The new restaurants and bars opening in Manchester this month | May 2022
Think Italian subs, sit-down lasagne, a new Spring Gardens cocktail bar from Gordon Ramsay's former bars boss, plus sushi, sashimi and (maybe) even a new dumpling place.
With a whole host of Bank Holidays stretching ahead of us, we roll slowly into May with plenty of free time on the horizon and even more new restaurants and bars to visit.
THis month, not only do we have a load of new eateries on the cusp of opening, we’ve algo got a few who’ve snuck through right at the end of April – all well deserving of an honourable mention.
Over in Stockport, one half of The Otto-Men has launched OTTO Vegan Empire – taking veganism back to its roots with a focus on grains, spices and legumes from a new home above a country pub.
In Sale’s Stanley Square, Sugo has just opened its third Manchester site with new artwork on the walls celebrating the Kickstarter supporters who made it happen, whilst in town we’ve been bless with a new Mac and Cheese restaurant in the Arndale, award-winning Stockport pie shop Ate Days A Week and vegan burger spot The Vurger Co.
As for what’s still to come? Think Italian subs, the return of sit-down Lazy Tony’s lasagne, a new Spring Gardens cocktail bar from Gordon Ramsay’s former bars boss, sushi, sashimi and (maybe) even a new dumpling place.
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Keep reading to find out the new Manchester bars and restaurants to put on your list this month.
Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria, Alvarium
Image: The Manc Eats
Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria takes over the former Black Leaf kitchen in the basement at Alvarium, switching out vegan fine dining for giant slabs of meat and cheese starting from the beginning of May.
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Chef-owner Danny is bringing along all of his favourite dishes, so get ready for great lasagne, loaded mac and cheese and fries, as well as a host of new Italian subs and desserts like Nutella cannolis, apple pie, and pizza subs.
8 Dorsey St, Manchester M4 1LU.
Green Lab, Deansgate Square
Image: Supplied
The Green Lab at Deansgate Square opens on Friday, 6 May with a new evening offer to complement its existing salads, juices, treats and plant-based options.
Expect an organic wine list and twists on classic cocktails, including a miso caramel espresso martini and a strawberry matcha highball, plus new menu items such as sushi and sashimi.
Open from 7am weekdays and 8am at weekends, Green Lab at Deansgate Square will serve breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner all week long, with live entertainment from Wednesday to Sunday.
Manchester’s newest cocktail bar, Blinker, will open its doors on Spring Gardens on 17 May.
Bringing everything founder Dan Berger has learnt from his time at 5-star London hotel The Ned and overseeing the bars for Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant group, it will focus on classic cocktails, with an additional menu of reimagined classics based around four set flavours changing each month.
Blinker will sit at the top of King Street, close to Hotel Gotham and Six by Nico.
Spring Gardens, Manchester M2 2BQ.
Burgerism, Escape to Freight Island
Image: Burgerism
The one and only Burgerism will take over from Patty Queen at Escape to Freight Island in May, bringing what are widely considered to be the best smashed burgers in town to this corner of Piccadilly.
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Fans of the brand can look forward to the famous ‘Cheesed’ burger with two smashed patties, cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion and Burgerism sauce in a brioche bun, alongside the mouthwatering chicken burger.
11 Baring St, Manchester M1 2PZ.
Kong’s Sandwich Shop, Hatch
Image: Hatch
The team behind Manchester fried chicken heroes Kong’s Chicken Shop is opening a new sandwich spot at Hatch over the May Day Bank Holiday weekend – and there will be crisp butties on the menu.
Moving into the Oxford Road food and drink shipping container village this Friday, Kong’s Sandwich Shop will serve up an NYC bodega and deli-inspired menu with a few cheeky northern twists.
There’ll also be frozen margaritas and bottles of Pacifico for sale over the counter, in a nod to its founder’s bartending roots.
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103 Oxford Rd, Manchester M1 7ED.
Matterello, Trafford Palazzo
Image: Trafford City
Luxury Italian restaurant Matterello comes to Trafford Palazzo (formerly Barton Square) at Trafford City this month, promising ‘authentic cuisine’ and immersive events like on-site pasta-making classes.
Developed by Manchester restaurateur Steve Pilling from the Northern Restaurants Group – which also has The Dockyard, Gas Works, and Roost – it will draw inspiration from Southern Italian kitchens, serving the likes of bruschetta with salsa Rossa, marinated squid, fettuccine with pesto and gorgonzola and a wide selection of desserts.
Trafford Palazzo, Greater, Manchester M17 8AS.
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Hooters, Salford Quays
Image: Hooters
Hooters, an American restaurant chain more famous for its scantily clad waitresses than its food, is opening a site in Salford Quays this month.
Home to the Playboy bunnies of the hospitality world, the Hooters chain is actually pretty famous for its chicken wings – but even more so for its ‘girls’.
It serves up six different wings styles – original breaded, naked, boneless, Datyona, smoked and roasted – with a choice of 17 different sauces ranging from mild to ‘hot as all hell’.
Elsewhere on the grill-focused menu, you’ll find burgers, sandwiches and tacos, seafood like snow crab legs and shrimp platters, alongside fries and other sides.
Manchester City Council approves petition calling for Market Street to be less of a ‘sensory overload’
Daisy Jackson
A petition has been launched calling on Manchester City Council to review the management of Market Street, hoping to make it ‘more peaceful’ and less of a ‘sensory overload’.
All Mancs know that a walk down Market Street is no easy undertaking – it’s a hugely busy shopping street and pedestrian thoroughfare, often populated by buskers, street performers, charity fundraisers, and roving stalls.
One does not simply ‘pop to the shops’ in Manchester city centre. Instead, we pinball our way along the street which often feels like an urban obstacle course.
And now, an online petition has been launched and approved by Manchester City Council, calling for the street’s management (and that of Piccadilly Gardens) to be reviewed.
The petition calls on the council to assess ‘the cumulative effect of these activities, including excessive noise, sensory overload, obstruction, and difficulty navigating the city centre’.
And while it is ‘not directed at any particular group of people, business, political belief, charity, religion, or organisation’, the petition organisers believe that the large number of organised street solicitation, amplified sound, gazebos and stalls, and organised gatherings, are all significantly impacting pedestrian movement.
“These spaces should remain accessible, comfortable, safe, and easy to navigate for everyone,” the petition states.
A ‘quiet’ Monday lunchtime on Market Street. Credit: The Manc Group
Management measures for both Market Street and Piccadilly Gardens that have been put forward include designated locations for organised activities, permits, reasonable controls on noise levels, a review of street trading locations, and more measures to reduce obstruction in high-footfall areas.
It reads: “The review should also consider whether the concentration of multiple organised activities within the same locations operating during the same time slots is appropriate, and whether a more balanced distribution across the city centre would improve accessibility while continuing to respect the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and legitimate trading.
“The aim is not to prevent lawful expression, peaceful assembly, or legitimate trading. Instead, it is to ensure that Manchester’s busiest public spaces remain welcoming, accessible, and functional for everyone by achieving an appropriate balance between the many activities taking place within them, while protecting the rights of all who use these shared public spaces.”
The petition has made its way onto the Manchester Reddit subreddit, where one person described Market Street as an ‘absolute sensory overloaded obstacle course’ and a ‘sweetcorn scented sleep paralysis demon’.
The petition calls for more thought into the organisation of traders, performers, and more on Market Street. Credit: The Manc Group
One person commented: “Literally walked down market street just yesterday and thought about this, very glad something might actually be done. I moved away years ago and it was never good, but yesterday I’d never seen anything like it. Preachers, half a fun fair, sweet stand, rapper, guy dancing in a banana suit and more. It’s absolutely f*cked.”
Someone else posted: “People can practice whatever religion they want, but it’s horrible hearing loud chanting music, combined with two other religions doing the same thing, combined with random preaching, and then the buskers that seems to think if they’re super loud it means that are super good.”
You can see and sign the petition to review Market Street HERE.
Happy ending for pregnant cat who was PLUCKED of her fur by abusive owner
Daisy Jackson
A pregnant cat who was forcibly held down and plucked of her fur has got her happy ending.
Beautiful Luthien was found in a Manchester apartment building by the RSPCA at the age of just six months old, with just a tuft of fur left on the top of her tail.
A concerned neighbour had called the animal rescue charity after seeing the cat being pinned down and plucked by her owner on a balcony in the city.
Not only was the poor animal almost completely bald, but she was also pregnant.
She was taken into the care of RSPCA’s Greater Manchester Animal Hospital for a veterinary examination, missing fur over the top of her head, neck, back, belly, and down her front legs.
The vet suspected that this abuse had happened in multiple occasions due to the extent of the fur loss.
She was then transferred into the care of the RSPCA’s Crewe and Nantwich District Branch where staff nicknamed her ‘Velcro’ because she was so affectionate to everyone.
Luthien, or Velcro, gave birth to four kittens and was later rehomed by Kathy Miller, 75, in Cheadle.
Luthien was plucked by her ownerShe was just six months old, and pregnantCredit: RSPCA
She now looks like a completely different cat, and her fur has fully grown back.
A man was given a 12 month ban on keeping animals by magistrates, ordered to pay a £40 fine and £100 costs when he pleaded guilty to one Animal Welfare offence of failing to ensure that the needs of an animal were met.
RSPCA Inspector Jess Araujo, who investigated, said: “I have been an inspector for eight years but I had not seen anything like this before in terms of cruelty.
“Poor Luthien was only a six month-old kitten and most of her fur had been plucked from her body. This must have been terrifying and painful for her. She was also pregnant at the time so the added stress of this would have been awful.
“She was pinned down screaming in pain while this happened – and we are not sure how many times she was subjected to this treatment. The RSPCA attended the address with the police and the owner agreed to sign her over into our care.”
Rachael Dyer, a trustee at RSPCA’s Crewe and Nantwich District Branch, said: “She was the most lovely cat from the start – she was so loving and kind – it is amazing really when you think about what she had been through. We called her Velcro because she just wanted cuddles so much and would just stick to you.
Luthien now, with new owner Kathy. Credit: RSPCA
“She had four adorable kittens and she was fantastic with them. She was only young herself, but she cared and loved those kittens so much. She stayed with her babies until they were weaned and could be put up for adoption and once the kittens had found homes at around three months old it was her turn to find her forever home.
“I saw how her fur began to grow back and as it did her personality began to shine through too – she was such a friendly little cat in our care, really adorable.
“Once she was advertised for adoption her new owner applied and she came to see her. It really was love at first sight between both of them. There were a couple more follow up visits so they could bond while the kittens were rehomed – and they just got on so well and Luthien loved getting fussed.”
Kathy, Luthien’s new owner, said: “I have always adopted rescues and when I saw a cat advertised called ‘Velcro’ and all her kittens were named after sewing items – with me being a seamstress I just thought, ‘oh, here is a connection’ and I felt it was a sign.
“I arranged to see her at the branch and the first time she met me she was quite shy but I gave her a treat in my hand and she took it willingly and I thought this is another connection.
“When I first saw her I was shocked at her lack of fur. I knew from the website she had very little, but in real life all she had was a tuft at the end of her tail, it was like a pom-pom. I was told what had happened and it just made me sick to think of all the pain and suffering she must have gone through while pregnant too.
“She is such a lovely-natured girl and very sweet but she still won’t sit on my knee. She will cuddle and sleep on my bed but won’t sit on my knee – so I think it’s still some trauma from what happened.
“I did change her name as I am a Tolkien fan and have a dog called Arwen so I thought Lucien suited her and they are best friends (pictured). Velcro was a cute name when she was at the branch and it was apt because she loved cuddles and fuss and stuck to carers like Velcro – she still does love attention!”
The animal welfare charity is telling Luthien’s story as part of its Cruelty Hurts, Love Rescues fundraising campaign – which coincides with the charity’s busiest time as heartbreaking cruelty reports peak over summer.
New figures show that in June, July and August last year the RSPCA received 6,322* cruelty calls to their emergency line last year which is one call every 10 minutes when the line is open. In comparison the charity took 3,852 calls for the same period in 2021 – showing a massive 64% increase over the five years.
Georgina Pellant -
29th April 2022 
