Hide Away

Authentic Italian food is what’s on the “surprise” daily-changing four-course menu at Hide Away, cooked fresh from scratch by former head chef at Ramsons in Ramsbottom Lu Varley, who spent several months in Italy learning about all different kinds of dishes to bring to Bury.

Hide Away by name, and pretty hidden away by nature (look for the classical bust in the window), the restaurant is run by Lu along with her partner, Farhad, just the two of them. There’s a homely feel, with walls plastered in pictures, faux florals hanging from the ceiling, and classic red-and-white checked tablecloths. And because it’s a tiny team, there is just one menu and just one sitting: from Wednesday through to Saturday, get there for 7pm. The food is a surprise menu of four courses based on the seasons, with dietary requirements taken into account if you give advance notice. An example of the set menu might be antipasti to open, followed by homemade tomato and basil soup, then classic Italian braised veal dish osso bucco served with rosemary roasties, and, for something sweet, panna cotta. The selection of antipasti changes regularly and might include anything from cured meats, burrata and beef tomato, and lambs liver with Marsala sauce to smoked salmon pâté with brioche, beef carpaccio and freshly baked courgette and Brie frittatas. The second course is often slices of pizza – flavours have included spicy ‘Nduja and mushroom and Tuscan fennel salami – while mains might include pasta (Italian sausage and mushroom rigatoni or meatballs in a rich tomato sauce) or hearty meat dishes, such as ox cheek in Amarone wine with polenta or succulent turkey parmigiana on lemon and parsley risotto. For desserts, think crowdpleasers the likes of tirimisu trifle or strawberry pavlova with Amaretto cream.

On Sundays, it’s all about the good-value, one-choice roast, with set menus of two or three courses, depending on how full you are, and meats such as organic rib of beef and St Asaph roast lamb, and trimmings including honey-roasted carrots, cauliflower cheese and peas.

Want to be the first to receive all the latest news, tips, articles, guides and updates from Confidential Guides? Sign up here.