As a rather cynical 33-year-old man, getting excited and being impressed is something that I rarely do anyway, and add to that the fact that I’m British – my emotions are very rarely challenged by much.
Cottonopolis’ Brunch though, well, there was a definite twinge of excitement and admiration when I went down last weekend for another go at their brilliant Japanese inspired brunch menu – something I can hopefully relay to you with words right now.
The whole brunch revolution has seemingly passed me by since it started a few years back; I’d personally much prefer a Bird’s Eye Potato Waffle based breakfast at around 9am on a weekend, shortly followed by two tins of Strongbow.
Everyone else who isn’t a disgusting tramp though has embraced the whole Brunch Revolution™ and subsequently, pretty much every establishment in the city offers it. I give it six months until Gregg’s start making Smashed Avo and Poached Egg pasties.
Cottonopolis though do like to do things differently, and this certainly shows with their new Brunch Menu. There’s the odd dish that you’d recognise but most of the rest are experimental, striking creations, giving brunch a welcome contemporary Japanese twist.
What am I going on about? Well let’s start off with the Duck & Eggs as an example (because that’s what we started with too). In what I would consider to be one of the greatest fry-ups I’ve ever eaten, it’s a Cottonopolis version of the Full English, complete with Duck Sausage, Duck Bacon, Confit Tomatoes and a Crispy Duck Egg perched on a slab of Sourdough.
I can’t really think of enough hyperbole to explain just how amazing this dish was – it was both a revelation in flavour but also surprisingly very familiar and homely.
The Duck Bacon was thicker than the usual pork variation and had a sweet and smoky flavour with a subtle gamey taste. The sausages were crispy on the outside and lovely and juicy in the middle – as all sausages should be and the ‘Brown Sauce’ was a brilliant addition to what is a phenomenal dish.
One dish that I think has passed the UK Brunch eating population by is Fried Chicken and Waffles. A staple among pretty much every US diner menu, it seems to be something that we’ve yet to embrace in the morning over here – leaving fried chicken for after the pub on a Friday night instead.
Cottonopolis’ Karaage Fried Chicken Waffles with Chilli Jam and Scrambled Eggs is therefore something that if I’m honest I wouldn’t usually order. But I did for 2 reasons. One was that I was pretty hungover and drinking the bottomless Bloody Mary’s that Cottonopolis were serving me put me in a serious chicken mood. Secondly, I wanted to give this often-overlooked dish a chance.
It didn’t disappoint. The chicken was coated in a tempura like batter that was light, crunchy and had a very unique, slightly spicy kick to it. Perched on top of some proper American waffles and drizzled in a brilliant Chilli Jam, this is something that you shouldn’t overlook when ordering.
If that isn’t enough, the Scrambled Eggs that came with the waffles were quite possibly the greatest I’ve ever tasted. They were phenomenal – both perfectly seasoned and creamier than an explosion in a Häagen-Dazs factory. They were worth the visit to Cottonopolis alone – they really were that good.
Sticking with the waffles, we also ordered the rather interesting Crispy Duck Leg with Yuzu Marmalade and Crispy Duck Egg. Firmly sticking with the Duck theme again, this dish was a surprisingly brilliant concoction of Asian and US flavours that came together to create a dish so moorish that I barely took a breath between mouthfuls.
I must mention the Yuzu Marmalade as a thing of beauty, adding both a lovely bit of sweetness to the salty, crispy meat but also a welcome bit of a kick from the chillies.
I know that most people pull out the old ‘saved the best til last’ trope when writing these kinds of things, but I can assure you – this next dish was the first to be devoured. Even though I’ve put it in last – we just couldn’t stop eating the Wagyu Brisket Crumpets once we had started – this is definitely the stand out of the whole menu.
Two delicately plump crumpets form the base for some phenomenal Wagyu brisket which tastes like it’s been cooked over the course of about a week – it’s literally ‘melt in the mouth’ good.
The addition of an Onion Ponzu and Sake Mustard Sauce manage to create a supremely complex range of flavours in every bite full – all coming together to create a dish which, if you don’t have while here, you might as well as not even bother turning up.
Alongside our brunch we spent £15 to make our drinks bottomless. You can choose from Prosecco, Bloody Marys, Bellini’s and Mimosas, unlimited for 1.5 hours and I must say, the service was impeccable.
Each time our server was on-the-ball with the drinks – at no point were we thirsty and, on most occasions, there was a new drink ready before we’d even finished the last. Excellent.
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Cottonopolis Brunch
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Served Saturday and Sunday from 10am – 2pm
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Cottonopolis, 16 Newton St, Manchester M1 2AE
0161 236 5144
