Best places for a girls’ night out in Manchester

Pop into the new florist on Oldham Street, The Bud and Pot, and you’ll find yourself in a speakeasy-style bar, stylishly decorated and split over several floors. From the team behind Crazy Pedro’s, Lost Cat offers a chilled atmosphere during the day serving fully loaded bagels and burgers from Eat New York, but the venue delivers on the party atmosphere come evening. The drinks menu offers something refreshingly different to the other cocktail bars in the Northern Quarter, with quirky ingredients including olive gin, hot honey and even cream cheese foam. With a live music venue upstairs, and secret cinema screenings on the rooftop sunspot, Lost Cat will keep your girl gang entertained all night.

Located on the popular Cutting Room Square in Ancoats, NAM is a bright and airy venue serving a menu of healthy Vietnamese dishes that tick off all the staples. The fresh summer rolls and steaming bowls of pho are the perfect precursor to an evening of cocktails. Flooded with natural light, the venue is distinctly modern with millennial pink menus, leafy houseplants and an inspired playlist. While NAM is predominantly a Vietnamese restaurant, it also houses a basement bar with an eclectic line-up of live acts and regular DJs – it’s probably the only venue in Manchester where you can both throw some shapes on the dancefloor and satisfy your spring roll cravings. 

Known for its class, style and sophistication, The Ivy is a girl’s night institution. Set in the heart of fancy Spinningfields, the opulent venue offers something for everyone, from British staples at the ground floor Brasserie to glamorous dishes and drinks with an Asian twist at The Ivy Asia on the second floor. With decadent decor, gemstone floors and free-flowing champagne, there’s a huge sense of occasion at The Ivy – a fantastic excuse to gather your girls, dress to the nines and lap up a night of luxury. End your evening with a drink on the Roof Garden, surrounded by foliage and firepits. 

Inspired by Californian culture, Firefly is the latest brainchild from the team behind the popular wellness space Foodwell. Health-conscious eatery by day, intimate drinking den by night, the venue comes alive from 6pm, transforming into a glam party bar which takes its cues from the nightlight scene in LA – laid-back, but still effortlessly elegant. With cocktail trees straight from your Instagram feed, a ceiling of twinkling fairy lights and a unique menu of small plates, Firefly is ideal for bringing the buzzing atmosphere to your girls night out. It also hosts a supper club combining three of our greatest girls’ night favourites – sushi, cocktails, and great music.

If you haven’t managed to jet off on that much-needed girls’ holiday just yet, The Liars Club is the next best thing. Open late into the early hours, the tiki-themed bar boasts nearly every cocktail variation under the sun, served in coconut shells and elaborate volcanoes. Hidden down a staircase underneath Crazy Pedro’s and MOJO on Bridge Street, The Liars Club offers the perfect amount of hedonism for any girls’ night, with fun decor, a reggae soundtrack and the odd flamethrower when someone orders a Zombie at the bar.

No guide to girls’ night would be complete without an honourable mention to Manchester’s very own party palace. Named after Queen Victoria’s lover, this Bavarian bar always lives up to its reputation as one of the liveliest spots in the city. There’s a free photo booth downstairs, perfect for capturing those golden memories, and a ‘Push for Prosecco’ button on every table, so there’s no excuse not to have a drink in hand. The venue itself is certainly fit for a prince, with roaring fires, beer by the tankard and an indulgent food menu, including an alpine cheese fondue. With plenty of entertainment from DJs, drag queens and cabaret acts, you’ll be dancing on the tables in no time.