40 things to do for Mother’s Day in Manchester

Cool Pacific Rim fusion fare for the fashion set. Australasia combines a sense of theatre with professionalism and culinary wizardry, making any occasion feel special.

Malmaison Manchester Piccadilly Bar & Grill isn’t just for overnight guests, its reputation for cocktails, quality beef and a buzzing atmosphere mean it’s respected as a restaurant in its own right.

Lincoln Square’s traditional Cantonese restaurant Wing’s has been an institution in the city centre since 2004, when it first found fame through the patronage of Premier League footballers.

It takes more than famous names to keep a restaurant thriving though – and it’s testament to the consistency and quality of the upmarket British-Cantonese food that Wing’s is still going strong 20 years later.

There’s a story behind the American and British flags that fly over the entrance to The Bells of Peover, a country dining pub in a village south of Knutsford.

The Black Friar stood empty and unloved for almost 20 years before reopening in summer 2021 after a substantial renovation project. Now a modern British restaurant and a traditional pub, it has two distinct settings with menus to match.

Once a stall at Levy Market, then a pop-up pizzeria above Fred’s Ale House, Cibus took baby steps to get to where it is today; a fully-fledged and much-praised Italian restaurant and bar on Levenshulme high street, and the winner of The Good Food Guide’s award for Best Local Restaurant North West 2024.

Dakota Grill Manchester is the work of former Malmaison owner, Ken McCollough and it is as dark-hued and handsome as the successful boutique hotel chain. It’s an inviting place with flickering candlelight, very retro-sexy – sure to be the setting for many a first date.

The focus at Dakota is on steaks which are very good – all grass-fed, 28 day-aged, hand-cut Aberdeenshire beef cooked over hot coals.

October 2003 saw the first of the four Evunas open, grabbing a prime position on Deansgate and a reputation for being a go-to place for Spanish cuisine. Plenty of exposed brick, wine-lined walls and low, dark lighting all add to the atmosphere, perfect for cosying up over those authentic small plates.

Grand Pacific is the work of Living Ventures and it easily outshines its sibling venues in terms of pure glamour. Not in a big chandeliers, glass and chrome Spinningfields way, but with a decadent blend of colonial Raffles-style grandeur and some of the best of the city’s Victorian architecture.

Want to fall in love with your city all over again? Take a boat tour from Manchester River Cruises, and you’ll see its iconic views from a new and surprising perspective.

The Pen and Pencil is the Northern Quarter’s cool all-day hangout, modelled on the New York bar of the same name popular with the city’s journalists and ad men in the 1950s and 1960s. It has a reputation for great cocktails, quality food and an atmosphere that makes it stand out from nearby imitators.

The second city centre Evuna, open since 2013, bagsies a corner spot in the Northern Quarter that provides the outward-facing window seats with a prime people-watching position. Wood panelling, Moorish tiles and rustic blackboards offer atmosphere, perfect for cosying up over those authentic small plates.

If you want a woodland walk complete with den-making, wildlife, picnic spots, and beautiful views, Etherow Country Park on the edge of Stockport ticks the boxes.

Skof is the first restaurant from chef Tom Barnes who, as head chef at Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume, helped it win its third Michelin star. 

Manchester’s highest restaurant, bar and terrace 20 Stories was the opening of 2018 and still maintains its status as one of the city’s most popular place to eat, drink, be snapped and be seen.

With its floor-to-ceiling views over Exchange Square and chic Selfridges setting, Bottega is  a stylish spot for cocktails, lunch or dinner.

Located in a Grade II Listed building from 1626, The Bridge is full of charm, whether you’re going for a weekend away or Sunday lunch. This hotel and restaurant sits on the banks of the River Bollin in the picturesque Cheshire village of Prestbury, and has been newly refurbished.

The ‘Burbs is exactly the sort of informal neighbourhood spot you want round the corner from your house.

The first thing you notice when you step into fine-dining restaurant Climat is the view. Situated on the roof of Blackfriars House, you’re just above the city skyline, close enough to see the details of the architecture, but high enough to feel like you’re in the clouds.

Visitors to Elizabeth Gaskell’s House can explore the author’s home where she wrote most of her novels such as North and South and Cranford.

With its red velvet seats, waiter service, and ultra stylish bar and cafe, Everyman Manchester St John’s is a far cry from your local multiplex. This deluxe cinema chain is expanding across the UK and now has two venues in Greater Manchester (the other is in Altrincham). 

Fletcher Moss has four outdoor, floodlit clay tennis courts which are open to everyone and accessibly priced.

The Fountain House is the newest lodger of the Gothic-arched Memorial Hall sitting one corner of Albert Square, and its modern old-fashioned surrounds and plentiful portions of proper pub grub – mostly British but with a little European inspiration – do the imposing building proud.

The Fox & Barrel is a traditional Cheshire country pub with seasonal food, a good wine list and some very good gin too. For the most part, it offers exactly what you’d expect and a bit more – cracking Sunday roasts, an open fire with snug seating, handpumps on the bar and tables on the terrace.

For many people, Argentinian restaurant Gaucho Manchester is the destination in the city for very good steak paired with very good wine. Housed in a converted Methodist church on Deansgate, with an open kitchen, and the original church organ still in-situ, it’s also known as one of Manchester’s best-looking spaces for dining.

Gusto Italian Manchester may be the jewel in ever-expanding chain’s crown, even if the menu is the same everywhere from Heswall to Edinburgh. It’s a very polished affair with a definite Art Deco feel. This is a place that seems designed for good times and the service is slick.

A popular option for a good-value spa break, the Harmony and Serenity Spa is known for its relaxation room, thermal suite, and six treatment rooms. 

With five cinemas, two theatres, a bookshop, and over 500 sqm of gallery space, HOME is one of Manchester’s biggest and most dynamic arts venues. 

If you like the idea of skydiving but not so much the idea of jumping out of a plane, this could be for you. At iFLY Manchester Indoor Skydiving, you get the weightless, flying experience without having to launch yourself off anything – the wind lifts you up rather than gravity pulling you down.

It’s part of the University of Manchester but you don’t have to be a scholar to enjoy this inspiring space. In fact, John Rylands Library was built to give the people of Manchester a place where they could read, create and wonder.

The King Street Townhouse Gym & Spa opened at this boutique luxury hotel in 2022, making it one of Manchester city centre’s newest spas.

So named because of Manchester University’s 25 Nobel laureates, The Laureate Restaurant is a large and luxurious space located on one of the higher floors of Manchester’s Hyatt Regency Hotel.

Lyme Park is a huge estate with a Medieval herd of red deer, stunning views and a handsome Regency house.

Now a National Trust property, Lyme Park has something for visitors of all ages. Jane Austen fans may know it best as Pemberley, the home of Mr Darcy, where he emerges dripping wet from the lake in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.

Mackie Mayor is a cosmopolitan food hall located in an 1858 Grade II listed market building on the edge of Manchester’s Northern Quarter.

Mosey down Mosley Street between Piccadilly Gardens and St Peter’s Square, and you can’t miss the Greek columns that flank the front of Manchester Art Gallery. It’s one of Manchester’s most visited cultural attractions thanks to its central location and extensive collection of historical and contemporary art.

Manchester Museum reopened in February 2023 following a £15m transformation to make it more inclusive and more imaginative in how it tells its stories.

Opened in the summer of 2022 after a hefty refurb which transformed the tired-looking New Century Hall of the mid-twentieth century into a newfangled music and dining destination in Manchester’s trendy NOMA district.

Two things that are guaranteed to release endorphins: puppies and yoga. Paws Yoga combines the two, and was the first yoga class of this kind to touch down in Manchester.

With its large alfresco terrace, complete with a fully retractable roof, Piccolino Didsbury is perfectly located for an Aperol Spritz in the sun or a full three-course meal inspired by the diverse cuisine from all of Italy’s regions.

The Rena Spa at The Midland Hotel is many local people’s first-choice for a spa day in the city centre, and for good reason.

The 2021 opening of this new 154-acre garden was greeted with much excitement and long queues, and rightly so. Once a derelict and overgrown site, it’s now a major visitor attraction with plenty to offer all year round. 

If this isn’t an excuse to pop on your best frock (or bib’n’tucker), we don’t know what is. An award-winning Alice In Wonderland-themed dining experience is just asking for a bit of dress-up, especially when there’s finger food and afternoon tea for the taking.

If you’re looking for high-end luxury from your spa day or gym membership, The Spa & Gym at The Edwardian Manchester might be for you. Spread over an entire floor of this stylish Radisson hotel, it’s one of Manchester’s best-looking spa destinations, thanks to its soothing combination of natural oak, glass and marble, and its gorgeous aquamarine swimming pool.

Hearing the thud of axes can be a little unnerving as you leave the cinema in the Great Northern – especially after a slasher film – but the axe throwing at Whistle Punks is about letting off steam not cutting off limbs.

It’s competitive and a bit like darts really, only you’re throwing whacking great axes at the target instead. A bullseye with an axe is very satisfying indeed.