With a huge list of people put on furlough last year, particularly those who worked within the hospitality sectors, the city has seen an influx of small, independent ventures pop up – primarily food and drink related.
As bricks and mortar sites have remained closed, these delivery and collection services have done outstandingly well, and the level of innovation and creativity has been a welcome surprise to us all.
Now that places have started to open up again though, this lot will continue to operate and flourish in the city – and we can see many of them becoming 2021’s “next big thing”…
Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria
Opening literally this weekend, Tony’s have made a big splash in the city centre with their HUGE slabs of Lasagna, served alongside their freshly baked focaccia, mozzarella sticks and for pudding – ‘Unofficially Officially The Best Tiramisu in the World’. They’re available each weekend from Ancoats – lookout for the neon ‘LASAGNE’ sign on Radium Street – but you’ll have to be quick – they’ll be selling out for sure.
Patel’s Pies
A little venture that started in the excellent Bernie’s Grocery Store in Heaton Moor, has turned into an entirely new and immensely popular addition to Manchester’s food scene – and 2021 will only get bigger and better for Patel’s. Curry and Pies – the two greatest foods in the North have been seamlessly combined and if you only have one pie this year – make it their signature Keema one – it’s truly outstanding. Bernie’s will be opening up in Altrincham in May – so expect these little pastry beauties to reach and even bigger audience this year.
Bada Bing
Even though we pretty much invented it, and we eat millions of the things every day – the UK’s sandwiches are rather below-par when compared to our Trans-Atlantic cousins. Over there they do them properly, with huge ‘hoagies’ stuffed with layers and layers of meats, cheese and salad – and so Bada Bing have done something truly special in bringing a taste of the traditional New York deli to the streets of our fair city.
Birria Tacos
To say that the Saturday when this place opened at Koffee Shop was a bit mad is a huge understatement. The queue of people waiting patiently to get their hands on these unique and super-tasty tacos snaked pretty much all the way down Oldham Street. Once you get your hands on these bad boys – it’s clear to see why SO many people want them. In the simplest terms think this – tacos cooked and then dipped in gravy. Perfection.
CHOO CHOO
You like eclairs? Who doesn’t?! Well, these just aren’t any normal eclairs – these are proper ‘pimped up’ eclairs – with flavours ranging from Lemon Meringue to Salted Caramel Espresso – these little choux beauties are nothing to be scoffed at. They’ve been down the new Deansgate Square for a couple of months now, and as more and more people start to head down there for the long list of openings due in the development – we can see CHOO CHOO doing very well indeed this year.
Prato Neoclassical Pizza
If you wanted a Neapolitan pizza in the city centre during lockdown I’d say that you were spoilt for choice. Most of you chose Rudy’s though – meaning that there was always a fair wait to get your pizza. Step in Prato, which is helmed by former Rudy’s chef Alen, so you’ll get a pizza (that might even be BETTER) in a fraction of the time. 2021 has already turned out to be the year of the pizza – so Alen better be prepared for even more orders in the coming months.
Just Frango
Taking all of the Portuguese Peri-Peri dishes that we’ve all become accustomed to over the years, Just Frango then turned it all on its head by making it 1000x more authentic and infinitely tastier. Their peri-peri is made to an age-old family recipe, the chicken is charred to perfection and their Pastel de Nata are probably the best in the city – especially once they’ve caked them in Nutella!
Breadflower
The only way to make Sunday’s better is to get freshly baked bagels and a freshly picked bunch of flowers delivered right to your door. And that you can courtesy of the new South Manchester-based Breadflower. It’s wholesome, seriously tasty (I can testify) and Instagrammable – what more could do better in 2021? Nothing!
Vin de Bogeda
Natural wine is only getting more and more mainstream and it’s getting even easier to get your hands on the stuff in Manchester. Set up by four local lads, Vin de Bodega launched in lockdown in an effort to make Manchester just as obsessed with natural wine as Eoghan, Jack, Rick and Raz are. To make it as trendy as possible, the team operate on a ‘drop’ basis every Thursday. They’ve been selling out super quick each week after just a few months of operating.
3 Hands Deli
Helmed by three of the most experienced and skilled people imaginable, 3 Hands is the brainchild of top chef Julian Pizer, Holy Grain Sourdough and The Crafty Cheese Man. As you’d expect – their food is absolutely bloody brilliant and they’ve been serving up hungry punters with cheese, charcuterie and probably the city’s best toasties this lockdown. Let it all continue we say.
Batard Bread
This small neighborhood bakery in Withington, with a genius name, serve up some truly wonderful food, hand-made bakes and “well good bread”. If you’re a fan of baked goods – this is the place to visit – and we can see these guys getting much bigger and starting to supply many of your favourite venues very soon.
Schofield’s Bar
Joe & Daniel Schofield officially opened up their brand-new cocktail bar recently – one which boasts a menu of classic cocktails designed and prepared by two fellas who have a collective 25 years working in bars around the world. They’re currently serving up on their outside terrace, and as soon as May 17th comes around – we can all go inside and see what they’ve done with the space.
Palms Bakery
Home of Manchester’s ‘Top Shaggers’, Palms Bakery began baking classic cakes with shaggy icing just before the first lockdown, offering bespoke ‘Shaggy Cakes’. This place gained a massive Instagram following and before long, owner Rachel bagged herself a spot down at the up-and-coming Pollard Yard. We expect to be seeing these cakes at every birthday party for the foreseeable.
Teo’s Food
Based in a dark kitchen in Ancoats, Teo’s Food serve up the likes of Gourmet Paninis and classic Italian sides like ‘Suppli’ a veggie deep-fried breaded tomato rice ball with a heart of buffalo mozzarella. Available on pretty much every large delivery platform and Shocal, Teo’s Food will be all over town in a matter of months.
Lucky Mama’s
An Italian-African mash up served out of a food truck in a back garden in Eccles. Could Lucky Mama’s be any more ‘on point’ for 2021? With that kind of hook dragging you in, you’d want to think that the food matches the draw – and it certainly does. Pizza and pasta lovingly prepared and cooked by a hard-working duo – it’s the food that brings in the crowds week-in, week-out.
Saddleworth Brownies
A lockdown endeavor that’s essentially blown up since July 2020, you’ll know find Saddleworth Brownies in a range of local cafes and locations across Manchester. They’re all made with locally sourced products and they even plant a tree for every order made in an effort to be as green as possible.
This Charming Naan
It doesn’t get much more Viral Content than The Smiths-inspired curries and Indian pie and mash now, does it?! The best thing is, the puns are on point and so are the curries. You can get the likes of ‘Last Night I Dreamt That Some Bhaji Loved Me’ and ‘Girlfriend in a Korma’. You get it.
SANSAN
Prestwich is currently in the throws of a food and drink revolution, with a long list of new arrivals and additions over the last 12 months – making this North Manchester suburbs a true must-visit for any self-respecting ‘foodie’. SANSAN have been right in the thick of it – serving up some of the most imaginative and delicious sandwiches you can imagine. 2021 will continue to be a big year for them – Prestwich too.
FATBUN
It’s definitely been Manchester’s biggest sandwich year to date and the butty train isn’t stopping. FATBUN take inspiration from their travels around the globe to make ‘creative masterpieces’. They’ve simplified their menu to make everything as easy as possible – especially if you’re indecisive – chose from ‘The Meat One’, ‘The Fish One’, ‘The Veggie One’ or ‘The Vegan One’. Easy.
Long Boi’s Bakehouse
A new bakery created by bakers from Siop Shop and Pollen, Long Boi’s Bakehouse opened in Levenshulme in late 2020 and has already racked up a bit of a cult following. They have delicious pastries, sweet treats and incredible cakes, and if what you hear from EVERY person who lives in Levenshulme – 2021 is definitely going to be their year!
Archchi’s
We’ve all had Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi – but most of us haven’t ever really had the opportunity to explore the cuisine of Sri Lanka, apart from a select few who live in Stockport. Archchi’s is a dark kitchen concept that began in 2021 and will be heading to this year’s ample festivals, events and markets with family home-cooked recipes and dishes.
Bread and Bowl
Operating out of the legendary Wheatsheaf in the Northern Quarter for a spell last year, Bread & Bowl is simple – put some of the best foods known to man (a Full English Breakfast) inside a huge ‘bowl’ of bread and deliver. They even started a Roast Dinner delivery service in 2020 too – which is sure to continue and flourish in 2021 – because after all – who wants to get out of bed to enjoy a Roast Dinner on a Sunday?!
