Manchester's Most Romantic Restaurants (March 2005)
Spring is in the air and, if you're lucky, so is romance. Being brutally honest, Manchester is not exactly up there with Paris or Venice in the amorously-inclined eating stakes. But things are improving fast and the city is full of places which make for a nice cosy evening out a deux with your partner.
The daddy of them all is the Midland French, housed in the famous hotel of the same name, which is currently being renovated though still open for business. This one has seen everyone dine from showbiz legends like Laurence Olivier and Noel Coward to the lesser galaxy of Coronation Street's finest. It's very special and so are the prices, if you get the drift. Allow at least £50 a head for dinner with a basic house wine -- but you shouldn't regret it. The Midland is very much traditional French haute cuisine, the décor is high rococo and service is maybe a bit high camp but nevertheless it's a rare treat amid today's casual dining culture.
Lovers of Italian cuisine who fancy something a bit different might like to head for San Rocco (view a 360 movie), which is tucked nicely away from the hoi polloi on South King Street. The menu is not so different from the kind of fare you would find anywhere else but the pastas are freshly made and there are lots of delicate fish and chicken dishes. And the old-fashioned style is simply worlds away from the fast food ethos of most pizza and pasta joints. It's right next to Pizza Express -- which for all its many attributes really isn't the spot for a hot date.
Nearby, at the back of Kendals, is the newly opened Italian restaurant San Carlo, which was praised by no less picky a person than Sunday Times critic AA Gill. The list of lovely choices to eat here includes osso bucco, grilled Dover sole, crispy whitebait, pastas with seafood, a host of risottos, and interesting vegetarian options. It can get pretty busy so make sure you book in advance.
Further out of town, more French-inspired cuisine is on offer at the Moss Nook, near Manchester Airport, which for many years has enjoyed a formidable reputation for its fine cuisine. The prices are on a par with the Midland and it's very much a place to go to impress. While curry and Cupid's arrows don't exactly sing in harmony, Shimla Pinks might just do it for your other half. Down at Dolefield, near the new Spinningfield development, this modern-style Indian eaterie has plush surroundings, fine wines, and imaginative Indian dishes for those who can't face a romantic dinner without a chilli kick. It's pricier than most curry houses but still well under £30 a head.
Location is all when it comes to a romantic night out and it doesn't get much better than the River Restaurant at the Lowry, overlooking the Irwell and Manchester-Salford divide. OK it's not the River Seine but it will do to impress the one you love. Once inspired by Marco Pierre White, it now has its own identity and is stylish without being way over the top pricewise. Starters include an earthy salt herring with new potatoes and carpaccio of beef with salad for about £8. Mains are all about the £15- £20 a head mark and are Frenchified - signature choices include a cassoulet of monkfish and roast duck with shitake mushrooms. The River Restaurant has two AA rosettes and similar plaudits have been poured onto the top-floor Le Mont restaurant (pictured above) at Urbis with its panoramic views over the city. Under executive chef Robert Kisby, this one has really blossomed. Typical choices include cold quail with parsnip and chestnut soufflé, a chicory salad with red wine and roast fig, the famous Potage Yehudi Menuhin (as supped by the great man himself), and Loch Fyne scallops with tomato risotto and our old friend grilled Dover Sole. You won't get out of here with change from about £60 each so it's only for the serious relationship - or even a marriage proposal.
Those on tighter budgets are not forgotten in Manchester but should probably go for quirky and ethnic rather than cheap and cheerful. A nice choice is the newly refurbished Café Istanbul on Bridge Street which has always had an n ambience worlds way from the North of England, along with a certain charm. Particularly recommended are the meze starters and the marinated chicken. Good Turkish wines, too, for about £25 a head. If you're really skint, go for the Armenian on Albert Square which hasn't been decorated in 25 years and is, frankly, weird. But on a Friday night they have Rumanian accordion players, roses and all the vino you can neck for about £20 each.
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