The best places that are open on Monday in Manchester

This iconic Bavarian beer hall is good for a party almost any time, and Mondays are no exception. Their vast, theatrical space on Peter Street has long been a popular spot for brunching, lunching, boozing and dancing, complete with live music, complexly themed menus and burlesque-adjacent entertainment. So whether you’re off to a gig upstairs in the stunningly ornate Albert Hall, or you’re just craving a weeknight currywurst, Albert’s Schloss is one to add to your ‘gut für Montags’ list.

This traditional Armenian spot on Albert Square has been serving up authentic mezze and kebabs for decades. If you like fresh bread, scorched meat and slow-cooked goodness, this is the spot for you. They’ve recently had a makeover, and the restaurant is a spacious and glitzy version of itself. The food is as delicious as ever. If you’re in town on a Monday, it’s certainly one to know about.

The Blues Kitchen’s primary focus is live music across multiple floors of a historic Quay Street building. More so, the interior design speaks to a lost age of sophisticated elegance, antique tile detailing, lots of stained glass, and atmospheric Tiffany lighting, alongside dive bar relics and reclaimed pieces. And that’s just the ground floor bar, where you’ll find blues, soul, and R&B performed nightly. Whether there’s a band on or not, you can enjoy great drinks and food every day, including Mondays.

With a brewery on site and hero dishes ranging from bundo chaat to vada pav – and, of course, those renowned bhajis and okra fries – the true spirit of this place is all about throwing yourself headfirst into a banquet of small plates to share with your pals. Both Bundobust and Bundobust Brewery provide a unique and inimitable journey through bites and booze, so if you find yourself with Monday night plans, a cinema trip or gig perhaps, you could do much worse than sourcing your pre-show scran from one of the two Bundos.

Crazy Pedro’s say ‘we love to party all the time’ – arguably the understatement of the century. Hence the bar-only service, extensive range of spirits and ice cold beer with which to swill down whatever unhinged pizza creation takes your fancy. It checks out that an establishment crazy enough to invent a fried chicken and waffle pizza or a Big Mac-inspired creation would go hard on a Monday too. So if you find yourself accidentally on the party train at the start of the week, both Pedro’s on Bridge Street and in the Northern Quarter have you covered.

There’s nothing stuffy or predictable about this hotel bar and restaurant, but when the hotel is Dakota, would you expect anything less? The moody-yet-welcoming restaurant has atmosphere in spades, and the menu, which is steak-centric, is equally as stylish. Take a stool at their marble-topped bar, or in one of their lush booths and sample classic cocktails prepared by impossibly slick bartenders. And yes, even on a Monday too.

Could there be a list of Indian restaurants without a vigorous shout-out to Dishoom? Judging by the queues down the street to get a table at almost all hours of the day, we’d say not. There’s no one doing Indian brunch like these guys – the famed bacon naan must be tried at least once in your life (or for veggies, the kerjriwal chilli cheese and eggs on toast). There’s also the famous black daal, the kind of dish that remains long in the memory, and it’s all served in the sumptuous interior one of Manchester’s best-looking buildings – the old Masonic Hall on Bridge Street. Absolutely worth the wait, and on a Monday, you might even escape the queues.

A stylish hotel and restaurant around the back of Piccadilly, Ducie Street Warehouse is one of those places that solves a lot of problems. Need somewhere to work on your laptop in relative peace and comfort after 4pm? Need somewhere to grab a coffee that isn’t Pret? Need to meet someone off the train who doesn’t know the city? Ducie Street is the stylish, mid-century answer to all of these and more. And they do it on a Monday too. We’d recommend their terrace for sunny afternoons too.

El Gato Negro, the ultra stylish tapas place on King Street, is split across three floors. There’s casual charcuterie dining on the ground floor and the restaurant proper on the first floor, but it’s up on the (hopefully) sun-soaked roof where things get seriously Spanish. These culinary cats are known for their tapas: usual suspects at the top of their game alongside more contemporary creations. Grab a coveted spot in the sun and peruse the cocktail menu while looking over the hustle and bustle of King Street. It’s just really excellent tapas for any occasion, even a Monday.

Headed up by chef-patron Michael Clay, the concept of this up-market Ancoats eatery is pretty simple: source the best possible ingredients from UK producers, and keep it local when and where possible. Then create recipes that celebrate the natural quality of that stock while delivering innovative dishes. Think plates filled with imagination that play to a good sense of humour. Standouts from this award-winning kitchen include the Manchester egg with piccalilli, pig head croquettes, Devon brown crab crumpets, and the iconic, eye-catching disco cabbage. So if you’re looking to make a Monday extra special, Elnecot is one of our top picks.

Everything about Spinningfields spot Fenix is draped in theatrics. The high-end, modern Greek and Mediterranean restaurant goes in hard on all things mythological, creating highly conceptual banquets which are complimented by the impressive Mykonos-themed dining room. That said, you can enjoy their food at a fairly reasonable price if you opt for the lunch menu, which is available both at the weekend and in the week too. A culinary odyssey on a Monday? We’re more than tempted.

Fort Coffee are helping to shift the perception of Deansgate as the realm of big-boy retailers, chains and department stores. Their airy, stylish spot is tucked under Deansgate Mews, a burgeoning community of indie establishments which include Another Hand, Holy Grain, Dormouse Chocolates and The Mews. These guys are very serious about their coffee – they brew up on a Slayer, the rare and shiny sports car of the coffee machine world. And while their selection of espresso blends, single origins and hand brew methods could be overwhelming, the staff are super approachable and really know their beans – making sure you end up with the coffee you wanted, or perhaps even better. And what’s more, they’re on hand for your caffeine fix when you need it most, on Mondays.

Manchester’s beloved independent cinema and theatre HOME is an excellent spot for a high-brow excursion, made better by the fact that their food and drink is significantly better than the vast majority of gallery-adjacent cafes out there. Upstairs in the more formal restaurant space there are Neapolitan pizzas and Mediterranean sharing plates, but downstairs in the more casual cafe you can enjoy pizza, poutine and bar snacks, all while soaking in HOME’s cultured ambience and passively topping up your cool points. If it’s culture, food and drink you’re after, these guys are doing it seven days a week.

Located in what was previously a no man’s land between Altrincham Interchange and Navigation Road tram stop is Hive Stores, a beautifully restored former local shop which is now a deli, cafe and homeware store. The menu is really simple, with breakfast ciabattas, brunch sarnies and charcuterie in the evening, and the coffee and wine is as well-sourced as the decor. While many other suburban coffee spots use Monday as their opportunity for some well-deserved R&R, The Hive keeps the weekend going, choosing to close on a Tuesday instead. Head down on a Monday for a post-weekend refuel, and stock up on your all your posh store cupboard bits too, like gourmet ketchups and chilli oils.

In search of an Indian feast in the centre of town on a Monday? Indian Tiffin Room delivers. Their restaurant leans into all things street market, full of eclectic decor and colourful shipping containers, with the cornerstone of the menu being traditional Indian tiffin trays laden with different street food, but if you don’t fancy that, there are biryanis, tandoori specials and classic curries, alongside a host of Indo-Chinese delicacies too. Veggies and vegans are also well-catered for at this lively spot where old meets new.

Kala is part of chef Gary Usher’s tight-knit family of absolutely top flight restaurants, which also includes firm favourites like Didsbury’s Hispi. Their lunch special offers up two courses for a bafflingly reasonable £15 or three for £20, taking in dishes like Greek courgette fritters, chicken gyros and roasted aubergine with tahini, all served in a very smart dining room on spiffy King Street. If you’re looking for a thoroughly enjoyable lunch on a Monday, you know where to go.

Maray’s French-meets-Middle-Eastern menu lends is full of tempting mezze dishes like whipped goats cheese and cauliflower bhajis, as well as slow-cooked mains like lamb kofta and spiced lentil and rice mujadara. They’ve got a comprehensive vegan menu as well, so if you’re after a crowd-pleasing bite to eat on a Monday, we could think of few better places. And if you haven’t tried the disco cauliflower yet, what on earth are you doing?

An undisputed Instagram sensation that opened up in the heart of Chinatown in the middle of the pandemic, Pho Cue isn’t just a cheeky name and great pictures (though it is both these things) – this food is seriously special. Run by owner Cue and his family, they’ve taken traditional Vietnamese dishes and added a modern twist – with such unique offerings as their Vietnamese tacos, alongside huge pho bowls, pun and tonnes of rice and noodle dishes. Their bahn mi are outstanding, as are their salt and pepper sharing boxes. Esteemed food critic Jay Rayner of The Observer is a convert, as is pretty much anyone who stops for lunch. An excellent place, and an excellent Monday option.

Not quite all things to all people, but certainly a lot of very good things to a lot of people, The Refuge manages to blend opulence with a relaxed feel, and the occasional splash of hedonism thrown in for good measure. Their expansive space on Oxford Street is a baroque den of drinks and dinings, and whether you’re after a low-key beer or high-concept small plates, you can enjoy them here. Plus, they don’t stop on Mondays.

Rudy’s need no introduction. Quite simply, they are the big boys of Neapolitan pizza in Manchester and beyond, and if it seems like they never rest, that’s because they don’t. All of their spots from Alty to Ancoats are open from midday on a Monday. Simple-but-delicious pizzas, well-curated drinks and wine and Amalfi coast-inspired desserts. What more could you possibly want?

Hidden down a charming backstreet that feels pretty far removed from the nearby Arndale Centre, Sam’s Chop House began welcoming hungry and thirsty Mancunians in 1869, at a time when chop houses were all the rage. Popular with the well-heeled and connected, whether that’s high flying businessmen, politicians, or community leaders, the proposition was simple enough: good quality cooked meat and excellent ales. Essentially, the best of British ingredients at the time. Lucky modern-day Mancs, they haven’t stopped doing that, and are open on Mondays too.

San Carlo has been delighting the diners of Manchester since 2004, and in that time they’ve been frequented by more than their fair share of celebrity guests. The restaurant cements its cooking methods on authentic modern Italy, providing a traditional dining experience for guests, alongside incredible dishes in an upscale, contemporary setting. One of the eatery’s most popular plates is their taglioni lobster, a much-loved dish of lobster, brandy, tomato, peas and a touch of cream. And it’s all available to enjoy seven days a week, which we think is ‘molto bene’.

Sometimes it’s a Monday in Ancoats and you’re deperately in need of a refreshing schooner of Honeycomb IPA. Luckily those Seven Brothers (one for each day of the week, you might say) have you covered. Phew. The laid-back industrial space on Cutting Room Square is great for group get-togethers and al fresco beers, with some of the more imaginative craft brews around, ranging from low percentage session ales to zingy infusions which pack an alcoholic punch. There’s normally someone cool in residence in the kitchen, like sandwich conniseurs Po-Boys, too.

Opposite Manchester Central and across an ornamental pond from The Bridgewater Hall seems an unlikely spot for a modern food hall to make sense, but make sense Society does. With a short but perfectly formed list of traders including Chaat Cart, Noi Quattro and Yoki Social Table, and the beers by Hebden Bridge’s finest brewery Vocation, it’s a consistently crowd-pleasing spot for some pre-culture refreshments. And they’re open on Mondays from midday.

Specialising in fusion Chinese-modern creations, the menu at Tattu matches interior design for intricacies and captivating presentation, with the iconic blossom tree, sat in the middle of the dining room, among the stand out features inside. This is not, by any stretch of the imagination, the place for casual dining. It is the spot for handmade dim sum, stunning small plates and exquisitely conceived cocktails. And if you’re lucky enough to be in pursuit of all of the above on a Monday evening, then you’ll be glad to know they’re open.

Terrace NQ know exactly what their USP is. With entrances on both Edge Street and Thomas Street, they straddle two of the buzziest streets in the Northern Quarter, making it a mighty contender in the rooftop bar game. Downstairs it’s all craft beers, cocktails and low lighting. Head upstairs though and it opens up into a super cool, leafy outdoor space with heaps of seating. If it’s a slightly sunny Monday, there’s nowhere better to pass a few hours with a beer and a pizza, while pretending you’re in NYC.

In and among the historic boozers and late night haunts of the Northern Quarter, you might be surprised to find that fine dining is represented too. TNQ serve some of the most refined modern British food around, and have been doing for quite some time now. From beef carpaccio to crab mille feuille via monkfish and crusted cod, with plenty of premium steaks too, you can rely on TNQ for some seriously established, and elevated, Monday dining.

Fried chicken purists Yard & Coop are well-known for their exceptionally crispy buttermilk burgers and nuggets, and the seemingly endless combinations of sauce, garnishes and sides they can come with. And they’re open to satisfy your cravings, whenever in the week they occur. Their secret? Their chicken goes from farm to fork in 48 hours. It’s then coated in buttermilk, tossed in the secret recipe crumb and pressure fried, to hold in the moisture, whilst keeping a crispy crumb coating. A lesser-known fact is that Yard & Coop is that they only use halal chicken, which is another reason to visit their Edge Street spot to enjoy your fill of indulgent junk food. They’ve even swapped the obligatory pulled pork for pulled chicken.