I don't eat out that often as I genuinely enjoy cooking at home and prefer it most of the time, however since I moved into the city center I have been eating out more and enjoying some fantastic Manchester food that I wanted to share with you!
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Beef & Pudding on Booth Street was the chosen destination for a Sunday lunch with a friend I hadn't seen in a while. I've heard a lot a good things about it so wanted to try it out for myself.
We both went for the Sunday lunch, I had beef and my friend had turkey. If you're looking at the above photo and thinking 'oh my god that's a lot of food!' then you can imagine how I felt when it was placed in front of me. Rather overwhelmed to say the least!
It turned out they had given us both double portions by mistake. We of course didn't get charged for it, but I did feel bad about wasting the food as there was no way on this earth I could eat all of that. I had to leave room for dessert after all.
As you can see my leftovers are enough for another full meal. The yorkshire puddings were delicious as was the gravy. (I really liked the gravy!) The beef was delicious and they were nice thick slices. I wasn't a fan of the roast potatoes as they weren't crispy enough for me, but the ribbons of corguette were delicious and I don't even like corguette so that is saying something!
We chose the dessert plank for afters which included a banoffee cheesecake, sticky toffee pudding, chocolate tart, eccles cake with cheese on and a bakewell cake. There was cream and custard and some zig zags of caramel and chocolate sauce over the board it was served on.
I really didn't understand the cheese on the eccles cake, and after trying it we scraped off, then it was fruity with delicious layers of pastry just how it should be! The chocolate filling in the tart was rich and heavenly, but the pastry was a tad on the thick side. Both of the sponges and the cheesecake were scrumptious and I'd happily have them as full puddings next time.
The service was very good and the staff were friendly and helpful. After polishing off a bottle of rose, we had a cocktail each. I chose a lime daquiri... wow it was so good!! I loved this cocktail! Very tasty. I would go back just to have one of these again.
For a birthday lunch with a friend we chose Steak & Lobster, which is inside the Radisson Blu on Peter Street, as she is obsessed with seafood. The concept is simple - for £17 you get a 10z rib eye steak or a whole lobster. Both come with unlimited fries and salad. Best idea ever! We decided to get one each and share.
The service was fabulous, our waiter was very friendly and attentive. It was quite quiet in there for a Saturday lunch time which surprised me, but it is tucked away inside the hotel so it probably doesn't get noticed as much as it should. It was my first time having lobster and it was amazing! So juicy and succulent. The steak was fairly average in my opinion, I wasn't blown away by it but it was nice and tender. The lobster was the star of the show and next time I will be having a whole lobster all to myself!
The fries and salad were really good too, it was great to know you could have as much as you liked. My friend loved the salad, the dressing was slightly vinegary and I could definitely taste parmesan in it too. The waiter wouldn't reveal the secret mix of ingredients though!
Afterwards we headed to Ginger's Comfort Emporium which is inside Afflecks Palace on Church Street. It's hidden away in a corner on the first floor, but is well worth a visit. The ice cream is so rich and flavoursome. I had Chorlton Crack (aka peanut butter and salted caramel) and Raspberry & Rose flavours. My friend had Strawberry and Plum, Juniper & Gin.
The next day my boyfriend's mom and sister were visiting. They are both vegetarian and have some issues with dairy, and my boyfriend is vegetarian too. So we headed to Dough in the Northern Quarter. They have lots of dairy free, gluten free and vegetarian options on the menu. Above is a dairy free rocket pizza which was very spicy!
This really is such a great place if you have dietary issues as almost everything on the menu can be altered for your diet. My boyfriend chose the goats cheese and caramelised onion pizza which looked great and packed with toppings. He really enjoyed it and it wasn't around for long! I didn't take a photo but my boyfriend's mom had dairy free vegetarian gnocchi with roasted veg.
I was the only meat eater of the group so I went all out and had the paella pizza. Chicken, squid, prawn and chorizo! So delicious, I loved this topping idea as paella is one of my favorite dishes and it's translation into pizza was yummy. We all really enjoyed the meal and it was a great atmosphere for lunch. The staff were also really friendly and attentive.
So that's my last week of eating out lots! I recommend trying out all the places I visited as I would go to all of them again. If you're interested in visiting any of the restaurants mentioned, click on the links for more info. Happy eating!