Come on, it wasn’t all bad. We managed to have a bit of fun in 2021. Some great new restaurants and bars opened across Greater Manchester, and we even managed to squeeze in a few festivals and events between lockdowns and vaccinations. Local hospitality businesses kept up the creativity and there’s even more planned for 2022.
Take a look through our most popular stories from 2021…
--------------
AWARD WINNING CHINESE RESTAURANT ONE PLUS HAS OPENED AN ORIENTAL MINIMART
Back in August, we had a chat with Alan Ng, owner of One+, Manchester’s incredible three floor noodle bar, Chinese BBQ and hot pot conveyor belt restaurant. He had just opened an Oriental Minimart at Circle Square, across the road from his Charles Street restaurant.
Now you know where you can get the essential ingredients from to make an Asian feast at home.
The bright, modern shop offers an extensive range of Oriental snacks and dry goods, along with fresh produce such as seafood, meats, fruit and veg. You can also pop in for a selection of reasonable priced street food dishes and milk tea (boba/bubble) on the go.
--------------
It seems like our readers are like us and wake up thinking about food. Our updated Taste of Manchester chart of the best breakfast and brunch dishes in Greater Manchester was really popular. Whether you prefer to start your day with whole foods and plant-based power dishes or like to spend most of your daily calorie allowance straight away, we have some fantastic places to visit to start your day in the best way.
-----------
FESTA ITALIANA RETURNS FOR 2021 WITH CELEBRITY CHEFS & A PERONI CINEMA
As summer approached, outdoor events and festivals seemed to be going ahead. If we couldn’t go to Italy, we were thrilled to discover that Italy was coming to us in the form of Festa Italiana, Manchester’sthree-day celebration of Italian food, drink and culture. After a Covid-enforced break in 2020, the fourth annual free weekend festival transformed Cathedral Gardens into the Festival Piazza. There was music, street food stalls, pop-up bars and live demos from renowned Italian celebrity chefs Aldo Zilli, Giancarlo Caldesi, Gennaro Contaldo, as well as Festa founder Maurizio Cecco who owns Salvi’s restaurant and deli.
-----------------
NUTTER’S ROCHDALE TO CLOSE FOR GOOD AFTER 28 YEARS
In October we were pretty shocked to hear that one of Greater Manchester’s most popular and long-standing independent restaurants was to close. Nutter’s in Norden had had an excellent run – 28 years – but hands on celebrity chef Andrew Nutter decided to call time on the business. “We wanted to go out whilst we are still at the top of our game and it had been increasingly difficult to do that in these times,” he said. Nutters has been listed in The Good Food Guide, Michelin Guide, AA Guide and Hardens. It has also been the recipient of various awards including the AA notable wine list award. Chef Andrew Nutter has been bestowed with a number of awards including Lancashire Chef of the Year, Young Mancunian Business Man Of The Year and was given the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Manchester Food and Drink Festival 2008. Their gastropub, The Bird at Birtle, in Heywood continues to trade.
----------
NEW PAN-ASIAN RESTAURANT, NAMII KITCHEN, TO OPEN AT THE FORMER BLACKHOUSE GRILL SITE
Everyone seemed pretty excited by this one. Namii Kitchen & Cocktails, anew Vietnamese-style restaurant and bar,opened in the old Blackhouse Grill site on New York Street in October. The cocktail menu has been inspired by Vietnamese mythology and folklore and the food menu features creative South-East Asian classics including Pho, Bahn Mi and Vietnamese summer rolls.
----------
16 CHEFS - 15 MICHELIN STARS - 14 NIGHTS – OBSESSION RETURNS TO NORTHCOTE IN 2022
After a two-year wait caused by Covid, it was announced that Obsession, one of the most prestigious and internationally recognised gourmet festivals in Europe, planned a return to Northcote in the Ribble Valley in 2022. Taking place over fourteen nights between 21st January to 6th February, we revealed which world class Michelin recognised chefs willcook at the luxury Lancashire hotel and Michelin star restaurant, headed up by executive chef Lisa Goodwin-Allen.
-----------
REVIEW - MOUNT STREET DINING ROOM AND BAR AT THE MIDLAND HOTEL
We didn’t write as many restaurant reviews in 2021 as we usually do. It didn’t seem right to criticise venues that were short staffed and generally plate spinning just to get from week to week. But we were really interested to see the changes at the ‘other’ restaurant at Manchester’s iconic Midland Hotel. Mount Street Restaurant and Bar was supposed to open in April 2020, replacing what was Mr Cooper’s Restaurant and Bar. It was part of a £14M refurbishment of the hotel by new owners Leonardo Hotels UK and Ireland, but the pandemic scuppered any full-blown launch. Here’s what we thought on our visit.
----------
It seems our readers really do love a chart – we’d better get a few more planned for 2022 – and this was another popular one. It's hard to keep up with Altrincham's wonderful bar, cafe and restaurant scene - and it's even harder to keep our list to the top ten best places, but rules are rules. Here are the venues that made it this time, but we’ll keep it up to date.
---------
MEET MANCHESTER’S ONLY ALL-FEMALE PLANT POWERED CHEF TEAM
This interview was such a pleasure to do. We went to Black Leaf, the vegan basement restaurant underneath Alvarium in the Northern Quarter, to meet head chef Grace Stubbs and her team. The menu is 100% plant based and reaches the point where fine dining meets comfort food. If you’re planning to try Veganuary or just cut down on your meat consumption in 2022, make sure you give this place a try – the food is delicious, and you won’t leave hungry.
---------
AD HOC - A FANTASTIC NEW WINE SHOP HAS OPENED IN THE NORTHERN QUARTER
In October we were excited to hear about Ad Hoc, a new wine and beer shop on Edge Street in Manchester’s Northern Quarter. We went over to meet the enthusiastic and knowledgable Miles Burke and Charlie Heyes who talked us through the vast selection of bottles from all corners of the globe. We discovered really interesting Old and New World wines, natural and low-intervention wines, sparkling wines and lesser-known wines from places like Canada, Georgia and Hungary, all at affordable and fair prices. They also had an impressive range of beers and spirits and you’re welcome to sit by the window with a bottle, and a packet of Torres crisps and watch the world go by.