WHOEVER though Altrincham would show Manchester the way in food and drink? OK, once upon a time it boasted the only Michelin star around at Juniper, but Altrincham Market House reached out to many more folk and effectively revived the town as a destination.
Now comes news that, subject to planning consent, the template is to be used to transform the derelict Mackie Mayor Building in the Northern Quarter. The food world’s worst kept secret, this is an altogether different challenge for Nick Johnson and Jenny Thompson, the team behind Alty. How will Swan Street’s odd mix of hipster and shabby accommodate a family-friendly, dog-friendly, refectory-style food hall?
Many of the same traders are planned for the Mackie Mayor, including Blackjack Brewing, who already operate the adjacent Smithfield Tavern.
The Grade II listed space, first opened in 1858 as meat market and vacant since the1990s, will also be a new home for woodfired pizzeria Honest Crust, steakhouse Tender Cow and their fish sideline Fin, bakery Katie’s Cakes, Asian kitchen Bao House and Reserve Wines plus a new batch of artisan traders, if all goes to plan.
It will be called Manchester Market Hall according to plans lodged with the council by the Thompsons’ company Market Operations. “It is anticipated that the proposed use will add to the life and vitality of the Northern Quarter in the same way that Market House has to Altrincham,” the plans say.
“The quality and diversity of food, the open access policy to a wide range of people and the inherently social nature of the space will make a significant contribution to the culture of this section of the city.”
The couple took on the then dilapidated Altrincham Market House building in 2013 and reopened it the following year after a major £175,000 revamp. An instant success, it won Best Food and Drink Pop-up, Event or Club in last year’s Manchester Food and Drink Awards and was a finalist in the Best Food Market Category in BBC Radio 4’s Food and Farming Awards.