How tough is this for an evening out? I’d been invited by Moët & Chandon to the Edwardian Hotel’s Peter Street Kitchen, ostensibly to be introduced to their new champagnes. There were to be 40 guests, the cream of the North-West’s foodie writers, opinion-makers and Influencers all round, in a manner of speaking.

I was looking forward to a nice evening with a glass or two and a good dinner. It’s been a while since I ate in the Peter Street Kitchen; in fact, before the pandemic. Looking back on my notes from the time, I read “cheeky gaff this, boxes well above its weight for a hotel restaurant”.

It finished up doing a lot more than that.

The dining room had been turned into a bright twenties-style Parisian affair; all the tables removed, replaced with one like The Traitors, but dressed in white linen covered in crystal and candles, easily seating the forty hand-picked guests; it took up the middle of the room, taking everyone’s breath away. A red-and-white theme matched the special bottles of Moët champagne, with music from a classical pianist. The entertainment also featured a couple of sessions from the Halle’s Youth Choir before and during dinner.

2026 01 05 Moet Red Bottle — **Credit: Confidentials**

The evening was to show off the partnership between Möet, one of the world’s oldest champagne houses and Peter Street Kitchen at the Edwardian Hotel, a limited residency for the champagne house at what is now arguably the No1 Hotel in the city. The intention was to match the wine to the new menu, which, sensibly in my opinion, has pivoted from a Mexican/French dual menu to a classical French/Japanese experience.

The food was exquisite. The champagnes shown on the night were the non-vintage Brut Imperial, the NV Rosé Imperial, the Grand Vintage Rosé (2016), the Grand Vintage (2016), and the rather showy Moët & Chandon N.I.R., which stands for Nectar Impérial Rosé. Each worked well with its matched dish from a team in the kitchen on fire.

Needless to say these wines are all of quality, and showing them in Manchester during this ‘Winter Residence’, called A Season of Celebration, exclusively at The Edwardian’s Peter Street Kitchen is a vote of confidence in Manchester from a 300-year old Grand Dame brand.

Every bit as prestigious as Chanel’s 23/24 Métiers d’Art show that was brought to Manchester’s Thomas Street in the Northern Quarter for the first time in ’24.

My favourite? The Grand Vintage 2016 Brut. Think of McVitie’s Digestive Biscuit Factory with a little spice thrown in on the palette.

2026 01 05 Moet 2 — **Credit: Confidentials**

Back to that food.

Seabass Carpaccio with shaved truffle and pink lady apple, Carabinero Prawns with a touch of chilli and Amalfi lemon, Black Truffle Tagliatelle (Howard Sharrock, sitting next to me and I gave this a 10/10); A5 Wagyu with a Gorgonzola Dolce crème and a sexier-than-Bardot dessert, La Table, every bit as ‘look at me’ as its champagne pairing, Nectar Impérial Rosé NV.

By the time I got to the tagliatelle, it dawned on me that I was being served from a kitchen that had been quietly improving for nearly five years since my last visit. The skill sets are hard-won and brilliantly applied in the dishes and in the service at night. Have you ever seen one of those state banquets held for visiting Presidents in Buckingham Palace? These guys are every bit as good.

2026 01 05 Carpaccio — **Seabass Carpaccio with shaved truffle and pink lady apple** Credit: Confidentials

2026 01 05 Tagliatelle — **Black Truffle Tagliatelle** Credit: Confidentials

I am going to do a scored review in the next few weeks, where, as my colleagues, the most trusted and professional food writers in the North of England, arrive unannounced and pay our way. We have been doing that at Confidentials for 22 years, delivering Quality, Authority and Prestige in our writing about our region’s best restaurants and hotels without fear or favour. If the team keeps up the good work I enjoyed on this night, they are going to get a helluva score.

This Winter Residence collaboration is on until the end of February. Go and experience on my personal recommendation.

2025 01 05 Bisou — **Credit: Confidentials**

To find out more and book a table, click here.

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