Where to find the best frozen cocktails in Manchester this summer
Think frozen Vimto daiquiris, Pornstar martinis, Aperol Spritz and margaritas by the bucketload - plus some interesting curveballs you might not expect.
You can’t beat a summer’s day here in Manchester, when the sunshine glints off the skyscrapers and people pour out of pubs and bars.
There’s nothing like a heatwave to get your in the mood for an ice-cold drink – and we honestly can’t think of anything more cooling than a frozen bev, which is why we’ve put together this go-to-guide to help you find the best that Manchester has to offer.
Yes, in previous years, some of us cocktail enthusiasts may have been a bit snobby about frozen drinks – but after a few years locked in our houses, we’ve all deserved a little bit of silliness and fun, and these drinks absolutely deliver.
From boozy smoothies, to alcoholic slushies, frozen martinis, Irish coffees and even Snakebite, keep reading to discover where to go to sip on some of the best icy bevs the city has to offer.
Smithfield Social – Frozen Aperol Spritz
Image: The Manc Group
The ultimate summer cocktail, but make it frozen. Smithfield Social has taken the classic Italian aperitivo favourite to a new level for 2022, turning it into an ice-cold slushie that’s perfect for the summer. Low ABV and full of flavour, it might just be the best frozen cocktail we’ve seen (so far) this summer.
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Sicilian NQ – Frozen watermelon margaritas
Image: Sicilian NQ
Hidden down a little backstreet in the Northern Quarter, Sicilian NQ is easy enough to miss – but don’t you dare. The tiny bar and kitchen has just launched a new range of frozen margaritas, all priced at just £5 during happy hour, which runs Monday to Thursday, 12pm to 5pm. Enjoy them in three flavours: classic, Sicilian and watermelon.
Ramona
The banana + pandan frozen margarita. / Image: Ramona
The frozen pineapple and ginger margarita. / Image: Ramona
If you’re after something a little bit wilder, head to converted MOT garage Ramona for your frozen cocktail fix and a big fat Detroit slice. Yes, they do frozen margarltas, and, yes, you can opt to get them bottomless, but be adventurous – the banana + pandan is a certified house favourite, and pineapple + ginger is well worth a look-in too.
Ah Vimto, you’ll always have a special place in Manchester’s heart. Drunk hot, cold, and now frozen with a couple of shots of rum thrown in for good measure, there’s never a bad time to enjoy this fruity cordial. First manufactured here as a health tonic in 1908, it’s still giving us life all these years later.
Crazy Pedro’s – Frozen boozy Twistas
All frozen margs at Crazy Pedros get more than a double shot of their house tequila (El Tequileño Blanco). / Image: Crazy Pedro’s
Crazy Pedro’s takes its frozen cocktails seriously, serving them up in five different flavours. From a frozen Twista ice lolly-flavoured cocktail to frozen Pornstar Martinis, Woo Woos, and both classic and strawberry margaritas, there’s plenty of choice to keep you going. Oh, and they’re all available on the bottomless brunch too.
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Pico’s, Mackie Mayor – Frozen margaritas
Image: Eat Picos
Pico’s are not fair weather frozen cocktail fans – far from it. You can find them slinging out frozen margaritas with a chilli salt rim all year round both at Manchester’s Mackie Mayor and at Altrincham’s Market House, alongside the best nachos and tacos you will find in the city centre.
Font – Vimto daiquiri slushies
We all know that Font has the best-value cocktails in all of Manchester (yes that really is a £3 Blue Hawaiian), and they really step it up in the summer.
They have a section of the menu dedicated to boozy slushies – you can grab a frozen margarita or a frozen daiquiri, in either strawberry or Vimto flavour.
Smooch – Frozen strawberry daiquiris
Image: The Manc Eats
Altrincham bubble tea shop Smooch hasn’t been open that long, but it’s already become quite the favourite with local kids. Following requests from the Trafford town’s parents for an ‘adult’ version, they’ve recently launched a new boozy menu featuring frozen strawberry daiquiris and pina colada bubble teas.
Tucked under the Mancunian Way at the Hatch street food village, you’ll find Kong’s latest export slinging out half-pint cups filled with frozen margaritas, alongside their cracking new sandwich menu. We think a crisp butty and a frozen marg in the Hatch garden sound just the thing.
Junior Jackson’s – Frozen snakebite and Irish coffees
Image: Junior Jackson’s
The little brother to popular Manchester dive bar Bunny’s, Junior’s can be found in a basement on the Northern Quarter’s Oldham Street slinging out a plethora of frozen bevvies.
Frozen snakebite and frozen Irish coffees both sound incredible to us, but if you just want something fruity you can also get frozen daiquiris here in three different flavours – strawberry, pina colada and passion fruit. Oh, and you can get them all down at Bunny’s too.
7Sins – Frozen cocktail sharers
Image: The Manc Eats
Think frozen cocktails, but supersized for the whole group. Stevenson Square bar 7Sins has gone the whole hog this summer with some new frozen sharers, including the Passionbowl (essentially a giant jug of Pornstar martini) and Super Bramble (gin, lemon and blackcurrant).
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The Garratt – Frozen pornstar martinis and daiquiris
Image: The Garratt
At just £5 each or two for £8, these are some of the cheapest frozen cocktails to be found in the city centre. Head down to popular Princess Street boozer The Garratt, a long-time favourite of Manchester’s skaters and students alike, for a rotating selection of ice-cold drinks, game of pool and an easy-to-land spot in the sun.
Lock 91 – Frozen daiquiris
Image: The Manc Group
With a gorgeous little beer garden hidden away from view, Lock 91 is another place to put on your frozen cocktail list on a sunny day. The house frozen strawberry daiquiri here is made from scratch, fresh to order.
Herd NQ – Frozen pornstar martinis
Image: Herd NQ
This little Northern Quarter steakhouse is delivering the goods on the frozen cocktail front, with frozen Pornstar martinis and three different boozy slushies on offer. Think a ‘pineapple express’ boozy smoothie with mango and spiced rum, a ‘watermelon sugar’ version, or a ‘frozen berry blast’ with added gin and apple.
Have we missed one? Let us know over on Instagram by dropping a message to @themanceats.
Feature image – Ramona
Food & Drink
Where to find the best vegan and veggie restaurants in Greater Manchester
Danny Jones
Manchester is one of the top places in the country to eat out if you’re trying to go plant-based, be that for Veganuary or any other time of the year— and we have the best vegetarian and completely animal-free restaurants and more casual food spots to prove it.
The city, its outskirts and beyond all boast some great dedicated vegan restaurants, serving up everything ranging from ‘dirty’ plant-based fast food to sit-down gastropub and fine dining-style restaurants, giving those exploring a plant-powered diet a real boost when it comes to eating out.
But beyond that, you can even trust that most restaurants in Manchester and its surrounding areas – even if they’re not specifically designed for the vegan or vegetarian diet – will likely have one or two suitable dishes on their menu.
Truth be told, the time when you could get away with not catering to this ever-growing group of foodies has come and gone. Or it has in Greater Manchester, at least.
20 of the best vegan and veggie food spots in Greater Manchester
If you’re thinking of exploring a more plant-led diet, simply curious as to where you might find the best vegan restaurants in Greater Manchester, or at least predominantly vegetarian to get you started, we’ve pulled out a list of must-visit places for you to try below.
1. Momo Shop – Chorlton
Starting off maybe too strong here, Momo Shop isn’t just one of the best places in town when it comes to catering for veggie and vegan foodies, it’s quite literally one of our favourite restaurants in Manchester, full stop. Yes, it really is THAT good.
From their unbelievable trademark dumplings, gyoza and Nepali twists on potstickers, to choosing the way you want them cooked and that incredible array of sauces, you can mix and match pretty much however you want without missing out on even an ounce of flavour.
Each of their chana and alu salads is fresh and to die for, and we’re also not exaggerating when we say the vegetarian momos done ‘Saneko style’ and then tossed in the buttered flavour might just be the very best thing on the menu. If you haven’t tried it yet, you need to rectify that mistake like yesterday.
Wholesome Junkies was a firm favourite of the Arndale Market during its years there, and after dropping off the map for a spell, they’re now back at a total of three different locations: Hinterland alcohol-free bar, Hinterland; their delivery kitchen over in Ardwick and now New Century Hall.
You can expect plenty of delicious meals made with mock meat, from a hearty Sunday lunch to bao to burgers. Put simply, if you’ve never tried it, it’s like cheat food for vegans.
3. Maray – Lincoln Square
Maray in Manchester has loads of vegan and veggie options.One of the best restaurants in Manchester for vegans and veggies.Maray’s Manchester site is comfortably one of the best restaurants when it comes to its vegetarian options. (Credit: The Manc Group)
Middle Eastern/Parisian restaurant Maray is a must for its veggie and vegan small plates, brilliant cocktails and spiced falafel roast dinner.
Must-tries here include the signature ‘Disco Cauliflower’, which comes baked whole and loaded with sauces and pomegranate seeds, the warm garlic flatbread, hummus and bright green house falafel. Easily one of the best places for vegan and veggie food in Manchester, even if they do dabble in plenty of meat and seafood.
This Indian cafe has developed quite a cult following in the 25 years it’s been in the heart of the Northern Quarter, with its authentic Indian curries and wraps.
And everything on the menu is vegan, as of four years ago — much to the surprise of unsuspecting meat-eaters who wander in search of some quick late-night scran. Incredible flavours.
5. Gooey – Also NQ + Ducie Street and Trafford Centre
Unbelievable hash browns at Gooey in Manchester.Gooey’s crispy tofu sando at Gooey is a viral sensation. Credit: The Manc Group
While Gooey might be best known for its fat cookies studded with chocolate, and for its enormous slabs of French toast, it’s also got a lot on offer to suit vegetarians and vegans… including Lizzo, who raved about its plant-based offering while staying in Manchester.
Their vegan crispy tofu sando (especially when served Lizzo-style with a side of hash browns) has genuinely cemented itself as the stuff of legend.
This award-winning plant-based restaurant takes vegan food in Manchester and reimagines it in a gastro-pub style spot just next to the Cathedral, with dishes like butternut lasagne, chestnut bourguignon, and a brown sugar-glazed tofu ‘ham’.
Elsewhere, you’ll find small plates like cauliflower wings, satay tofu skewers, miso maple mushrooms and a plant-based take on a prawn cocktail. At lunchtime from Monday to Friday, you can get two dishes and a hot drink for £15 here too. Bargain.
7. This & That Cafe – Northern Quarter
If you know, you know… (Credit: The Manc Group)
Manchester’s favourite curry house and the home of the rice and three, This & That has been a favourite since it was established in 1984. Here you’ll find a huge choice of delicious curries, with loads of vegan options to boot.
Tucked away on Soap Street, it might take you a minute to find out, but once you do, trust us, you’ll never look back. It’s a local treasure for a reason. One of the best hidden gems Manchester has to offer, and a sneakily good restaurant when it comes to vegetarian food.
First established in 2014 as a vegetarian Chinese takeaway, Lotus now caters to vegans with an extensive selection of plant-based dishes – following a rebrand that saw them search high and low to source animal-free alternatives used in traditional Chinese and Asian recipes.
No dishes contain onion or garlic here due to the owner’s personal beliefs, but the food here is still packed with punch. From an extensive dim sum list to sharing platters, rice and noodle dishes and a large list of mains including hot pots, sweet and sour, kung po and more, the menu is, quite frankly, huge.
Bundobust has long been a favourite on Piccadilly Gardens since it came across from Leeds, but now diners have two options in Manchester after the eatery opened a second site on Oxford Road, with a brewery inside.
Head down for Indian street food favourites like okra fries, vada pavs, ‘Bundo’ chaat, paneer tikka and more. We never get tired of this place.
10. Franco Manca – Piccadilly/King St, Didsbury and Trafford Centre
Now, perhaps contrary to popular belief, we’re not anti-chain here at The Manc Eats; we will back anyone serving up good food anywhere in Greater Manchester, and for many, Franco Manca still remains their go-to pizza spot no matter what part of the country they’re in.
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With that in mind, it’s also worth noting that the London-born franchise that has four different sites across the region is pretty darn good when it comes to vegetarian and vegan pizza options – such as their regular Veganuary specials, for instance, available here in Manchester and all over the UK
Speaking of good plant-based pizza, first originating in Brighton, Purezza has been helping elevate the veggie and vegan version of the already oversaturated foodie genre since opening its doors inside the former Dough site in Manchester’s NQ.
The all-vegan pizzeria is known for its mozzarella, created specifically for Purezza in a laboratory by scientists over a number of years, and the proof is right there in the final product.
The special recipe is apparently unrivalled, so if you’re a vegan who still loves cheese, you simply have to put this one on your list.
An institution on the Oxford Road corridor, The Eighth Day Shop & Cafe has long been a haven for non-meat eaters – way before the rest of the city caught on.
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Upstairs, the shop sells a range of different food products, perfect if you’re doing veganuary and need to top up your store cupboards with new ingredients. Whilst downstairs, a cafe serves hearty soups, sandwiches and more – all catered to vegetarian and vegan diets.
13. Go Falafel – Northern Quarter, Deansgate and Rusholme
So we've noticed a HUGE increase in Tabouleh orders and we LOVE it. We also think everyone should try it especially as it's VERY healthy! Seasoned simply with lemon juice and olive oil, you can't go wrong! 💚🍃#GoFalafel#GoHealthypic.twitter.com/8Maz9iCMoD
Great for a quick grab-and-go lunch, Go Falafel has several sites dotted across Manchester and is pretty reasonably priced, with a medium wrap costing you £6.95. For that, you’ll get fresh falafels, house pickles, red cabbage, hummus, salad, chilli and tahini, with the option to add on fried aubergine or vine leaves for an additional sum.
Not feeling a wrap? There are also some hearty salad bowls on offer here, as well as a wide range of freshly made juice blends for those planning on starting the year on a serious health kick.
One of Manchester’s pasta OGs, The Pasta Factory is up there as one of the best in the city for vegans thanks to the fact that the team make their own (brilliant) vegan parmesan here. Of course, that’s not all: they also make their own pasta and sauces, too.
Think of a large selection of pasta dishes, with plenty of choices for vegans, plus regularly changing specials, traditional starters, and bags of freshly-made pasta available to take home, and you’ll soon see why locals love this spot so much.
This little spot in Withington is a long-standing veggie and vegan treasure trove. Ahead of the curve, it’s been dishing out vegan breakfasts well before most of the places on this list even opened their doors.
From breakfast to dinner, there are loads of dishes to suit on the menu here – think cakes, burgers, fry-ups, soups, you name it – and if you stay late, you might even catch a gig too. They’re pretty well known for putting on good acts here.
16. Lily’s Indian Vegetarian Cuisine – Ashton-under-Lyne
Lily’s Vegetarian in Ashton-under-Lyne.Just look at it.Lily’s is comfortably one of the best vegetarian restaurants outside of Manchester city centre. (Credit: The Manc Group)
Family-run business Lily’s has been an institution in Manchester since it opened in 1972. Starting their journey at a small shop selling Indian sweets and savouries on Cotton Street East, Ashton–Under–Lyne, today Lily’s is an award-winning restaurant known far and wide for its vegetarian cuisine.
The restaurant is named in Lily’s honour, as she sadly passed away before seeing it open. Chefs here come from all over North India, South India and Rajasthan, and their passion ensures that each dish exudes authentic Indian flavours.
Sticking with the Indian theme, there aren’t many places that do vegetarian and vegan stuff that genuinely rival the animal-based offerings on their menu than street food favourites and, in our opinion, one of the best chain restaurants, Mowgli.
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Some of our very favourite things they do can be found in the vegan section, including the bhel puri, those oh-so-sweet treacle tamarind fries and the temple dahl. It might be franchised, but that doesn’t stop it from slapping every single time.
18. Sanskruti – Withington
Listed amongst The Sunday Times and The Guardian‘s best restaurants, Sanskruti is already a go-to for local veggies and vegans in the know.
Serving everything from street food, daal, and thali to Punjabi and Gujarati mains, rotis/naan, thali and more, the menu here is extensive – and there’s plenty for those with particular dietary requirements. With the majority of dishes also vegan-friendly, you just can’t go wrong.
Wawin is the fully vegan Chinese restaurant based on Ordsall Lane that genuinely blew our minds a little bit when we first tried it for Takeaway Champions back in 2023.
From mock chicken drumsticks, super crispy spring rolls, flavourful noodles, soups and sauces, just to highlight a few of their very high points, this Deliveroo-only special feels like a bit of a hidden gem that is definitely up there with some of the best vegan food we’ve had in Manchester.
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20. Soots – NQ
Last but not least, we simply cannot overlook the success story that is Soots, which started out over at Altrincham Market but has now sprung up in a new city centre unit.
Not only is it impressive that they’ve managed to put together such a flavourful menu of entirely plant-based and nourishing homemade dishes, but it might genuinely be up there with some of the best pasta you’ll find in central Manchester, full stop.
And that’s your lot for the best vegan and vegetarian restaurants in and around Greater Manchester – at least for now, anyway.
There are, of course, so many other places that we would have happily included on this list of plant-based perfection, but this should get you started for now.
Whether you’re giving Veganuary a go, just trying to reduce your carbon footprint or wanting to cut out animal products altogether, you’ll be glad to know you live in an area that’s making it easier and easier to do so each year.
Tesco reveals what the UK’s most popular meal deal was in 2025
Emily Sergeant
Tesco has revealed what the UK’s most popular meal deal combination was in 2025, and some newbies have taken the top spots.
We all know meal deals are a classic lunch option for hungry office workers and for those looking for something quick to grab on the go, and it’s fair to say Tesco’s is one of the most popular on the market – but which combination was the most popular over the past 12 months? Which meal deal was the most commonly-picked from supermarket shelves in 2025?
Well, after last year saw a change in both the main and snack categories, this time around they have stayed the same and it’s actually the drink option where we see a change.
For the second year running, the Tesco Chicken Club Sandwich was the most popular choice of main, while the Tesco Egg Protein Pot took the top snack title.
Tesco has revealed what the UK’s most popular meal deal was in 2025 / Credit: The Manc Group
It’s time, however, to wave goodbye to the Coca-Cola (500ml) bottle, which has taken the title of the nation’s favourite meal deal drink for the past three years now, and say hello to the nation’s new favourite drink… a can of Red Bull.
When it comes to the North West’s favourite combo, the snack and drink choices remain the same to the rest of the UK’s, but the main is slightly different, as we favour a Tesco Just Ham Sandwich instead.
As always, the meal deal statistics for 2025 were revealed as part of Tesco’s annual ‘Clubcard Unpacked’ series, which is basically like ‘Spotify Wrapped’ but for Clubcard customers, giving loyalty card members a unique insight into what they shopped for and how much they saved over the last year.
The series also gives Clubcard holders the chance to find out what their personal favourite meal deal combination was in 2025, and see how that compares to the rest of the nation.
You’ll just need to open your Tesco Clubcard app on your mobile to find out, or you can head to the Tesco website here and login to your account.
Results are available now for a limited time only.
As well as getting to find out their own most-bought meal deal items, this year’s video also shows Clubcard members further insights into how they shopped at Tesco last year – from their most frequently-purchased products, to how many points they saved and spent.
Georgina Pellant -
11th July 2022 
