I’ve been doing A LOT of eating in Manchester this year. Jamie and I made it our mission to eat in as many of the best restaurants, supper clubs and cafes in Manchester as we could.
Here’s a little countdown of some of our faves from 2016 in no particular order:
This is a tiny, very homely and simple restaurant that sells beautiful honest Japense food. We had stunning sashimi and tempura, and the atmosphere was delightfully low key and pleasant.

Do incredible stonebaked pizzas. The white pizza below called Ancozzese, with wild broccoli and tuscan sausage, was sensational. Rudy’s is a gorgeous and effortlessly trendy glass fronted venue in a pretty square in Ancoats. The staff were lovely and the venue was buzzing.

This is a glamourous art deco venue and they serve fabulous meat – steaks are the focus although other options are available. The service is impeccable and it feels like a treat being there.

I love going to Trove just for a coffee or lunch. But they also do brilliant supper clubs. We recently went to the Maple supper club – every dish had maple syrup in it. It was mouth wateringly good food. In the photo below, on the left are homemade pittas, falafels, pickles and courgette salad and on the right is lemon almond tart with balsamic strawberries. I didn’t want the food or the evening to end.

I met Neil Buttery when he was running a pastry class with Cracking Good Food. As he was such an ace pastry chef I wanted to try his new restaurant, the Buttery. It’s an intimate venue, with arty vibes and a welcoming atmosphere and just damn good pies, beers and wines and all at very good prices.

This classy new venue opened at the beginning of the year. The interior is elegant and stylish and their tapas is equally excellent. Along with some other wonderful dishes, I ate the best tortilla of my life – moist, rich and herby.

We popped in here for a cheeseboard one evening. Lunya feels so spanish. Sitting up at the bar (which is next to their deli), Lunya felt alive with hustle and bustle, and the cheeseboard was divine. We came back a few days later to try their restaurant upstairs, but the atmosphere just wasn’t the same as the buzzy excitement of the bar area.

8. The Walled Garden Vegetarian Supper Club, Whalley Range
In May I went to Eddie Shepherd’s supper club for the second time. He’s a charming host and his 14 courses of experimental and delicious vegetarian food were just as good as the first time.

9. Brassica Grill, Heaton Moor
On hearing that Brassica Grill had been nominated for a Manchester Food and Drink Festival Award , we were keen to try it out. Whilst my starter and main were good, they weren’t memorable, what stood out was the delightfully relaxed and friendly atmosphere of the restaurant and the staff were adorable. AND most importantly my pudding was off the scale: raspberry souffle and lemon thyme ice-cream.

10. The Allotment Vegan Restaurant, Stockport Old Town
The recently opened Allotment vegan restaurant is one of the best meals I’ve had this year. Taking vegan food to another level. It’s high end food, I’d say on a parr with the quality of food served at the French. The shiitake terrine with berries blew my mind, the creamy rich pate complemented by the sweet sharpness of the berries. And the aubergine chargrilled ‘steak’ was so beautifully seasoned it would give any meat steak a run for it’s money.

And ten of the places I still want to eat (I could easily make this a list of 30 if I wanted to – there’s too many good restaurants!)
- Grafene, King Street
- The Refuge at the Palace Hotel, Oxford Road
- The Hearth of the Ram, Ramsbottom
- The White Hart, Saddleworth
- Where the Light Gets in, Stockport (due to open soon)
- Hispi, Didsbury Village
- San Juan, Chorlton
- Grays Larder, Chorlton
- El Rincon, Deansgate
- Manchester House, Spinningfields
What are your favourite places to eat in Manchester? Please comment below so I can add them to my wish list!