IT is estimated by 2016 there'll be around three restaurants per person in Manchester. Honest.
A dish of subtlety, simplicity and aesthetics, all beautifully and satisfyingly balanced - who doesn’t need such things in their life?
With this vast breadth of cuisine comes the whole headache of choice. And we all know that choice needs exercising. And exercising is a pain in the jacksie. So here we've chosen ten of Manchester's best dishes for you.
Below you'll find dishes that lift the soul; lower the naval; cure hangovers and have been proven to lessen the risk of a £6 Pret buttie by up to 73%.
So feast your eyes and then your gob on these...
SNAILS & FINGERLING POTATOES
63 Degrees - 20 Church Street (moving to High Street in June) - £10.50
Deputy Ed’s lightbulb flicks on. “Let’s do the Best of Manchester Dishes,” he says. We agree on one dish each. One. So here are five with an overall joint winner. I love the crab broth at Hunan restaurant, the smoked haddock scotch egg at Sam’s, the braised short rib of beef, wild garlic and truffle pecorino at Manchester House. But winning through because of its mix of delicacy, artistry and verve is the escargots en persillade et pommes rates aka snails in parsley with fingerling potatoes. The latter are delicate NW French tubers that match perfectly the earthy character of the snails. “What’s in this superb vinaigrette?” I asked in wonder. “Hazelnut oil, cherry vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper and a hint of chilli,” came the reply. Simple this cooking lark, isn't it? For sheer sharing enjoyment though, try Salvi’s Cucina on John Dalton Street, and its antipasto platter with superb hams and the best mozzarella in the world. Jonathan Schofield - Editor
OX IN COAL OIL
The French at The Midland - Peter Street - £85 set menu
This is a fabulous dish in its own right - the sweet, melting, almost melony texture of the raw ox punctuated by tiny spheres of kohlrabi, toasted pumpkin seeds and sunflower shoots all coated in that slippery, silky, smoky oil is sublime - but it is my choice because of what it represents. It means Manchester is taking food seriously as an art and a craft, and not just a means to be flashy (though it is a little bit showy-offy too). It means ambition and dedication and inspiration all in one little plate. Plus, I just love a good tartare. Lucy Tomlinson - Food writer
PACCHERI RAGU
Salvi's - 19 John Dalton Street - £10'ish
A contender for Gordo is the Wagamama ramen. Yes I know. But Gordo loves the simplicity of the dish; it doubles as one of the best hangover cures in Manchester. However, if Gordo was to be pinned down his favourite dish in Manchester would have to be the Salvi's pasta dish (Gordo can't remember the exact name of the bloody thing, blame the wine). Huge, complex, satisfying. Comfort food at its best. Add a big glass of Barolo and some crunchy bread. Yes! Gordo - Confidential Publisher
KAISEN DON
Yuzu - 39 Faulkner Street - £15.50
Spankingly fresh tuna, scallops, sweet prawn and salmon roe, artfully draped across heaped Japonica sushi rice which has just the right bite and texture. The latter, no mere support act to the raw fish, is dressed with rice wine and topped with shredded daikon, whilst on the side perches a little pouring jug of warm soy-based sauce, richly umami rather than overtly salty. Even the most adept of chopstick users will eventually reach for the traditional ceramic spoon, scrabbling to scoop every last hit of flavour from the bottom of the bowl. A dish of subtlety, simplicity and aesthetics, all beautifully and satisfyingly balanced - who doesn’t need such things in their life? Thom Hetherington - Northern Restaurant Bar and Buy Art Fair Director
PARMESAN GNOCCHI
San Carlo Cicchetti - King Street West - £7.15
Whenever my mum comes to mind the twins, I head straight to San Carlo for parmesan gnocchi on my own. This central restaurant is Manchester’s home of Venetian small plates, and this is one of their simplest dishes. The dumplings are soft, the sauce parmesany. The cheese basket cracks to a firm touch. This is not healthy, or even particularly elegant food, but a small portion like this is just the right side of decadent. With wine, it’s about a tenner: less than your entry fee to the soft play centre. Ruth Allan - Confidential food critic and editor of MCR Wire
SMOKED FETA, BEETROOT, HAZELNUT AND DILL
Volta - 167 Burton Road West Didsbury - £4
Ingredients-wise, there is nothing here to drive me wild. For starters it’s meat-free and gluten-free, which I am categorically not, so the first time someone at my table ordered this I rolled my eyes and compensated with an extra order of pork belly. It arrived, resplendent in its pinkness, and showed me a thing or two. The intense sweetness of the beetroot combined with the smoky, salty bite of feta and savoury crunch of hazelnuts makes for a perfectly balanced mouthful. Scoop it up with chunks of soft herb focaccia and pair with a dry white wine to offset any lingering sense of virtue. Katie Popperwell - Freelance Writer (Stylist, Big Issue) and HOME Producer
CHICKEN POUTINE BARM
Hawksmoor - 186 Deansgate - £8.50
It's quite something for a Northerner to admit we've all been out barm'd by Southerners. But I'm sorry, we have... we really, really have. Say 'Hawksmoor' and the mind jumps to food with clout; pink, juicy, mattress-thick slabs of perfectly-timed moo; marrow dug directly from the hacked bone; beef dripping chips and bacon yorkie puds. Wallop. But I implore you, stop, grab a paper, pull up a stool at the bar, order a Hawksmoor Collins on ice and a chicken poutine barm from the bar menu. A take on the Canadian's poutine dish (essentially chips, cheese and gravy), Hawksmoor have added herb-fed chicken, a fried egg and Westcombe cheddar curds to create a barm of pure wonder. Deep, deep flavours, flakes of crispy chicken skin, curdish umami (there I said it) and rich gravy make this the best and messiest barm you're likely to find anywhere. This one may offend Northern sensibilities, mind, this barm requires a knife and fork. David Blake - Deputy Editor
TWICE COOKED LAMB
Iberica - The Avenue Spinningfields - £9
It’s the packaging that lures us fashion folk in. We want all the fancy we expect from clothes on our plates too. We're visual creatures. There’s style and substance at Iberica. While the grand interior of the new Spinningfield’s Spanish restaurant turns heads, it’s the twice cooked lamb that widens eyes and salivates mouths. The lamb, sweetly suffused with accompanying marinated cherry tomatoes and red peppers, flakes with ease, putting up no resistance to the fork. A beautiful dish and one of the standout meat mains on the menu. L'Oreal Blackett - Body Confidential Editor
LAMB NIHARI
This & That - Soap Street - £4.90 (for Rice'n'Three)
It would have to be the Lamb Nihari, only available on a Sunday from the famed Northern Quarter alley caf' This & That. There's not a hangover I've ever known that can not be appeased by a big dollop of T&T Nihari followed by a lie down in a darkened room. It's so tender and complex they must stick it in to cook on Wednesday. It's also cheaper than a reasonably priced pair of socks. Deanna Thomas - Food writer
FLAKY ROASTED COD
Easy Fish - 117 Heaton Moor Road - £15.95
The last time I visited this new restaurant behind one of Greater Manchester's best fish shops in Heaton Moor, I left the restaurant clutching a carrier bag containing the skeletons of six yellow-fin bream to make a huge vat of home stock. Unusual. But these guys have been shifting fish trade for over 150 years. This means one thing, access to the some of the freshest fish in the North West. My favourite dish of late was their tranche of exquisitely flaky roasted cod, served with an oniony red wine sauce and a smoked Applewood and bacon potato hash. Outstanding. Neil Sowerby - Confidential restaurant/wine/travel writer and editor of Taste of Manchester
