Northern Quarter pub, once Cottonopolis, now no more
When the Lamb of Tartary opened in March of this year it sprung up in the spot long occupied by Cottonopolis, the popular cocktail bar and pan-Asian restaurant.
In this writer's opinion at least, it was a shrewd move from owners Nick and Hayley Muir (also owners of Ancoats' popular Edinburgh Castle), suggestive of a shift in dining habits away from bougie sushi and towards brasserie-style, British plates of food, along with a trend back towards pub appreciation more generally.
But within six months the pub and restaurant on Newton Street has closed, with the confirmation today that it has closed with immediate effect, called in the liquidators and in doing so, called it a day.
We wish everybody involved with this noble attempt the best of luck
For city centre restaurants at present it's hard to know which direction to take. It's hard to know which audience to tap. More than ever so much of food appreciation seems fashion-led, so many menus smartphone menus. Yet fashion can be the ultimate dead end when fashions change and they change quickly. Do places such as Sexy Fish have longevity built into them? Is the glitz and Dubai-style of these places with their ear-splitting volumes and their internationalist could-be-anywhere character, here to stay?
That's hard to tell but what is key and has always been key is location.
Lamb of Tartary's location on the battered fringe of Piccadilly was always a risk despite the seemingly initial success of its previous incarnation, Cottonopolis. The fit out was expensive and stylish, a real blast of post-industrial chic that gave this part of town an upmarket destination other than a hotel bar.
Other bars and restaurants around these few streets play it casual. The ambition behind both Cottonopolis and Lamb of Tartary made them a great place to relax as a destination of their own or as a smart break while going to or from Piccadilly Station.
Yet, the location is that northern arse end of Piccadilly. The city blocks between Piccadilly Gardens and Piccadilly (the street to the station) from Oldham Street to Paton Street with Dale Street on the northern side are a rundown mess, the worst in the city centre. Sad Back Piccadilly threads its way down the centre of this network of dereliction majoring in trash and drug-dealing.
Perhaps the location could never work and sooner or later the owners would have had to call it a day.
One further point.
That location aside, perhaps it was too early after launching the Lamb of Tartary's excellent British-based small plates to ditch them. Clearly covers weren't forthcoming but it was a fine menu and perhaps deserved more opportunity to sell itself then a couple of months or so. The subsequent menu was too complex with globe-spanning influences that aimed for wide appeal but were confusing.
That didn't work so a business decision had to be made. Losing the Lamb of Tartary is a blow for the Northern Quarter, a blow for experimentation and also sad for the staff. Confidentials.com wishes everybody involved with this noble attempt the best of luck.
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