By Julia Nazzareno, Paris School of Business, France
Although Manchester seems really small at times, there are still so many activities and places for you to do and see. In this series of two articles, I will try and shortlist all the places where I most enjoyed eating at (part 1) and all the places I loved visiting and exploring (part 2).
Edible highlights
My mouth is watering…
My kind of philoshophy
There are too many great cafes and restaurants in this town to count but I will try to be as brief as possible so that you do not end up in a food coma. Alright, so the first one I need to talk about is « La Vina, bar y tapas ». This Spanish inspired restaurant is probably my favorite spot because of its style and the taste of its food. I advise you to go there during the week (Monday to Friday) because they have a great deal until 6:30pm where 3 tapas + 1 glass of wine cost 9,99 pounds! If you go on a Friday, definitely make a reservation otherwise you will never get a sit… yes it is THAT good.
When you need a vacation in the middle of all these assignments
If you are daydreaming of drinking cocktails on a beach in Cuba like my boyfriend does, you need to go to « La Revolucion de Cuba ». Manchester can be a bit grey and rainy but when you are in this restaurant you will feel like you are on holiday on a tropical island. They have a great selection of cocktails as well as exotic food but do make a reservation before you go because it is always packed on Friday nights.
Teacup kitchen
If you are like me and you crave something sweet at 4pm and you do not have any lectures (of course…), there is a great range of cafes that i like to go to whenever i feel like tea or/and cake. The first one would be « Teacup Kitchen » which was actually recommended to us our first day at the university, during the presentation speech. This is everything you like about a cafe and English culture: lots of colourful and wild cakes to name a few (rainbow cake, red velvet etc.) as well as all sorts of beverages. You can also eat there and I actually brought my mom when she came to visit because i wanted her to truly experience a typical English breakfast.
Christie’s bistrot
Who knew that the university was hiding one of the most beautiful cafes in Manchester ? Certainly not me until my boyfriend got lots in the buildings and ended up finding « Christie’s bistrot » one day. Well, let me tell you, my tea/English/authentic/book-loving soul was fulfilled. I had the best avocado on toast and my tea came with an hourglass on the side… I love English culture so much….
Proper Tea at Manchester Cathedral
Sometimes you need to get lost to find the best hidden spots. We were just wandering around the Cathedral when we found this cute cafe, a very nice little british spot with lots of tea and cakes once again. But this time, you get a great view of the cathedral and you can listen to classical music while eating brownies and the best Mac n Cheese ever !
Overall, Manchester has so many gems and I wish I could go everywhere just to make sure that I am not missing anything, but the truth is, we keep coming back to the same restaurants because we love it there. I hope I was able to give you some inspiration and that you are hungry now haha
“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well” – virginia Woolf