Pancakes might traditionally be a relatively simple staple, but here in Manchester our restaurants and cafes go large, with dozens of different styles, flavours and toppings to choose from.
There’s a pancake to suit everyone if you know where to look, from sweet to savoury, miniature to fat and thin to fluffy.
We’ve broken down some of our favourites below to help you get your pancake fix all year round. Yes, it may be Shrove Tuesday is looming, but one day is hardly enough to sample them all.
There are some newcomers to check out for 2023 too.
Keep reading to discover the best places for pancakes in Manchester.
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Cocoa Cabana
If you’ve got a sweet tooth, Cocoa Cabana is the absolute best place to head for pancakes in Manchester.
For Pancake Day, they’re going bottomless – it’s £12.50 for as many as you can eat, the only rule being you have to finish one stack before you order the next.
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Flavours include tiramisu, Biscoff and caramel, and Kinder Bueno.
Lazy Sundae
Head to Lazy Sundae ice cream parlour in the Northern Quarter for its famous soufflé pancakes.
This pancake day, you’ll find specials topped with either honeycomb, banana and miso caramel or Nutella and strawberries.
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A popular order in Japan and, increasingly, across the globe, opt for personalised toppings like wafers, chocolate sprinkles, fruit and ice cream to make this special, puffed-up pancake your own.
Ice cream flavours are vast, and there’s a good range of sorbets for vegans and the lactose intolerant to enjoy too.
Ducie Street Warehouse
If you think you can manage to eat your body weight in pancakes then this might just be for you.
Ducie Street Warehouse has got unlimited servings of pancakes priced at £13.50 for 30 minutes off non-stop servings.
Their pancakes can come loaded with everything from Nutella and maple syrup to mixed berries, cinnamon sugar and more.
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Hampton and Vouis
Image: Hampton and Vouis
This cute little cafe next to Albert Square is very easy to miss, but well worth seeking out.
Venture inside, and you’ll find great coffee, a counter full of bakes from local suppliers and an excellent year-round pancake menu.
Here, fluffy American-style pancakes are loaded with sauce and sweet treats like Jammy Dodger biscuits, raspberries, caramel sauce and strawberry jam (pictured above).
There’s also a Lotus Biscoff stack, a special apple crumble and custard stack, and a Biscoff and Bueno stack. All come with vanilla ice cream on the side.
This pancake day, the Hampton and Vouis chefs have created a number of specials too. Think crab meat and smashed avocado, poached egg and lemon butter sauce, or pistachio ice cream topped with lemon syrup, white chocolate and pistachio.
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Fluffy Fluffy
Fluffy Fluffy. Credit: The Manc GroupFluffy Fluffy. Credit: The Manc Group
There are more fat, fluffy, wobbly pancakes to be found at Fluffy Fluffy, formerly known as Fuwa Fuwa, on Whitworth Street.
These are traditional handcrafted soufflé pancakes topped with flavours like matcha tiramisu, raspberry banana, and blueberry.
The Botanist
Image: The Botanist
Already famous for its hanging kebabs, The Botanist has created a pancake-friendly version to celebrate Shrove Tuesday.
Stacked high, you’ll get six miniature Scotch pancakes dressed with either marshmallows, strawberries and lemon drizzle or hot chocolate sauce and chocolate brownie chunks.
Available from 28 February to 2 March at all Manchester sites, be quick – before they’re all gone.
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Moose Coffee
Canadians are famous for their pancakes and the selection at Moose in Manchester is up there with the best. Made fresh to order, think a stack of three dusted with icing sugar and served with Canadian butter.
Whether you opt for savoury or sweet toppings maple syrup on the side is pretty much a given (yes, even with your eggs and bacon) and we’re absolutely here for it.
The only thing that could make it more authentic is if the staff split the bill for you unrequested.
The Koffee Pot
Image: The Koffee Pot
A greasy spoon cafe, but make it Northern Quarter.
The Koffee Pot has long been a go-to breakfast spot, way before it moved up from Stevenson Square to its new premises on Oldham Street.
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It’s known for its fry ups and breakfast tacos, but you can get a solid pancake stack here too. Think all-American buttermilk pancake stacks with added sausage patty, smoked streaky bacon, hash brown, fried egg and maple syrup.
It’s basically a full English in a pancake stack, and who doesn’t want that?
19 Cafe Bar
Image: 19 Cafe Bar
This blink-and-you’ll-miss-it spot has become an absolute go-to for naughty pancakes, thanks to its chocolate bar-laden menu.
The Biscoff and Kinder Bueno pancakes are the big draws here at 19 Cafe Bar. Loaded with the likes of Biscoff crumb and spread, banana, ice cream and salted caramel sauce, or homemade Kinder sauce, Bueno, chocolate sauce, roasted hazelnuts and vanilla ice cream, .
There are healthier pancake options too and a strong list of brunch cocktails available from the bar.
This trendy cafe in the Northern Quarter has a solid brunch menu, including indulgent buttermilk souffle pancakes loaded with honeycomb butter and a spiced berry compote.
There are specials for pancake day 2023 too, like Nutella and strawberry, date caramel and banana, and a spiced apple compote.
Washed down with a coffee or a brunch cocktail, you can’t go wrong.
Kong’s Chicken Shop at Dogbowl
If you like a bit of fried chicken with your pancakes, it’s got to be Kong’s. Some of the best in the city, chicken here is rolled in a secret spice mix then double dredged for extra crispiness.
This pancake day, head down to Dogbowl for American style buttermilk pancakes served with either chicken, bacon and maple; berry compote, candied pecans, whipped ricotta and mint; or Caramelised banana, pecans and salted caramel ice-cream.
The Head Of Steam to move into site of short-lived Northern Quarter gastropub
Daisy Jackson
Well-known pub group The Head Of Steam has revealed plans to take over a prominent Northern Quarter site.
The craft beer brand will move into the Grade II-listed building that was (very briefly) home to the Lamb of Tartary gastropub, which sadly shut down after just six months.
Prior to that, the landmark building was the home of Cottonopolis.
It’s been empty since Lamb of Tartary shut down more than a year ago, but now The Head of Steam is swooping into Manchester city centre to bring it back to life.
Their plans include 30 beer lines (24 keg and six cask), augmented reality darts, live sports across six screens, and a dedicated pop-up kitchen from a local operator, also making its debut in Manchester City Centre.
Spanning 2,800 sq ft, there’ll be space for 180 guests, with a design that will mix ‘industrial character and Northern warmth’.
It sounds like there are changes in store from the Lamb of Tartary days – there’s talk of a striking circular central bar, surrounded by exposed brickwork and restored original features.
Behind that bar you’ll be able to enjoy a UK craft beers, plus a vast collection of Belgian beers, alongside a rotating selection of cans and bottles, as well as a fresh cocktail menu and quality spirits range.
The Head Of Steam to move into site of short-lived Northern Quarter gastropub. Credit: Supplied
The Head of Steam was established back in 1995 and is part of Camerons Brewery. The group already has 15 venues across 13 cities, including an existing Manchester pub out in Didsbury.
Mark Connor, Head of Operations & Brand for The Head of Steam, said: “We’re excited to be joining the Northern Quarter community and to bring our favourite UK brewers, alongside classics from our extensive Belgian range, to this vibrant part of the city.
“The location is incredible, and being able to offer something new and exciting to the area is fantastic for us.
“We can’t wait to open our doors later this year, meet our neighbours, and become a part of this iconic area of Manchester.”
The Head of Steam will open at 16 Newton Street in the Northern Quarter later this year.
Chorlton’s Horse and Jockey is reintroduced to the suburbs after stunning transformation
Danny Jones
The much-loved Horse and Jockey in Chorlton is back open for business following a major and marvellous refurb, which has seen the heart and soul of the pub restored to its former glory.
Opening just in time for the bulk of cosy boozer season, we’re about to spend A LOT of time in here.
With an impressive culinary pedigree to boot, the ‘new and improved’ Horse and Jockey was always bound to be a hit with critics and natives alike, we just weren’t expecting them to knock it quite so far out of the park – or, in this case, Chorlton Green.
Giving the already gorgeous 200-year-old structure a new lick of paint and then some, the new Horse and Jockey looks set to reassert itself as one of the prettiest, cosiest and tastiest pubs you’ll find in central Manchester.
Benefitting from sitting just outside the city centre, you’ve still got plenty of footfall from those who have seen Chorlton become a foodie destination all of its own, and those who have lived there all their lives.
Yes, you’ll still find plenty of old boys sipping their well-deserved pints and dogs curling up on the carpets here.
Now boasting up to 82 covers outside in the familiar evergreen beer garden, with table service in the summer, you can see this being a go-to spot for grub and a reliable watering hole for all year-round.
It’s also worth noting that it’s a pretty roomy venue inside as well, with an entirely refurbished upstairs seating area and a dedicated private dining space now, too.
The Horse and Jockey is glistening once again ahead of reopening this month. (Credit: The Manc Group)
Other touches we especially liked are bringing Chorlton Pale Ale – which used to be brewed right here in the Jockey itself prior to Covid – back on draught. It may be made elsewhere nowadays, but we’re glad to see it being shipped back to and served out of its ancestral home.
And it just gets better.
As well as supporting the local art scene by sourcing works from Greater Manchester creatives, they really are aiming to make this a community cornerstone.
They’ve taken the holistic idea of a public house right back to its roots, providing not only a place to meet, eat and drink for regulars, but also a real social outlet right in the middle of the suburb.
It’s also about supporting and celebrating traditional British pubs and the Northern working-class culture that goes along with it.
There’s still a recognisable style and familiar feel to the Horse and Jockey refurb. (Credit: The Manc)
The majority of the furniture is even salvaged from the pubs we sadly lost up and down the country, not to mention other businesses that have unfortunately closed post-pandemic and the continuing struggles facing the industry.
We’re lucky to have people like this putting drinks in our hands and keeping our bellies full, so we’re glad that they’re doing what they can to pay homage to those who have come before them as well.
Perhaps most heartwarming is that not only have they kept pre-existing staff in post during the switch-over, but they’re all welcoming back familiar faces from the past. Once again, this is about championing the beauty of British pub culture in all of its facets.
This is a proper foodie pub at its core, boasting cosy vibes just in time for the colder months; they even restored three of the five original fires that used to burn through the autumn and winter back in the day.
Bookings are live already, and if you’ve tried the Sunday roast at The Black Friar, you expect this place to fill up just as quickly – we’d reserve our tables early if we were you…
The food offering is substantial, filling and full of flavour. (Credit: The Manc Eats)
This may be a big rebrand and transformation, but there are also still the same old Joseph Holt favourites on the taps for those who love the classic lineup, and they’ve even used their ‘Trailblazer’ stout glaze on one of their cheesecakes. Safe to say, they have our undivided attention with that one.
Owner Neil Burke, who formally acquired The Black Friar two years ago and now heads up the revamped Horse and Jockey, said of the reopening: “I have a personal history with the Horse & Jockey and it’s always held a special place in my heart.
“It’s such a beautiful building, but it hasn’t been shining the way it should in recent years. As a local myself, I felt Chorlton deserved a proper foodie pub – somewhere that delivers brilliant food in a setting that does justice to the building’s history.”
To top things off, they’ve got Michelin-trained head chef Paolo Bianchileading things in the kitchen.
“The Horse & Jockey is an iconic part of Chorlton’s history and I’m proud to be leading its kitchen with the brilliant Black Friar team”, says Bianchi. “After gaining years of experience in Paris, Dubai and London, it feels great to be rooted in Manchester, a city I’ve really fallen in love with.”
“My vision is simple, to serve British classics that people know and love, elevated with seasonal local ingredients, touches from my Italian heritage and international experience. The menu will be ever-changing, so guests can expect something fresh every time they visit.”
As for your job, it’s simple: expect great, hearty pub grub classics elevated to a gourmet level, with all the welcoming warmth of a traditional English pub.
This isn’t just a metropolitan boozer trying to be acountry-style pub; the Horse and Jockey is a Chorlton gem reborn. It opens on Monday, 20 October, and you can guarantee you’ll be seeing us there.
Georgina Pellant -
19th February 2023 
