenomenal demand’
Danny Jones
Chester Zoo’s much-loved restaurant, The Oakfield, is set to extend its opening hours for the rest of the year following what they have described as ‘phenomenal demand’ from the public.
The award-winning gastro pub situated within the zoo’s grounds has been popular with visitors and Cheshire locals in general ever since it was lovingly restored in 2018, with footfall increasing as park numbers also continue to climb.
A Grade II listed building, The Oakfield was actually first opened all the way back in 1931 by Chester Zoo‘s founder, George Mottershead, and once housed everything from lions, bears, chimpanzees, pelicans, parrots and more.
Cut to today and it’s simply home to good food, a great drinks selection and wonderful service in line with Chester Zoo’s equally high standards when it comes to animal welfare and conservation – and now the restaurant is giving guests what they want be opening on additional days and for longer.
STAY IN THE ZOO UNTIL 11pm EVERY FRIDAY & SUNDAY! 🙌
That's right, you can now spend your Friday and Sunday evenings surrounded by 37,000 animals at our award-winning pub, The Oakfield
Located in the heart of the zoo, you can enjoy delicious classic pub dishes while taking in… pic.twitter.com/kdv8aGkjaj
As per an announcement from the zoo, the doors of The Oakfield will now be open every Friday and Sunday evening from 5–11pm.
Their inaugural Sunday service takes place on 12 May with doors open from 5pm and the last table reservation being taken at 19:30 – and trust us, this place can book up quickly. But don’t worry, walk-ins are still welcome and the bar serves until 10pm.
Naturally, the menu features big Sunday roasts as well as classic pub dishes such as The Oakfield’s signature steak burger, battered fish and chips and sausage and mash, just to name a few.
As for the newly rolled out Friday nights, doors open once again at 5pm with the last food bookings available until 20:45pm. The menu’s mouthwatering in this instance too, featuring the likes of Welsh black ribeye steak, a braised lamb shoulder dish and breaded aubergine with katsu curry sauce.
In the years since its return to glory, it’s won various accolades including the regional Taste Cheshire Awards and even international recognition from Traveller’s Choice Awards hosted by TripAdvisor – who just so happened to rank Chester Zoos’ gastro pub in the top 10% of restaurants in the entire world.
Speaking on the announcement, Food and Beverage Operations Manager at The Oakfield, Chloe Gill, said: “Our Friday evening trial proved to be super popular. So, in response to the phenomenal demand we’ve had, and as we head into summer months and begin to enjoy lighter evenings, we’re thrilled to extend our opening hours to include not just Fridays but Sunday evenings too!
“Our guests can enjoy our sun garden while taking in the sights and sounds of nature, brimming with bird song and the majestic roars of lions in the distance – all while knowing every sip of their drink or bite of their food supports our charity, helping to create a brighter future where wildlife thrives.”
Better still, it’s no easier to find than ever thanks to the zoo’s new events entrance on Caughall Road, Upton, which leads you straight up to the gastro pub.
If you want to see what all the fuss is about, you can book a table HERE.
Lead singer of Aussie band blasts mystery Manc café for rude and ‘aggressive’ treatment by staff member
Danny Jones
The lead singer of Australian indie and alternative band, The Buoys, has come out to criticise a mystery Manchester café after receiving rude and ‘aggressive’ treatment from a member of staff.
Lead vocalist and rhythm guitar player, Zoe Catterall, hopped on the band’s TikTok account to vent and indirectly inform others about the as-yet-unnamed coffee shop ahead of the group’s show at Gorilla in the city centre this week.
Noting that much of her family originates from Manchester and she usually gets “excited” by the “sense of home” away from home whenever she comes here on tour, her visit this time around was sadly marred somewhat by the treatment by one unknown member of staff.
As Catterall details in the video, despite going out of her way to be polite and familiarise herself with a new city centre spot as a tourist, she was unfortunately met by the purportedly blunt female worker, who “rolled her eyes” at a simple question and a general rude demeanour. Here’s how she says it went down:
Admitting she “was not expecting the response that I got”, she goes on to detail the woman finger-pointing and exhibiting just a generally rude tone.
Initially suspecting that she might be holding up a queue or irking the staff in some other way, she eventually goes on to describe her behaviour as “being an arsehole for no reason” and reiterating that you “don’t have to be that mean”.
Adding that she was welling up and feeling overwhelmed by the whole incident after a jet-lagged morning without any breakfast or caffeine in her system yet, she eventually felt so uncomfortable that she decided to grab her coffee and go decompress elsewhere.
Moreover, after explaining that she ended up going on to the café’s Google reviews out of curiosity, it turned out that the Manchester spot had racked up quite a few people who also had negative experiences and rude or ‘aggressive’ treatment by staff.
We’re not going to join in on the speculation but the comments have some ideas.
To Zoe and anyone else who may have unfortunately been on the receiving end of this rude individual’s service, we’re sorry you had to put up with that and we assure you it doesn’t represent the majority of Manchester hospitality.
And for those trying to help get to the bottom of who the mystery Manc coffee shop/employee was, we hope it serves as a kick up the backside for whoever it may be and a reminder that it takes virtually nothing to be nice.
All that being said, we can’t think of any better way of helping Zoe and co. shrug it off besides plugging their gig supporting fellow Aussie alt-rockers Vacations at one of our favourite venues on Thursday night.
If you fancy going along you can grab a ticket HERE. Oh, and if you think you know which Manchester café might be, don’t go and be rude to anyone yourself – we’re better than that. We’re sure they’ll come across it themselves soon enough, don’t worry.
Emily Sergeant -
17th March 2021 
