New restaurants in Manchester

Popular Italian pasta kitchen, Sugo, has been on the scene now since 2016, and has since opened a second restaurant in 2017. They describe themselves as ridiculously passionate and obsessive about making Italian food exciting once again. No more of your bog standard spag bols or margarita pizzas on offer here. With sites in Ancoats, Manchester City Centre, and the trendy suburb of Altrincham, Sugo has been voted restaurant of the year, and it’s easy to see why. The quaint eateries are packed full every night, no matter what time you go, and with a specials board that changes regularly, as well as a traditional wine menu, the popularity of these places is just growing. A lot of people don’t get the appeal of Italian food, but done right, it can rival what you would find in Italy; and with chefs from the land of the carbs (the real name, honestly… look it up) or Southern Italy to be exact, you know you’re going to be eating something authentic and delicious.

Situated about 5 miles outside of Manchester, The Oystercatcher has made its way to the quirky area of Chorlton, which has been described as a city outside the city. A hop, skip and a jump away (or more like a 15-minute tram journey) and you’ll find yourself amongst the hip, young area itself. Their ethos is short and sweet – bringing fresh, seasonal fish and seafood to the heart of Chorlton, and they do that ridiculously well. Their menu changes weekly dependent on what is both fresh and seasonal, meaning you could have something different every time you visit. With classics seafood dishes such as salt and pepper squid, grilled sardines and crab cakes, you’ll also find quaint delicacies such as tandoori monkfish and red tiger prawns or crab ravioli.

It’s not often that you’ll find a place offering just Portuguese cuisine, and it was definitely missing from the Manchester dining scene. A sister restaurant to popular Spanish eatery, El Gato Negro, Canto opened in 2018, and has been a prevalent member of Ancoat’s offering. Their aim is to showcase the best fishes and rinks from across the whole of Portugal in a relaxed, casual setting. They use the freshest and finest season ingredients to create modern, Portuguese-inspired tapas-style places and larger sharing platters for more to enjoy. The head chef, Carlos Gomes, was born in Porto, and has worked in a number of Michelin-starred restaurants before he set up Canto. His ambition is to bring the flavours of Portugal to a new audience as it is often a style of food which is overlooked in favour of Spanish, but Canto has hit the ground running and we can’t wait to see what is next for them.