NOT SINCE Mr Nazareth met the 5000 at Bethsaida with two fish and five loaves has there been this level of anticipation for food.
"Will Beckett and Huw Gott are the most obsessed foodies in the UK"
Hawksmoor - perhaps the finest steakhouse in all the land ('flawless' and 'the best steak anywhere' according to notoriously grumpy Times critic Giles Coren) - have had Manc mouths salivating like Pavlov's dogs since we first broke the news of the restaurant's coming in July 2014.
When he first heard Gordo hit the roof, then the deck, brushed himself off and said: "All you need do is taste the Stilton hollandaise to realise Hawksmoor owners Will Beckett and Huw Gott are the most obsessed foodies in the UK."
Manchester will be their sixth restaurant, the first outside of London, and "perhaps the best one we've ever done", according to Huw.
Hawksmoor MCR
Hawksmoor is Art Deco down to the bones: polished wood panelling, reclaimed 50s light fixtures, parque flooring, leaded windows, beautiful leather banquettes and brass Brasso'd to buggery.
The 130-cover restaurant also boasts an original feature skylight you could vertically land a Harrier jet through.
It is, in one word, gorgeous.
They're giving nothing away as far as menus go, but we're told to expect 'Hawksmoor classics alongside new dishes exclusive to Manchester'. And steaks as thick as a Samoan's thigh, we imagine.
We're excited. They're excited. You're excited. So here's the exclusive pictures you've all been waiting for...
(Hawksmoor will open in the Courthouse building at 184-186 Deansgate for the soft-launch from 19 Feb and fully from 5 March)
(photo credits @EmGol)
