Matcha fever has the nation gripped at the minute – it feels like half the country has turned its back on flat whites in favour of the popular green tea drink.
This pretty Japanese beverage might have been around for centuries, but it’s having a bit of a new moment here in Manchester and finding a whole new wave of fans.
With the global success of brands like Blank Street, you can barely walk down the street without passing someone sipping something green.
So we’ve decided to pull together five local spots in Manchester who are doing the very best matcha in town, from the very traditional to the very playful.
Know of somewhere we’ve missed? Drop us a DM on our The Manc Eats Instagram page HERE.
Ohayo Tea, Chinatown
Matcha bubble tea and soft serve at Ohayo Tea in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
This adorable bubble tea cafe in Chinatown has a Shiba Inu dog as its mascot, and you’ll find his face carved into the walls, waffles in the shape of his head, and a giant dog statue bursting out of the wall.
Ohayo Tea serve a complex take on a matcha drink that plays into their bubble tea expertise – expect your matcha to come layered with tapioca pearls, cheese foam, pistachio foam, and plenty more options too.
These drinks come with instructions – tilt your branded cup (the Shiba is back) it to at least 45 degrees to get every layer at once, or, if you insist, use a thick straw to mix it all together.
You can also get matcha soft serve here with shards of honeycomb stuck to it. Delightful.
Just Between Friends, Ancoats and Northern Quarter
Matcha drinks at Just Between Friends, Ancoats. Credit: The Manc Group
If you’re someone who actually likes matcha to taste of matcha, rather than of all sorts of syrups and other add-ons, turn to one of the city’s best coffee shops.
At Just Between Friends – which has locations tucked into an old mill in Ancoats as well as right on Tib Street in the Northern Quarter – matcha is whisked properly with a traditional bamboo whisk, before being added to steamed or chilled milk.
The result is either a warm, smooth drink served in an earthenware cup, or a refreshing iced matcha.
You can wedge yourself into a window seat or even sit on the cobbled archway outside and imagine you’ve transported yourself to a Tokyo backstreet.
We’d love to tell you the opening hours and location of this pop-up matcha hotspot, but it tends to shift around Manchester a bit.
It’s worth tracking down though – Matcha Kyoto is importing speciality ingredients all the way from Kyoto and doing everything as authentically as possible.
With matcha whipped cream, matcha lattes, matcha desserts and matcha toppings it’s a dream come true for matcha lovers… Is the word matcha starting to sound like gibberish to anyone else at this point?
Track their latest movements on their Instagram HERE.
Sipp, Ancoats and Deansgate Square
Sipp matcha in Ancoats. Credit: The Manc Group
If you’re new to matcha, or just know that you like yours with a little sweetness and fun, you must get a sip of Sipp’s.
These guys are based in General Stores around town, with their own coffee shop soon to open in Chorlton, and they have a whole list of ‘Matcha Cloud’ drinks.
Their best-seller is the raspberry and coconut, which tastes exactly like a lamington, or there are always specials cropping up (currently, it’s a mango and passionfruit).
This is gateway matcha – and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.
Tsujiri, Chinatown
A selection of matcha items at Tsujuri in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Not satisfied with simply serving matcha you can drink, Tsujiri is a Japanese tea house using this powerful ingredient in cakes, ice creams, cheesecakes and more.
Tsujiri was founded all the way back in 1860, before bringing the finest matcha lattes and infused desserts to British shores.
In Manchester, you’ll find them in the heart of Chinatown, tucked up an anonymous flight of stairs, where there are cabinets full of green sweet treats like a matcha basque cheesecake, matcha sundaes, and classic iced lattes.
Mother and daughter-run bakery selling nostalgic cakes issues plea for support
Daisy Jackson
A Bury bakery run by a mother and daughter has shared a heartfelt message asking for support as running costs continue to skyrocket.
Little Blonde Bakes in Unsworth has enjoyed great success with its colourful occasion cakes and its nostalgic puddings and desserts.
We’re talking old-school cake with sprinkles and custard, thick slabs of banana bread, and pancake stacks with Nutella and strawberries.
They’re also all over the latest sweet trends, like pistachio kunafa strawberries and even a Dubai chocolate-inspired cookie pie.
But despite putting in such graft and creating such beautiful bakes, Little Blonde Bakes has said it’s falling on tough times.
The family-operated bakery, fronted by mother and daughter Jayne and Fran Harrison, said that it’s struggling to balance the rising costs of ingredients, national insurance, rates, and taxes, as well as a fickle Instagram algorithm that sometimes leaves them with only a few likes on a photo.
In their heartfelt statement, they added that events like the huge concerts that have come to Greater Manchester this summer, the hot weather, and the school holidays are having a negative effect on the small local business.
They wrote: “It feels like we our putting ourselves out there by sharing this & feels a little scary. but we need your help and support to keep going.
Little Blonde Bakes sells treats like old school cake and custard
“We’ve been doing this for 10 years now, and although it may seem like we are doing well, behind the scenes we are now trading and working to pay the bills. This goes for lots of small, local & independent businesses. They need us!”
The post from Little Blonde Bakes continued: “So if your local, or want to visit us, please do, we strive to always use the best ingredients and put so much love into our baking.
“If your not local, we have a full postal menu each week online which delivers anywhere in the uk.
“If you can’t do any of that (i know the cost of living crisis is also affecting a lot of people and families) then please, turn on our notifications, like & share & comment on our posts where you can, or even leave a review. Any support means the world.
“We really want to be able to continue doing what we love, with our amazing team, but the future looks a little scary without the amazing support of our customers. We love you all.”
You can pay Little Blonde Bakes a visit at 62 Sunny Bank Road, Unsworth, BL9 8HJ and follow them on Instagram @littleblondebakes.
Palms Bakery opens beautiful little coffee shop in Manchester shipping container village
Daisy Jackson
Viral bakery Palms Bakery has opened its own coffee shop over in the shipping container village that is Pollard Yard.
The bakery rocketed to fame with its colourful shag cakes, where spikes of icing are used to make psychedelic baked show-stoppers.
Since then, founder Rachel Samuels has expanded to all sorts of playful retro-inspired bakes and set up shop at Pollard Yard alongside a whole host of other Manchester independent businesses.
Previously, the Palm Bakery masterpieces were only really been accessible when you ordered an entire cake.
But now she’s taken on an extra unit at Pollard Yard and launched Palms Coffee, a sunny little spot that’s keeping her neighbours well-caffeinated and well-fed.
Blueberry matcha at Palms CoffeeThe sunny terracePalms Bakery cakes and cookies are on the menuPalms Bakery cakes and cookies are on the menuPalms Coffee is open at Pollard YardPalms Bakery now does sandwiches at Palms Coffee
It means you can now tuck into bite-size, individual helpings of Rachel’s amazing bakes.
There are pretty, nostalgic cupcakes (sprinkles and glace cherries a must), gooey chocolate chip cookies, and miniature banana bread loafs too.
Customers can sit on the terrace surrounded by plants, tucking into flavoured matchas and iced coffees (best-sellers include maple cinnamon, pistachio, and blueberry).
It seems to have become the go-to lunch spot for those working in Pollard Yard and surrounds, but there’s enough here to tempt anyone out from nearby Ancoats too.
Think sandwiches made with house-made focaccia, filled with mortadella and mozzarella, and a whole menu of toasties, like Reubens, kimchi cheese, and Caprese.
Palms Coffee is open now at Pollard Yard near Holt Town tram stop.
Daisy Jackson -
28th March 2025 
