Manchester

• 

Manchester’s best museum cafés

From The Urbis to the Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester’s museums and galleries are upping the ante

The Social at Urbis
Urbis has just re-launched its Cathedral Gardens-facing café, The Social, with a lip-smacking takeaway menu alongside a new (and delicious) selection of cakes, pastries, hot food and salads. Much is made on-site, although pastries are also shipped in from the Didsbury-based Deliciously Swiss café. Hot food includes a to-die-for Laksa (a Malaysian spicy soup, £7), while The Social is particularly good for breakfasts, from organic porridge (£2) and brekkie sandwiches (such as a dry-dured bacon ciabatta, £2) to Eggs Benedict (£4.50). There’s also a good children’s selection, including kiddie-size Innocent Smoothies. Comfy sofas, bar-style window seats and very friendly staff (the nicest of the bunch) all serve to lift The Social from an average café to a really rather good one.
The Social at Urbis Cathedral Gardens, M4 3BG (605 8200/www.urbis.org.uk). Open Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat & Sun 10am-6pm (closing times vary, depending on events being run in the galleries).

Manchester Art Gallery
Manchester Art Gallery is going full-throttle for the family market and its café is a kiddie-friendly haven in the city centre. Split into two halves, the café consists of the main, clatteringly-loud canteen area and a smaller, armchair-bedecked section squished between café and shop. The adult menu features fresh soups and sandwiches, as well as a decent selection of hot meals (served between 11am-3pm only). Food errs towards the locally produced, while there is a fantastic menu of cakes, scones and pastries. The Gallery has the best food selection for kids of all those we reviewed. Alongside the lunch boxes for tots and half-portions for bigger children, healthy but child-friendly meals include a wonderful mini tofu burger (organic, naturally) and chips. Highchairs are in abundance and the café is handily close to some extremely good baby changing facilities.
Manchester Art Gallery Mosley Street, Manchester M2 3JL (235 8888/www.manchestergalleries.org). Open Tues-Sun 10am-5pm.

Café Couture at Manchester Museum
Café Muse, the Manchester Museum café formerly run by Kro, is no more. The café has undergone a complete overhaul and, thankfully, the end result is more than a match for its predecessor. As seems is now the norm for museum cafes, the emphasis here is on local produce, sustainable sources and organic ingredients. Only 100 per cent organic milk is used, for example, while Brewhaha teas (eco-friendly brews sourced from Sri Lanka) take pride of place next to the Fairtrade coffee. Bread comes from the excellent JB Richardson’s Bakery (Chorlton), while meat and fish are also sourced from Chorlton-based producers. The new owners have been canny enough to keep the breakfast and coffee deals popular with university academics: they offer take-out sausage and bacon sarnies, or their veggie equivalent, with a hot drink for a wallet-friendly £2.95. Sandwiches include the ‘wild’ sarnie (beetroot, carrot and lovage on toasted lemon bread, served with potato wedges, £5.50), while carnivores can tuck into a smoked chicken salad with grapes and pine nuts (£5.95). The café has been improved by a lick of paint and sofa-style seating, though the acoustics remain as deafening as ever. Entry is either via the museum or up a flight of steps from Oxford Road.
Café Couture at Manchester Museum 250 Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL (275 3220/www.couturemanchester.com). Open Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 10am-4pm.

The Modern Caterer at The Whitworth Art Gallery
The Modern Caterer arguably began the trend for top-notch food and drink in Manchester’s museums and galleries when it opened in the Whitworth Art Gallery in 2005. It went on to swipe two of the city’s prized Food & Drink Awards the following year (including Best Coffee Bar and Best Casual Dining Venue) and has since built up a passionate following among both gallery and food lovers. Run by Manchester’s official ‘Food Hero’ Peter Booth, the venture now has an outdoor seating area (one of the only pleasant alfresco dining spots along Oxford Road) and, as ever, concentrates on ethical and homemade produce. Soup of the day is served with bread from Chorlton’s Barbakan bakery (£3.25), while a bruschetta with beetroot and parsley comes with a substantial chunk of Mrs Kirkham’s Lancashire cheese (£4.95). The menu suits all palates, with food ranging from wraps and sandwiches to mezze and bangers ‘n’ mash. A children’s meal deal appeals to both parents and their offspring by featuring the healthy (carrot sticks with white bean purée) alongside the sticky-sweet (chocolate and walnut brownie), and is served with an activity bag. The Gallery Café doesn’t disappoint, and the Whitworth’s recent refurbishment only adds to its charm.
The Gallery Café at The Whitworth Art Gallery Oxford Road, M13 9PL (275 7497/www.whitworth.manchester.ac.uk). Open Mon-Sat 10am-4.30pm, Sun Midday-3.30pm.

• Did you find this useful? Yes No
• 

---