The Rice Bowl

This family-run Chinese restaurant has history. After first setting up in Liverpool in 1955, Wing Lau moved operations to Manchester in 1960, his niece Jenny joining the team in 1988 and now running things. “Good food brings harmony”, says The Rice Bowl blurb, and service and setting are calming, with water features and lots of black lacquer.

Dim sum is a speciality at The Rice Bowl, served all day every day, and they’re happy for you to eat it as a starter – perfect if you want to give it a go – or as a whole meal, and there is a selection of the little dishes: pick from the steamed dumplings and bao buns or baked, grilled and fried gyoza dumplings, spring, nori or rice paper rolls, pancakes, bonbons and samosas. Mains include classics the likes of duck in plum sauce, sizzling Cantonese beef and char siu pork roasted in a clay oven, but they also manage to slip in Singapore-style vermicelli noodles, a pad Thai broth with king prawns and a Malaysian chicken mee goreng. There’s quite a vegetarian spread, with a good showing of mock chicken and tofu, but also lots of fresh, crisp stir-fried veg, and there are, of course, banquets for two or more.

Desserts wise, think homemade matcha green tea cheesecake. Drinks wise, there is a full wine list and Asahi Super Dry on tap, plus various sakes and umeshu plum wines, along with authentic Chinese liquor baijiu and bottles of Tsing Tao beer.

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