Confidential Guides

Confidential Guides is your way to find the best restaurants, bars and things to do in Manchester, Liverpool and the North West of England.

It’s produced by a small team of local writers and content creators who know this corner of the world well. We see it as a way to share all the things we love about the region, and we hope it’ll be useful for anyone who wants to make the most of their time here, whether you’re a visitor, or you live, work or study here.

It’s not an exhaustive directory; it’s more a collection of personal recommendations that you can trust, covering everything from independent shops to boxing gyms to country pubs to tattoo parlours to bubble tea cafes.

We only feature the places we think you’ll want to know about – either because they’re good at what they do, or they offer something different and interesting. We’ve been adding to our Guides since 2018 so there’s a lot of cool places listed (1,200+ and counting). Thankfully, it’s designed so you can easily search or filter down to find exactly what you want. Head to the search page and start exploring. Or browse through our most recent Guides below.

Publisher’s Note: Editorial Independence at Confidentials (19 January 2026)

Confidentials has published independent food and hospitality journalism for more than 21 years. We do not accept payment for restaurant reviews: our reviewers arrive unannounced, pay in full, and report honestly. Since 2004, we have offered £10,000 to anyone who can prove we took money for a review – it has never been claimed.

Read the full Editor’s Note here.