BIG restaurant opening of the autumn is undoubtedly WOOD Manchester, bringing ambitious casual fine dining to First Street. This high profile project by 2015 Masterchef winner Simon Wood is taking reservations from Friday September 1 onwards.
Prices reflect the Chadderton chef’s ambition with starters ranging from £8.50 to £14 and some mains topping £20 with a sharing tomahawk steak at £80 (pictured).
Voguishly sparse the menu blurbs but – ‘duck/peach/sauternes/hazelnut/chard’ – but they somehow confirm Masterchef judge John Torode’s verdict on 40-year-old the former data manager: “What a champion, what a cook! This years MasterChef has seen a revolution; the benchmark has just been raised.”
There'll be a tasting menu on offer – costing £65 for seven courses (or £85 if you fancy a copy of Simon’s book, At Home, thrown in – although guests won't be allowed to see it. Instead they'll be asked to put their trust in the chef. A choice of a matching wine or spirits/cocktails flight to accompany will cost you £35.
There is an affordable lounge menu on offer with some tasty options available from the josper grill – flat iron steak (£14), seared squid with chilli and garlic (£8.50) and infused wild mushrooms (£7.50).
Small plates and nibbles will cost around £3/4 and there'll also be a pre-theatre offering costing £20 for two courses or £25 for three.
WOOD Manchester, Jack Rosenthal Street, First Street, Manchester, M15 4RA . Book here.