CHOICE RESTAURANT is closing on Friday 25 April.
It will be a complete departure from Choice both in the way it looks and what it offers. The one constant will be the food which will be very strong.
The thirteen-year-old restaurant has brought aspirational food to the south west of the city centre. But proprietor Jon Grieves, a well-known figure on the Manchester scene and a true gent, tells Confidential this isn't the end of the story.
"Choice will be reinvented," he says. "A London-based craft beer company wants to move into the North West. We’re being brought into the brand to develop it.
"It will be a complete departure from Choice both in the way it looks and what it offers. The one constant will be the food which will be very strong. We'll have a proper kitchen, proper meals and a proper chef with good British food that matches the types of drinks we sell. We want a chef to make his or her name here. The atmosphere will be lively rather than that of a more formal restaurant such as Choice.
"As for the drinks," continues Jon, "expect craft beers sourced from across the country but also from the USA and elsewhere. We'll retain a really strong winelist with three or four cocktails on the list. I'll be working with the new venture."
"So come on," asked Confidential, "who's the operator you're working with, spill the beans, hops, barley and so on?"
"We'll release those details in the next week or two," says Jon. "We just want to make sure we have all the right permissions in place first, planning permission and so on."
Mysterious.
Confidential is pleased by this development.
Choice has been a brave idea providing excellent meals in gracious surroundings.
But this re-invention feels right, feels of-the-moment.
The new Choice, whatever it's called, will boost the area around host building Castle Quay and drag people further round the basin - especially as the terrace by the Bridgewater Canal will be completely refurbished. Summer is coming and we can't have too many terraces.
You can follow Jonathan Schofield on Twitter here @JonathSchofield or connect via Google+
Choice Restaurant
