Manchester's Cool Northern Quarter

Manchester's Northern Quarter

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Smithfield Market Hall Photo - Manchester, England

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Manchester's Northern Quarter is well worth a look round even if you don't have any particular objective; you will find something to interest you before too long. No wonder the area is on UNESCO’s World Heritage Site long list. Coming from a town of grand Victorian stone buildings, the red brick splendour of Manchester's back streets are always interesting to me, and I particularly like spotting some formerly grand building now being used as a tattooist parlour and sleazy Thai Massage emporium or such like. The Northern Quarter is an area of old factory and shop buildings, with a mix of traditional terraced housing. The Northern quarter isn't a gentrified place although it has ...Read More

Manchester's Northern Quarter is well worth a look round even if you don't have any particular objective; you will find something to interest you before too long. No wonder the area is on UNESCO’s World Heritage Site long list.

Coming from a town of grand Victorian stone buildings, the red brick splendour of Manchester's back streets are always interesting to me, and I particularly like spotting some formerly grand building now being used as a tattooist parlour and sleazy Thai Massage emporium or such like. The Northern Quarter is an area of old factory and shop buildings, with a mix of traditional terraced housing.

The Northern quarter isn't a gentrified place although it has a certain cool buzz. In and amongst the stylish bars and restaurants you will find grubby sex shops, down at heel clothes shops and the clients for each rubbing shoulders with some cool handsome young dude (like me lol).

The area particularly comes to life in the evening and weekend, so a morning trip may leave you scratching your head and wondering what the fuss is as you wander amongst the graffiti strewn shuttered shops and bars. It is this mix of life, styles and wealth that particularly attracts me to the place.

The Northern Quarter is also the place for shopping for alternative or cheap items; in particular there seems to be a glut of wholesale hair product stores; perfect if you want to nip in for a bargain tub of hair wax or vat of nice shampoo at around half price you might pay for it in your own hair salon. I always focus on the book and comic shops and fairly often come back with some kind of wacky read to entertain me for a few hours; the Encyclopaedia of Russian Criminal Tattoos found its way to my home via this route.

Likewise, there is a good supply of record stores selling both obscure new music and a good range of second hand stuff. While there are few bargains to be had, at least you might well find something to interest you. I also like some of the boutique clothes shops selling great modern style clothes and shoes, albeit at a price. I always think life is so unfair; when I had the face and figure for such items I never had the money; I now live in the opposite dimension.

So, wander round the Northern Quarter with an open mind; it may not be your place, but if you are like me, you will find yourself going back on monthly trips just to explore a few more back streets or revisit some former discovery.
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Kabana

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Restaurant | "Excellent lunch time curry venue"

Samosa Photo - Kabana, Manchester, England

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I must confess that as soon as I get off the train at Manchester Piccadilly, my stomach will start to rumble; my only choice is whether to have a plate of cheese at the Marble bar, or whether to sample a curry at one of the three curry restaurants on or just off Thomas Street; a place I describe as the curry triangle.Each of the places are broadly similar simple affairs; Formica table tops, fixed plastic seats, water to drink and a simple choice of starters and mains. Prices are equally simple, and you can expect to pay £6.50 head for a couple of samosas, a top notch curry and naan bread.My current slight edge favourite of the three is the Kabana Restaurant an unassuming place ...Read More

I must confess that as soon as I get off the train at Manchester Piccadilly, my stomach will start to rumble; my only choice is whether to have a plate of cheese at the Marble bar, or whether to sample a curry at one of the three curry restaurants on or just off Thomas Street; a place I describe as the curry triangle.

Each of the places are broadly similar simple affairs; Formica table tops, fixed plastic seats, water to drink and a simple choice of starters and mains. Prices are equally simple, and you can expect to pay £6.50 head for a couple of samosas, a top notch curry and naan bread.

My current slight edge favourite of the three is the Kabana Restaurant an unassuming place just open for lunch and into early evening. It seems to be the friendliest place of the three and although probably the nearby Yadgar Cafe might just shade it on taste, the Kabana is the most comfortable.

There is a simple menu on the wall, and a list of special dishes on the table top which tend to be the meals that are ready to serve. Don't race off to your table, just order your food at the counter and wait a minute or two for it to be passed to you – there isn't a table top service here.

Likewise, if you want both starter and mains (and they certainly don't expect you to order both) just order your starter and then return to order your mains. Depending on how busy they are, they may expect payment front as you take your meal, but play that by ear.

As this is a lunchtime venue, they don't have a massive range of starters. I usually just go for veggie samosas. For mains, I can recommend the lamb Karahi but I don't forget to ask for mine off the bone. There is also a good veggie choice for main courses. The naan breads are not the best – I assume they are pre cooked and are so a little dry, so if you are fussy about your naan, I would order the chapattis. I never order restaurant rice (live with a food hygienist for 20 years and you wouldn't either), so I miss out on the house speciality – rice and 3 curries for £5.50. As this is lunchtime, the meals aren't huge but certainly are enough (particularly with a starter).

There are jugs of water and plastic glasses on the table ready for you; I've never seen any option to buy a soft drink, but I imagine they wouldn't complain if you brought in your own. Likewise, I've never seen anyone attempt to drink their own alcohol, but I imagine it would be frowned upon in this Muslim cafe.

Of course, without drinks or table service what you buy is what you pay for, so the bill is always very reasonable and approaching McDonald's prices – a real bargain for a sit down meal in Manchester's Northern Quarter.
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Member Rating 5 out of 5 on February 11, 2012

Kabana
52 Back Turner Street
Manchester, England 4 1
+44 161 8352447

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Manchester Craft Centre

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Attraction | "Great for inexpensive gift shopping, a cake and a cuppa."

Manchester Craft and Design Centre Photo - Manchester Craft Centre, Manchester, England

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One of the places I always remember to go to at Christmas is the Manchester Craft and Design Centre – it is the perfect spot to hunt down reasonably priced presents for a few of our artsy type friends. The building itself was well worth preserving, a small mainly wooden Victorian food market. Today, you can still see some of the original stall names above the doorway. I wonder what the original inhabitants would make of the luxury items on sale in their spot today! These small bespoke units make for perfect outlets for individual crafts folk, and you will spot some keeping an eye on their wares while producing the next batch to the rear of their shop. In total there are probabl...Read More

One of the places I always remember to go to at Christmas is the Manchester Craft and Design Centre – it is the perfect spot to hunt down reasonably priced presents for a few of our artsy type friends.

The building itself was well worth preserving, a small mainly wooden Victorian food market. Today, you can still see some of the original stall names above the doorway. I wonder what the original inhabitants would make of the luxury items on sale in their spot today!

These small bespoke units make for perfect outlets for individual crafts folk, and you will spot some keeping an eye on their wares while producing the next batch to the rear of their shop. In total there are probably 20 or so little units to browse through, and I can truthfully say that there isn't a poor quality shop amongst them, although not all of them are to my taste. The stores are on two levels.

The Manchester Craft and Design Centre offers the chance to browse at hand crafted Jewellery, bags, ceramics, paintings, t-shirts, interior accessories, furniture, paintings and even baby wear. The web site also advertises any forthcoming workshops, where the stall holders hold classes for the public to start being creative themselves.

One of the units I always aim for is one selling wonderful tiles and pottery with brightly coloured birds on them (Lee Page Hanson); a small tile makes a perfect unique present, and will cost less than £20. We have forgotten who we have given these to as presents in the past so dare not buy any more (apart from for ourselves!). We have also bought inexpensive but nice looking earrings for people for under £20 in the past. My sewing mad sister was happy with a small cactus shaped pin cushion as stocking filler last year.

Although we are usually too tempted by the opportunity of a cheap and tasty curry on the nearby Thomas Street, or a huge plate of cheese at the Marble Bar, we have enjoyed a cake or two and a cuppa at the Oak Street Cafe on the ground floor – you quite often find seats in the cafe so it makes for a good alternative venue if everywhere else is busy.
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Member Rating 4 out of 5 on February 11, 2012

Manchester Craft Centre
17 Oak Street
Manchester, England M4 5JD
+44 161 832 4274

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57 Thomas Street

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Restaurant | "Manchester's Marvellous Marble Bar!"

Marble Bar Photo - 57 Thomas Street, Manchester, England

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As a middle-aged lush, I have amassed a few favourite bars in various spots across the world over the last 30 years, but the Marble Bar at Thomas Street really does hit the top spot at the moment. Where else can you enjoy good locally brewed beer and the finest selection of cheeses known to humankind?It may not be a recipe for a long life, but at least I'll go tipsy and stuffed to the gills.The Marble reference comes not from the decor, but from the Marble Brewery about half a mile up the road and its home, the Marble Arch Inn. The Marble Brewery supplies the brews for this little brother in the middle of Manchester's Northern Quarter. The Marble Bar is a more intim...Read More

As a middle-aged lush, I have amassed a few favourite bars in various spots across the world over the last 30 years, but the Marble Bar at Thomas Street really does hit the top spot at the moment. Where else can you enjoy good locally brewed beer and the finest selection of cheeses known to humankind?

It may not be a recipe for a long life, but at least I'll go tipsy and stuffed to the gills.

The Marble reference comes not from the decor, but from the Marble Brewery about half a mile up the road and its home, the Marble Arch Inn. The Marble Brewery supplies the brews for this little brother in the middle of Manchester's Northern Quarter.

The Marble Bar is a more intimate affair with a large sofa grouping right by the window, and a long galley table seating about 24 people to the rear of the pub. If you are anti social, or want a serious "breaking up" chat with your significant other, this is not the place to go. The communal seating means that as often as not someone is butting into your conversation and vice versa. There is a nice spread of ages enjoying the beers, so you needn't feel out of place at the Marble Bar. In style, while it doesn't actually sell wine, it seems like a fairly stylish (if well lived in) wine bar.

The beers are available by the barrel (which are plonked on stands along the bar, and pulled direct from the barrel) or by bottle. There is a fantastic range of beers; I personally love the ginger beer and the Laguna IPA, strong USA west coast hoppy pale ale. My mother in law was saddened not to be able to buy red wine, but the helpful bar staff soon directed her to a Belgium Red Beer that wasn't a million miles away in taste (really!).

In addition to the friendly atmosphere, we are always tempted by the wonderful cheese board on offer at the Marble Bar. There is a huge range of around 24 rather special and choice cheeses on offer; 9 cheeses for around £10 is enough for 2 people with a healthy appetite. I always get lost with the ordering, so choose a couple of cheeses I really fancy and ask the bar staff to organise the rest. I am constantly amazed that the staff seem to take care in working out what cheese complements the drinks you have ordered, with their choice for your platter. The plate comes with toasted bread, biscuits and (to let the side down), cheap pickle.

Those that consider cheese to be nothing more than white death can order the meat platter. This is a choice of salami, again with enough bread to sink a battle ship, or perhaps you could order a tasty toasty of some kind. The food is fairly "fast" stuff (in fact the cheese selecting and cutting takes a while), but is tasty and perfect pub grub.
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Member Rating 5 out of 5 on February 10, 2012

57 Thomas Street
57 Thomas Street
Manchester, England M4 1NA
0161 832 0521

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Afflecks Palace

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Attraction | "Getting down wid the kids at Afflecks Palace"

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When I'm at a loose end, one of the places I gravitate towards is the lively city of Manchester just a short 45 minute train ride away from my home. I particularly like the variety of Manchester's Northern Quarter just to the north (duh!) of the city centre. I remember visiting Afflecks Palace in its heyday some 30 years ago. It was founded in 1981 in the building of a disused department store, Affleck and Brown. The building was a maze of little shops and staffs run largely by young people into alternative culture and fashion. In those days, it was a treasure trove of used clothes shops, selling a wonderful array of glitzy clothes from the 1950’s and before, and recycled b...Read More

When I'm at a loose end, one of the places I gravitate towards is the lively city of Manchester just a short 45 minute train ride away from my home. I particularly like the variety of Manchester's Northern Quarter just to the north (duh!) of the city centre.

I remember visiting Afflecks Palace in its heyday some 30 years ago. It was founded in 1981 in the building of a disused department store, Affleck and Brown. The building was a maze of little shops and staffs run largely by young people into alternative culture and fashion.

In those days, it was a treasure trove of used clothes shops, selling a wonderful array of glitzy clothes from the 1950’s and before, and recycled by the Goth kids of the day. I remember buying a pair of original 1950's Levi's there.

While the Goth style has returned (rebranded as grunge, Emo or whatever those crazy young kids like to call it these days), unfortunately, the shops on the site are to my old eyes a pale shadow of their former glory. Of course, they can't keep on selling original retro gear forever, and most of the stalls just sell modern fashion these days.

However, while I might have moved on, both in age and purchasing power, I still like having a little mooch around the place just to keep an eye on what the kids get up to these days. I like the bright alternative decor of the place; I however laugh in the face of its "oldies stay away" message.

To be honest, there is probably no need to ever leave Afflecks Palace as it has its own cafe, hair dressers, henna tattooist, nail parlour and plenty of clothes and jewellery shops.

Afflecks Palace is near the start of the Northern Quarter and is just behind Debenhams Department Store in Piccadilly Gardens. Back in 1981-2 when I originally visited, the area around the Northern Quarter wasn't particularly exciting; these days it seems that the independent spirit of Afflecks Palace is all around, and you will find lots of interesting shops, bars and restaurants in the area.

While in the early 80's my dyed orange and black hair and bleached drainpipe trousers usually got a stare or two, it's positive that todays wild children can still dress how they like and there are still places like Afflecks Palace around where they can belong.
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Member Rating 3 out of 5 on February 6, 2012

Afflecks Palace
52 Church Street
Manchester, England M4 1PW
+44 161 834 2039

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