Just a quick shout out for the fruit stall on Deansgate at the entrance to House of Fraser…read moredepartment store. I had so much fun explaining to the stall owner why I wanted photos, and how I was going to put his fruit stall on the internet. He didn't even have a name for the business - so I hereby name this stall Deansgate Fruit Stall! Fruit from street vendors is invariably very fresh and uses as little packaging as you like, especially if you bring your own small bags as well as shopping bag. On the stall, we have the usual apples and oranges, cucumbers, avocado, etc plus whatever is in season (see photos). Also, some more unusual items such as fresh figs of a much better quality (luscious!) than I've ever seen in supermarket. Definitely make a special effort to visit during the soft fruit season - cherries, raspberries, etc, best bought little and often. The stall owner is a really friendly gentleman, and a little bit of rounding down of the grand total to the nearest whole pound sometimes happens - but let him do it!

New Yorker opened fairly recently on Portland Street in Manchester City centre, and thanks to the…read morestyle of the building it's part of, it looks straight from New York City itself. Originally seeming to be named New Yorker Diner, it doesn't have a diner vibe, so instead is now presenting itself as American Street Food, serving burgers, waffles and chicken, gourmet burgers, and some other American sides too, as well as milkshakes and Belgian Waffles. It doesn't have a huge range, but what it has it does well. As you descend the steps into the diner itself, it's got that industrial look that most of the Northern Quarter is doing at the moment, complete with bare brick walls, wood cladding, and filament bulbs. Definitely not the Ed's Easy Diner style 50's American diner. Also, it's not a full service restaurant, but in fact a counter-service place with a dining area. The menu is simple but appetising, with some really tasty offerings and at a price that is very reasonable for Manchester City Centre, especially with some of the lunch deals available. I went to the counter and ordered the "American Boy" burger with fries and a Cherry Coke. The friendly staff member gave me a flashing/buzzing box similar to what you get when waiting for seating at big chain restaurants on a Saturday night, and said it would buzz/flash when my meal was ready for me to collect. Handy. The food was ready, and what I got was very tasty indeed. The burger, although not pink, was cooked through, but still juicy, and the trimmings were perfect, although the 'Brooklyn Sauce' built up spice pretty quickly for me, so I'd probably skip that next time. The fries were really good! Properly hot and crisp, and seasoned perfectly meaning the sachets of salt I picked up were never touched! New Yorker is a simple affair, offering good simple food when you want it, at a good price. I'd go again

not bad fast food place - low price but seem to have wait a long time if you order anything majorread more

Oh, ever-optimistic Manchester. I love how you'll boldly hold a picnic in the middle of August…read moredespite the clouds looking increasingly angry and the breeze getting somewhat nippier these past few weeks. But this isn't just any picnic. This is The Manchester Picnic. Let the rain wash over us, for we are Mancs, we always carry a cagoule. It's actually been illegal not to do so since the Gallagher brothers first came to power. Imagine my surprise when I turned towards The Triangle and saw our very own Manchester Wheel and the surrounding Wellington and Sinclair's pubs bustling with multicoloured bunting, noise, rides and... *backs away suspiciously* CHILDREN?!? Then I actually walked INTO the shopping centre itself and was greeted with the ambient, if a little lounge/bar-esque sounds of a jazz pianist doing a few pleasant cover songs while people sat at makeshift wooden benches and on picnic rugs indoors. Marvellous, really. There was action all over the city from Castlefield to Cathedral Gardens (and even a Twitnic organised via Twitter on the Sunday in Spinningfields), but perhaps the most impressive spot was Piccadilly Gardens. It was like a festival without the bands. Stall upon stall of food, the air thick with Bratwurst (which I was paranoid about having cling to my hair as I was off out later that evening, then again I was en route to meet the film buff, he loves a good sausage), and so many cuisines to choose from. Healthy soups, burgers, wraps... I wandered through, eyes gorging on the visual deliciousness, and stopped upon the Hey Little Cupcake stall. I'm such a girl. To be fair, I've been stalking these guys fervently since their ad for their pop-up shop in Spinningfields right next to Pure Gym (talk about location location location, that's GENIUS) and I have it on good authority that the selection of cupcakes I chose to take to the film buff's Blog Birthday went down a treat the following day. I'll be over to their new shop later this week to check out the treats for myself. In the meantime, long live this fab new Mancunian piece of local flavour. Ensure you're in town for the next Manchester Picnic, and hey, it certainly bridges the gap between those wintery Food and Drink festivals!

The Manchester Picnic is back!…read more So, a few times in the year, Piccadilly Gardens becomes a nice place to be. The huge bonus is that it's currently sunny - extra points for Manchester! The Manchester Picnic is an array of food stalls and local vendors, some of which will change over the 3 days, and a range of entertainment. Today, the vendors included Castro, El Kantina, Martins Bakery, and Nandos (what?) - others that I don't remember the name of were a Tibetan van, Thai food and very popular sushi offerings. Everything smelt amazing, the smoke was flying, and it was busy busy busy. I went for El Kantina today; the service was slower than I could personally bear, with only one woman actually serving and the other just standing and smiling, but we got there eventually. And what did we get to? Pig Candy. And yes, this was my lunch. Pig Candy consisted of 2 small pancakes, topped with candied bacon and cinnamon dust, with a side of cheese sauce. I'm all for mixing salty and sweet, and this combination bought my American days flooding back. It's not for the faint hearted - I have a sweet tooth, but I'm desperately craving something salty now! Treats for the office consisted of a brownie and two smartie & choc chip cookies from Martins, who seem to trade frequently at The Lowry food market, and who I would buy again from in a heartbeat. The brownie was an instant hit, squidgy and sticky to the roof of your mouth, and the cookies have a real depth of flavour. At 3 for £3, it's not to be sniffed at! I'm planning on visiting again this weekend in order to soak up the atmosphere while Manchester is on form!

Was in Manchester to visit friends and do a concert. One of my colleagues posted an article about…read morePorky Pig, and I was intrigued by the Full English in a Yorkshire, so this place was a must try for moi. It was everything I thought it would be (and then some). While I was having this breakfast, Jenna and Siobhan told me about other options, so I was back for lunch later that afternoon. And the next afternoon. Oh, and two more breakfasts. That's right! Five visits in my week in Manchester. The meats were delicious by themselves, but add in the vegetables, and gravy, and stuffing, and a Yorkshire pudding. We could do with a spot like this in Dallas!

Our city's favourite indie street food events company has now moved into a much larger venue, after…read morea successful regular stint at Runaway Brewery. To be held weekly, every Saturday from noon until 10pm, the space at Alphabet Brewery has the advantage of being completely covered over - so as the wintry days approach, both traders and punters will be kept dry! North Western Street is in the grittier part of the city, shall we say, running alongside the impressive railway arches leading to Piccadilly station. The front area outside the brewery is where you'll find the street food traders every week (there'll be 5-6 with some firm favourites on regular rotation along with guest traders appearing too). Inside the brewery itself (which is double height and spacious) you have the newly-built cash-only bar, serving Alphabet's beery wares - and soon to have guest breweries and tap takeovers. Unisex toilets and sinks are upstairs (there's a disabled toilet next to the bar). The vibrant murals on the walls are by local artist Hammo (who's also designed all of their beer cans) - check out his website: http://www.thehammo.com/ Two long rows of bench seating along with smaller tables means there's plenty of room to sit down if you get down here early enough! By mid afternoon it was truly bustling. Less than a 10 minute walk from the station, this is a must visit for locals and visitors alike.

A really great new location for GRUB and one that I hope to be hitting regularly now that it's on…read more'my side' of Manchester at Alphabet Brewery. Yes - at first you might come out of the back of Piccadilly station and wonder quite where you're headed (this area was/is the red light area of Manchester but with HS2 coming soon and this area marked for redev it is probably gonna be a trendy part of town in a decade from now) As with all the GRUB events there was great food, drink and music. Plus the atmosphere always kicks ass. On this occasion the gyoza stall and MacDaddies (mac n' cheese) went down well with our table. The Alphabet session pale at 4% and £4 a pint went down just as good. Looking like a regular place we'll be heading to now it's on each Saturday and only 5 mins walk from the station.

I visit Manchester once a year for what seems like forever. Until covid and it has been nearly 3…read moreyears. My hosts love going to this food court in the Arndale Center. It is always easy to find something. This time I saw Viet Shack. I opted for the Lemongrass Chicken Burger. Man was this tasty. Very friendly service too.

The staff here are SO nice and excited to have you as a customer!…read more The food is excellent value - £3 for a banh mih and £2.80 for a king prawn summer roll (you get two). The banh mih had the flavour I felt was missing from I Am Pho's version, really beautiful blend of sweet and tangy. I do think Amir is right about the bread though, towards the end of the sandwich its "part baked" flavour started to overwhelm the deliciousness of the filling (also that end possibly needed a bit more filling in it). Summer rolls were great, I tried the peanut sauce with chilli added as suggested, which was yum. Next time I'll try their other chilli option. Overall a great addition to Manchester's lunchtime scene and I look forward to seeing them at street food events in the near future!

Really enjoyed the vegan Sunday event here. I was surprised to find it fairly warm inside (was…read moreprepared for the arctic conditions of its former home, Alphabet Brewery) and the space is beautiful, especially the giant arched window letting on gorgeous yellowy light as the sun set in the late afternoon. Food-wise, the offerings were impressive. Oh Mei Dumpling was great, the only bummer was they vastly under-budgeted and ran out while they still had a large queue some hours before closing. Luckily I got in there quickly! Ottomen was very popular too but had a very lengthy queue, apparently they take a long time explaining the offerings to each customer to make sure they get the ideal combo which is nice customer service except for the fact that customer has had to spend 30 minutes in a queue while their friends drink elsewhere - maybe some sort of explanatory blackboard or better labelling could speed things up. Macdaddies also did an impressive vegan offering - you def wouldn't know it's not cheese. Vendor wise, the vegan pies and arancini were both great, would definitely recommend those to take away for some tasty lunches post your Sunday come down. Drinks options include a decent variety of local beers, of course local doesn't necessarily mean good and it's mostly keg here but you'll find something drinkable. They also have some fancy soft drinks of varying quality, at least they are a bit different though!

TL;DR - New venue, still the same great food, drink and vibes…read more After a few years of moving back and forth between Mayfield in summer and Fairfield Street in winter, GRUB finally has a new year round home on Redbank. This should be their permanent home for the forseeable future, all year round. The new place has a bit of a different layout, since it's based in a two storey building - downstairs has an enlarged bar and seating area, a children's play area and the toilets; upstairs is a much larger seating area plus when we were there a wine bar, cakes and a DJ. Street food vendors are located outside, in the yard at the rear. Go out back and get some food, then head back inside to get some drinks and a seat. Other than the new venue though, this is still the same GRUB we know and love. Fantastic street food from an ever changing list of vendors, great local beers, great music and a relaxed vibe - and the whole place is family and dog friendly. Oh, and I nearly forgot - everything on Sundays is vegan!

The main draw for this hot dog stand is that it isn't Burger King, KFC or McDonalds. That's…read morehonestly about all there is to it in terms of real advantage. That said, this isn't knocking the place. This, like What A Potato up the road, is a good enough place to grab some food if you're in a mad dash or the wallet/purse is feeling a bit light. This rascal is located at the bottom of Market Street and the sausages are pretty massive, meaning that you could be still eating it after doing a couple of laps of the city centre (or not if you're a greedy guts like me). Its cheap food that will fill a hole in a relatively pleasing way and definitely better than the sort of bilge thrown out by the archetypal burger van. Give 'em a try.

£1.99 happy hour deal. Hot dog and drink - can of soft drink. Proper sausages. Tastes good. Nice…read morebite to eat while out shopping

B.EAT STREET's latest venture in the Great Northern Warehouse is a variation on a pretty great…read moretheme. Many of the usual suspects were in attendance and that's slightly negative in terms of it being a bit repetitive, especially when those stalls are also restaurants, but actually the food I had was better overall than any of my previous visits: stunning buttermilk chicken burger from Coq o the North which three of us lost our shit over (we claimed it was better than Mumma Schnitzel which was controversial...) and I also was delighted with my chili brisket and sweet potato mess from Red's. No dessert stand which several members of my group found very disappointing. Normally they always have one so I would guess something fell through at the last minute. As with Friday Food Fight, there doesn't seem to be quite enough bar space/staff so you will have to queue but there are some fun cocktails (the Lynchburg Lemonade was particularly lethal) and there is a smaller bar round the corner doing stuff like cider which I'm pretty sure would have no wait at all. Also as with Friday Food Fight, the music was super fun - Shaggy, Skee-Lo etc. Although Upper Campfield Market is a very special place which I am really glad is in use, the Great Northern Warehouse is less draughty, has far better toilets, and in general a very cool and attractive space. I'm sure I'll be back and will be recommending to others.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I have endorsed B.EAT STREET and their pop up, foodie adventures…read morearound Manchester all year. This occassion, named Food Fight MCR (rather than the original name of Friday Food Fight) is situalted in Great Northern Warehouse next to the ticket office to the AMC Cinema. The concept is the same as previous events, with street food vendors from in and around Manchester coming together to whip up some of the most imaginative eats around. Some of my favourite vendors have attended most weeks - Viet Shack, Mumma Schnitzel and Piggy Smalls to name a few. You'll have to take a look at the photo's I have posted for me to explain just how good the food is here...! If you want very, VERY casual dining on a Friday or Saturday night and want to be surrounded by other people who also share their love for food, then look no further. There's plenty of seating, plenty of food and the drinks are always flowing. Just a great time to be had by all. I have managed to make my way around most of the food stalls in here - but I will always be a big fan of Food Fight.