23 epic roast dinners for Sunday lunching

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.

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.

Exhibition is one of Manchester’s cluster of exciting multi-kitchen concepts (read: food halls) that just seem to be multiplying. In the former home of the Natural History Museum, the location makes it perfect for visitors to Manchester Central, the Radisson Blu and the Midland Hotel.

Founder’s Hall is a smartly-refurbished pub with an enviable position on Albert Square. It serves up comforting pub food and a vast range of beers.

Malmaison Manchester Deansgate is a cool new boutique hotel in the heart of the city. It has amazing views, two restaurants and a quirky 60s style.

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.

Three Little Words is housed under the arches at the lesser-visited end of Watson Street, near Beetham Tower. Inside you’ll find the Spirit of Manchester gin distillery, a cocktail bar, and a kitchen serving small plates with thoroughly decent cooking. It’s certainly a place worth knowing about.

11 Central is another venture for Seven Bro7hers, only this time their Sis4ers are on board too so the bar is a fantastic mix of craft beer and craft gin.

The big, first-floor window at the rear of Andrew Nutter’s Bird At Birtle frames the moors – and this gastropub, a sister to Nutters’ restaurant proper – is an ode of sorts to its impressive, rural location.

Named after the first recorded name for Ancoats, Elnecot (meaning ‘lonely cottages’) takes its influence from historical cooking methods with lots of fermenting, a little foraging and a few nose-to-tail dishes.

“Yet more small plates in Ancoats?” we hear you cry. Well yes, but trust us, Erst is worth your attention. This is a place for serious foodies so don’t come looking for mac n cheese balls. Plenty of other places can satisfy that filthy craving for you.

Nestled in the Grade II Listed former Freemasons Hall, Masons Restaurant and Bar serves retro fine-dining fare in princely surrounds.

Thomas Studd and his wife Sarah established their Chop House in booming Cottonopolis in 1867, and it’s still going strong, serving up top-end pub grub in the famous tiled back room restaurant along with flagons and snifters in the bar and on the sunny St Ann’s Square terrace.

OSMA is a contraction of Oslo and Manchester, the home cities of its two owners. However this portmanteau is even more well-travelled than that. Ingredients are local, lunches are Scandinavian and evening meals are an ever-changing roster of small plates from further afield.

Pendergast’s Steakhouse offers a less butch take on the traditional macho steakhouse. There are standout cuts of beef but you’ll also find small plates, seafood and lighter mains as well as carefully-thought out dishes for vegetarians and vegans.

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 Bay Horse Tavern, to give it its full moniker, describes itself as “a modern take on a Victorian Pub” and, with its dark hues and warm woods, puttering candles and kitschy knick-knacks, and range of gins, craft beers and “other libations”, it may well straddle the eras.

Found in the former E & A Auto Services garage depot on Swan Street, Firehouse is the sister restaurant to Ramona’s Detroit-style pizzeria. It’s part restaurant, part bar and part performance venue where tables are available to book for dinner and “after dark drinking”. The space is open and airy with a real laid-back feel. White shutters, bleached brick and glitter balls hanging from the high ceiling complete the chilled out party ambience.

Winning small plate fusion in an iconic and glamorous setting. Housed in Manchester’s iconic The Refuge Assurance Company dating back to 1858, this DJ-run restaurant and bar is large and sassy.

This unassuming, independent restaurant overlooking the historic Smithfield Fish Market is a stalwart of the Northern Quarter’s dining scene. Co-owner and chef Anthony Fielden has been cooking up a storm at TNQ since 2004, winning various awards and accolades along the way. 

Translating as ‘three chubby friends’ (a self-effacing reference to owner Francesco Scafuri and a pair of his portly pals from back in Campania), Tre Ciccio Altrincham doesn’t look much from the outside, or even the inside, at first.

Longstanding Thomas Street bar Trof has got ‘top Manchester night out’ written all over its labyrinth three stories. But it’s just as well known for its morning-after comfort feeds as its cocktails. The Sunday Roast has a reputation for greatness, and the weekend brunch menu is popular. Go for the full English breakfast or the confit duck hash with sriracha and honey glaze.

Zouk specialises in ‘apna’ – home-style cooking shot through with colour and heat from the spices and herbs. In recent years it has incorporated elements of global street food to its menu (Lahori wagyu sliders for example) but the main focus is still the authentic Indian and Pakistani cooking that made Zouk a success.