Erst, Manchester restaurant review

On our increasingly regular trips to see my family up north, we’ve grown accustomed to breaking up the journey with a pitstop in Manchester.

There’s no question that it’s one of my favourite cities in the UK with its peerless craft beer scene, top notch restaurants, and effortlessly cool vibe.

This time, there was one restaurant which was erst on my list of places to visit. (Sorry, not sorry).

Located in Ancoats, Erst serves natural wine and seasonal small plates.

If that sounds like your idea of hell, then you may as well stop reading now.

Whilst it might be an increasingly well-worn hipster cliché, if handled well, then I don’t see what’s not to love about interesting wines by the glass and clever small dishes that allow you to try more of a menu.

With its vast windows and moody lighting, sitting at Erst’s bar on a dreary night with a drink in hand is the height of cosiness.

I started with a can of Track Sonoma (£6), an easy drinking pale ale with buckets of hops. Mrs G went more off piste with an excellent glass of sparkling red Lambrusco Salamino (£8) with plenty of fresh red berries. We then moved onto a corker of a skin-contact Georgian orange wine (£11.50), a smashable gamay / pinot noir blend (£6.50), and to accompany dessert, a beautifully layered and sweet Riesling Auslese (£8.50).

Whilst the wine was great, the cooking was even better. There’s clearly bags of technique which goes into Erst’s understated dishes.

A soft and pillowy flatbread (£6) was topped with umami rich beef fat which melted into the bread alongside finely diced white onion and the warmth of urfa chilli. The bread, beef and onion combo was highly reminiscent of a hamburger and I’m fully on board with elevated dishes which taste like refined junk food.

A beetroot dish (£12) is one of Erst's menu mainstays and I can see why. Fudgy, earthy and sweet long-cooked beetroot sat in a pool of creamy ajo blanco that was punctuated with vibrant green chilli. A well-judged note of acidity, which arrived with every mouthful, ensured the dish was perfectly balanced.

Deeply savoury, charred and caramelised onion petals (£12) were sat on a bed of creamy stracciatella cheese. It’s basically the same as the innards of a burrata without any of the Instagrammability of having to slice it open. The crunch of breadcrumbs and a drizzle of good quality oil completed the excellent dish.

A seasonal special of white asparagus (£18) was the only bum note of the meal. Two tips were pleasingly tender but the pair of bottoms were disappointingly woody and stringy, so much so that one remained uneaten and the other stuck between my teeth for the rest of the meal. 

Whilst the main component was a big disappointment, a creamy mussel sauce had excellent shellfish intensity and plump pickled mussels provided clarity. But at £18 for two asparagus stalks, I can't help but think it still would have represented poor value, even if it was flawless.

Things got back on track in a big way with a gloriously meaty and tender piece of skate (£21), which nudged away from its cartilage with ease and was drenched in a glossy and rich lemony butter sauce that was seasoned with the savouriness of scallop roe. Tender pink fir potatoes and saline monks beard all enhanced the lovely piece of fish.

Finally, a lamb belly skewer (£15) looked low key but turned out to be the most decadent dish of the night. The compellingly crisp-fatted, smoky and tender meat was intense on its own, but accompanied by soft and sweet mashed dates, it was a juggernaut of flavour intensity. Raw onion and flat leaf parsley played a vital role in balancing its richness.

For dessert, I lasered in on the Monbazar booze-soaked prunes. Their accompaniment was lush too, a mirrorlike panna cotta (£7) which eschewed vanilla in favour of pure creaminess.

I can see why people rave about Erst so much. With its huge flavoured small plates, cosy atmosphere and excellent wine, it’s a cracker of a restaurant.

The Details:

Address - Erst, 9 Murray St, Ancoats, Manchester M4 6HS

Web - https://www.erst-mcr.co.uk/

Telephone - 0161 547 3683

Mana, Manchester restaurant review

I’d love to visit Noma one day but it costs an absolute wedge and I’ve read a few mixed reports about their food which often sounds more interesting than delicious.

So, when I heard that a former Noma chef was cooking blindingly good food in Manchester for a sixth of the price, Mrs G and I planned a trip up north quicker than you can say “edible ant”.

Owned and run by chef Simon Martin, Mana is located in the trendy Manchester neighbourhood of Ancoats. Martin didn’t just do a couple of weeks work experience at Noma - he was a permanent chef there.

We visited Mana on a Saturday lunch when they offer an eight course tasting menu for £50. If you visit during the evening their thirteen course tasting menu will set you back £105.

Seeing Cloudwater as the only brewer of choice on the menu put me in a good mood. If you’re around the corner from one of the UK’s best breweries then why wouldn’t you make them your house beer?

During the meal I knocked back a chewy, soft and juicy IPA (£8) and an even better double dry-hopped pale ale (£8). Mrs G worked her way through the wines including a couple of glasses of apple and citrus-packed Huré Frères grower champagne (£15). 

Perched at the bar, a tribute to a mug of Bovril felt like a fittingly northern way to start the meal. A cup of mushroom and seaweed broth delivered huge savoury notes with added fragrance from a bouquet of elderflower and lemon verbena. 

The standouts of a plate of excellent charcuterie were a deeply spiced venison salami and a smoked duck prosciutto. 

A riff on a pork scratching saw a light puffed piece of skin dusted with umami-rich cep powder. 

Snacks complete, we moved to the dining room. And what a dining room it is - high ceilinged and minimal, it looks straight into a sleek open plan kitchen where you can watch the team calmly at work. 

Many of the dishes at Mana are served by the chefs with a number of plates finished table-side. It adds a performance-like quality to the meal making for some of the most fine-tuned service I’ve encountered. 

Our first proper dish bore a stronger likeness to something from Avatar than a plate of food. Nestling on the floor of a blooming forest was a crisp flatbread topped with fragrant juniper creme fraiche and a kaleidoscope of edible flowers. 

A briny oyster cooked in meaty chicken fat was a clever take on surf and turf. Wrapped in a cabbage leaf and joined by the crunch of chicken skin and savoury hit of peaso (a British miso made with peas), it reminded me of a sushi roll. 

The meal’s standout was a melt in the mouth piece of yakitori eel. The caramelised fatty fish was balanced by the sweet and savoury zing of a sticky blueberry vinegar and yeast glaze. 

 
An acidic broth of elderflower and lacto-fermented tomatoes (answers on a postcard please) was neutralised by dollops of a sweet and intense semi-dried tomato reduction. Vivid green broad beans with plenty of bite and a salty hit of caviar added extra oomph. 

 
Prior to our main course we were presented with hefty steak knives. Duped into expecting a serious hunk of meat, we were instead presented with barbecued greens which were just as meaty as a steak. Crisp and tender with a lovely lick of char, the leaves were bathed with a seriously rich and savoury combination of dehydrated scallop, beeswax paste and garlic butter. 

First rate homemade sourdough and golden cultured butter were served on the side as mop for all that ‘meaty’ goodness. 

Once again, vegetables were put front and centre for our second meat dish. A canopy of leaves covered a salad of fresh summer greens and radish bathed in a vibrant herbal dressing. 

Served on the side was the main event, an intensely flavoured and spoonably soft piece of seaweed-fed hogget to share. Dressed with a glossy mushroom glaze containing plenty of rich and meaty roasting juices, it was punctuated by the acidity of ransom capers. 

Dessert, a mini magnum, was a step up from Walls. Filled with delicately floral grilled rose ice cream and coated in milk chocolate, the kicker was a caramelised fermented rice sauce which added salty, savoury and sweet complexity. 

 
We loved Mana. Their flavour-packed food is brilliantly creative but deliciously familiar rather than challenging. It’s my favourite meal so far of 2019 and they deserve all the accolades, including that one from a certain red guide which has overlooked Manchester.

The Details:

Address - Mana, 42 Blossom St, Manchester M4 6BF

Web - https://www.manarestaurant.co.uk/

Telephone - 0161 392 7294

Bundobust, Manchester Indian street food and craft beer

There are few things I would rather do on a Saturday night than gorge myself on epic craft beer and Indian street food.

Bundobust, a trio of restaurants in Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool, serve exactly these two things. Unsurprisingly therefore they've been on the list of places I’ve wanted to visit for a very long time.

 
Their knock-out selection of craft beer on tap and can includes top UK and international breweries such as Cloudwater, Mikkeller, Finback and Boon. Whilst we waited for our table (it’s primarily no reservations) I knocked back a Cloudwater CY18 Simcoe IPA which did a good impression of thick pineapple juice and a highly neckable Northern Monk Eternal IPA. We also did extensive damage to a giant tub of spiced mixed nuts and pulses (£3).

A pair of excellent mango lassis (£2.75) were thick, tangy, fruity and not too sweet. 

Bundobust's menu of sharing street food is entirely vegetarian and well-priced with each dish weighing in between £4 and £6.50. The kitchen has pedigree too as one of the owners is from the family behind Bradford's acclaimed Prashad. Mrs G and I ordered six dishes to share and even we were nearly defeated by the quantity of food.

Okra fries (£4) were a top drawer beer snack, their crunchy chickpea batter seasoned with a moreish combination of black salt and zingy mango powder. 

Bundo chaat (£4.75) was a riot of textures. Crisp samosa pastry shards and turmeric noodles and soft potatoes and chickpeas were drenched in creamy yoghurt and sweet and tangy tamarind sauce. I found the dish a little too sweet but it was Mrs G’s favourite of the night. 

 
Gobi mushroom manchurian (£5.50) saw mushroom and cauliflower pakoras coated in an Indo-Chinese sauce with plenty of savoury soy sauce depth and potent chilli heat. 

Two generous paneer and mushroom tikka skewers (£6.50) were marinated in a big flavoured tikka massala, the pepper pieces in particular delivering a fiery hit of spice. 

Pav bhaji (£6.50) was proper comfort food. We spooned the hearty cauliflower, potato and pea curried mash onto buttery and char-licked toasted brioche. 

Finally, massala dosa (£6) saw a pair of paper thin pancakes stuffed with a mildly spiced mix of cauliflower and mashed potato. A big bowl of lentil, aubergine and bottle gourd soup was a lovely dip (even if it wasn’t meant to be). 

We had a cracking night at Bundobust. Their lovely Indian food isn’t game-changing but combined with their brilliant craft beer and buzzing atmosphere it makes for a night out with my name written all over it.

The Details:

Address - Bundobust, 61 Piccadilly, Manchester M1 2AG

Web - http://bundobust.com/manchester/

Telephone - 0161 359 6757