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hand picked restaurants

The first Browns opened at Brighton in 1973 with one simple guiding belief, that classic food, well delivered in a stylish environment would be a recipe for success. The only thing that has changed since then is the number of Browns, now running at fourteen, of which six are in London, all prospering with the same theme.

The main menu, available throughout the day, starts with appetisers, designed for sharing, with antipasti of Italian meat, vegetarian or seafood. Try the flatbreads with a range of interesting toppings.

In amongst the thirteen starters expect to come across smoked duck, crisp noodle and cashew nut salad with red peppers, tumeric cauliflower, spring onions and a sherry vinaigrette. The fish and salad choices include fish and chips tempura battered cod with minted mushy peas and tartar sauce and pan-fried butterflied tiger prawns tossed with linguine in a tomato, coriander and chorizo sauce.

The same theme of comfortable food, well-cooked and presented, continues throughout the mains course with roast chicken breast in sour dough bread with baby spinach, tomato and mayonnaise, served with seasoned chips, and steak frites 6oz prime sirloin, served with a lemon, parsley and peppercorn butter.

The wine list is masterful and not over long, sometimes a great relief to those who find it tiresome to navigate their way through even an interesting list such as this. Many bottles are available by the glass and each group of wines is helpfully classified under headings such as white, red and rose with a reserve selection, house recommendations, New and Old World under them.

Browns at Manchester are well able to deal with groups, and have special menus to look after their particular interests. Click on their excellent Website for further details and menu changes.

It can't be every restaurant that can claim to have had an elephant as one of the star attractions at its opening, but Zouk Manchester did. Alright, so it was a baby elephant and it was on the stage not the menu, just in case anyone gets carried away in reporting this unusual event.

Zouk specialises in the traditional Asian eating experience. Located opposite the BBC building in Chester Street, off Oxford Road, Manchester it could hardly be in a better position to bring its up to date approach to an ancient and respected cuisine to a wider clientele. And as the saying is - it's BIG! 4.5 thousand square feet big to be precise, which means that some 200 covers can be accommodated using the mezzanine and al fresco options.

Manchester is a boom city with plenty of heart and a reputation for enjoyment. Zouk's contribution is going to be another cog in the wheel of pleasure in a city where they work and play hard.

A menu of extensive proportions provides opportunities for even the most exacting customer to find what they want. Add to this the use of the sigri charcoal grill, look for the S logo against menu items, and you have healthy eating with flavours fully retained and fats burned off. Many of the main ingredients will not be unfamiliar to diners, but given the distinctive Zouk touch they take on new dimensions.

Starters could include tandoori haddock, or king prawns marinated with olive oil, crushed cumin and coriander seeds. The tandoori mixed grill involves chicken imlee, seekh kebab, lamb chops and chicken drumsticks. Chicken livers are cooked on a tawa Asian griddle after being marinated with crushed chillies and lemon juice.

Asian food has always been well orientated towards vegetables, long before vegetarianism became an issue, and the paneer tikka, spicy Indian cottage cheese with herbs cooked in tandoor is one of the most attractive starters on the menu.

Cooked in a karahi bowl from the tandoori foundries of the Khyber Pass, this is Indian cooking in one of its most traditional phases, using lamb, chicken and king prawn with plenty of ginger and garlic, crushed peppercorn and cumin seeds. Zouk's steaks are marinated with special herbs, spices, served with handcut Maris potato chips and selection of garden vegetables.

Seafood features strongly, and amongst the real delicacies is sea bass, marinated with special herbs and spices and served after gently grilled over the pani sigri. Lobster thermidor is prepared out of the shell, then the whole delicious mix of succulent meat, panfried with mustard, onions, mushrooms, garlic goes back into the shell to be covered with cheese and grilled, before serving with a selection of rice and sautéed vegetables - indeed a dish fit for a king.

People of good taste are turning increasingly to a wider interpretation of what drinks complement fine Indian cooking, so whilst King Cobra, Red Storm, freshly squeezed juices and smoothies or lassis, not to mention our own much loved Black Sheep all appear, there is a sensible selection of distinctive wines that are able to blend well with the widely spread flavours of Asian cuisine.

Zouk does not stop at food and drink, so check on their Website for such events as Bollywood Nights or an Asian comedy night. And the elephant? Made it safely back home after a thoroughly enjoyable night out. Magic!

When one of the country's most respected and leading critics says that a restaurant in this group is 'the best Italian Restaurant outside London' it is time to take them seriously. Britain's love affair with Italian food is a cause célèbre of long standing and shows no signs of waning, so it is always welcome news when somewhere like San Carlo sets out to reach for the skies.

Located in the heart of Manchester, San Carlo is well suited to catch both day and night time business, and the menu reflects this. There are a wide range of dishes, plus blackboard specials, offering snacks, meals, celebrations, all in true Italian style, dishes that bring Italy into the very centre of life in the city. San Carlo is one of a chain of similar restaurants, yet each one has its own personality.

The San Carlo at Manchester has become one of the busiest restaurants in the relatively short period of time it has been around. In 2006 they won Cheshire Life Manchester Restaurant of the Year award and this demonstrates clearly that a San Carlo is not a theme restaurant but a highly lavish exclusive Italian venue for people who appreciate fine food, good service, luxurious and comfortable surroundings, as well as value for money.

Favourite dishes include sliced prime Scottish fillet of beef with a light dressing of capers, anchovies, garlic and extra virgin olive oil, and that old favourite of connoisseurs the world over, pan fried breast of chicken with white wine, mushrooms and cream sauce, garnished with asparagus. Many of the ingredients to create these dishes are imported from Italy, and it goes without saying that the wine list is unashamedly and spectacularly of the same origin.

A combination of Italian cuisine and fish has always seemed logical - all that coastline - as well as highly attractive to the British taste. The antipasti at San Carlo includes a mixture of squid, prawns and mussels, deep-fried whitebait, and scallops in white wine and garlic. Amongst the main courses expect to find grilled whole sea bass, a mixed grill of fish, special pasta with lobster, brandy, tomato, cream and peas, or giant prawn and scallops in garlic and chilli.

It is customary to look for Italian wines in such places, nor will you be disappointed, but there are a few French inclusions also, with a rather nice Chablis in evidence. House wines, and few off the list, are available by the glass. Service is a good example of that Italian 'just make yourself at home we'll look after everything' manner, when you generally surprise yourself by taking their advice. In Britain we just say 'no problem', which may be succinct, but lacks style.

Groups are welcome at San Carlo, but to preserve the balance between groups, a limit of up to nine people applies on Friday and Saturday, and twenty to thirty on weekdays. Booking will always make for security but in general the arrangements mean there is room for everybody.

Ultimately a restaurant is judged by two main factors, each dependent upon the other. Combine quality food with life's movers and shakers in attractive surroundings and you have a sure fire record for the sweet buzz of success that permeates San Carlo.

Make sure you check out their Website to bring you up to date on special events at San Carlo Manchester.

The Malmaison group of hotels has established throughout Britain a collection of centres of excellence where nothing but the best will do. As a concept alone this is exciting, but the reality is brilliant, so that at last there is a hotel group where uniformity of standards is of the same high calibre. In its time, it's been a dolls' hospital, a cotton spinners' warehouse and the Imperial Hotel.

The rooms are all that one would expect from a hotel that has genuine regard for its guests and is concerned with every aspect of their wellbeing. Stylishly decorated in red and black, there's an element of sexy sophistication with comfort levels consistently on the mark.

The brasserie is an elegant oasis, with crisp linen, spotless gleaming glassware and shining cutlery, while rich dark colours, flickering candles and intimate booth style seating accentuate the atmosphere. Lovers of seafood will be delighted to note at once that their particular needs are well heeded, starting with Port of Lancaster smoked salmon.

Head Chef Kevin Whiteford and his team use great local and seasonal produce that has been grown, harvested and reared to the finest ethical and traditional farming methods in their preparations. Tempting starters may include Goosnargh chicken liver parfait with red onion marmalade and toasted brioche; smoked ham hock with a potato and shallot salad or a refreshing salad of grilled winter vegetables.

An inspired choice is the corn-fed Goosnargh duck breast or a braised lamb shank for those seeking by this time a slightly more carnivorous approach. Which leads us neatly to the - wait for it - Mal burger, a 250 gram burger made from ground beef tucked into a floured bap to join bacon and gruyere, served with homemade relish and some fries.

Over the years the number of outriders surrounding a good honest steak has grown to unacceptable dimensions. At Malmaison the thought and care is centred on the dry-aged on the bone sirloin except for the chips. If you want all the rest go for the side dishes, but steak and chips on its own takes some beating. Vegetarians are well looked after - the pumpkin and gorgonzola filled gnocchi sounds appealing.

Heading the puddings is the sticky toffee pudding with butterscotch sauce, a triumph of timing and co-ordination, supported by other choices amongst which expect to find a raspberry crème brûlée. Their homemade ice creams and sorbets are dreamy while the renowned cheese trolley has a selection of British and French farmhouse cheeses served with an assortment of biscuits and chutney.

A well travelled wine list is a symphony of its kind, clearly compiled by an enthusiast who knows his wines well enough not to disappear into a world of hyperbole when describing them.

Their Website is a wealth of information that will, I predict, only serve to increase your resolve to make Malmaison your next stop in Manchester. It is worth noting that you can also make reservations Online on their Website.

Located in the heart of Manchester, Smoak Bar and Grill on Piccadilly offers an indulgent experience with superb grilled fare, skilled mixologists at the bar and chic interiors with cosy booths and banquettes. Housed in the Malmaison Manchester Hotel, Smoak Bar and Grill is minutes away from Manchester Piccadilly Rail Station and just a stone's throw from attractions such as the Royal Exchange and the Arndale Shopping Centre.

The à la carte menu begins with starters such as steamed gnocchi with spring onions, chestnut mushroom and parmesan shavings; chicken liver and foie gras parfait with toasted brioche and grape chutney or potted Whitby crab with deep fried oyster and sorrel potatoes also whet the appetite. There's also a raw and cured selection which includes Cornish oysters served with shallot vinegar, lemon and Tabasco; steak tartare with egg yolk and salmon gravlax with Bourbon and sour cherry.

From the Josper grill there's a choice of popular cuts including a 12 ½ oz flat iron steak; rib steak with belted galloway; whole baked lobster with glazed butter sauce and the house signature dish, a 225g burger handmade with naturally reared ground beef and served with gruyère, bacon and skinny chips. Favourites of Kansas City hot BBQ ribs with paprika frites and fried buttermilk chicken with sweetcorn pancake and romanesco sauce are equally tempting.

Other main course options could include a poached loin of lamb with a fine onion tart served with broad beans, peas and morels. Seafood lovers will rejoices in dishes such as collops of fried monkfish with smoked garlic mash potato and tarragon tomatoes or pan fried hake and chorizo risotto with clams, mussels and fennel pollen. Vegetarians are also catered for with choices that could include a vegetarian meatloaf with roasted root vegetables or spicy aubergine and goats' cheese curry.

The bar menu offers light bites of salt and pepper squid with oriental dressing; mussel and bacon chowder; Vietnamese duck salad and kung fu Josper chicken wings as well as sandwiches of pulled pork butt with coleslaw. Alternatively you could opt for the Smoak burger or hot dog served with relish, mustard and fries. There are also a number of substantial mains including traditional fish pie; Tuscan brick chicken served with sweet potatoes and Bourbon mayonnaise or the ever-popular mac and cheese. A Sunday brunch menu is also available.

To finish, consider a cheerfully decadent jam roly poly with jam syrup and custard, peach Melba with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sponge with chocolate custard or pineapple pannacotta.

The extensive drinks list offers cocktails ranging from classic martinis to contemporary favourites such as a White Cosmopolitan of lemon infused vodka with triple sec, lime juice and white cranberry juice; Vanilla Daiquiri and Pernelle which blends premium vodka, St-Germain elderflower liqueur and Poire William with fresh lemon juice topped with soda. The wine list offers a tempting selection of whites and reds including a Chenin Blanc from South Africa, a Gruner Veltliner from Austria, a Shiraz from Argentina and a Chateau Lugagnac from France.

To gain further information, just visit their extremely comprehensive Website.

The perfect getaway for locals and tourists alike, the River Bar and Restaurant at The Lowry Hotel boasts stunning contemporary interiors and views of the River Irwell. Located on Dearmans Place, it can accommodate up to 126 diners, offering them a wide selection of imaginative modern British dishes in an atmospheric setting close to landmarks such as the Arndale and Crown Square Shopping Centres, The Royal Exchange Theatre and the People's History Museum.

The seasonally changing menu uses the very best of locally sourced British produce allowing the natural flavours to shine through. Impeccable service and 5-star flair do the spectacular setting justice, more than living up to the reputed Rocco Forte name.

Dinner could begin with starters of smoked salmon with buttered soda bread, bresaola with parmesan and lemon dressing or quiche Lorraine with spinach and bacon. For a luxurious touch, the meal could be preceded by your choice of Sevruga Caviar or Beluga Caviar.
 
The main course selection could include beef stew with root vegetables, roasted rack of venison with blueberry and venison sausage served with juniper sauce and wiener schnitzel with sautéed potatoes. If you would like pasta or risotto there's choice of spaghetti with lobster, linguini in white clam sauce, spinach and ricotta ravioli and risotto of wild mushrooms.

The grill offers succulent fare of tuna steak, chicken breast, ribeye steak and côte de boeuf with choice of sauce - au poivre, bearnaisse, bordelaise, chasuer, Café De Paris butter or citrus-pepper butter, petit salad and pommes frites.

Chef's choice for the month could include starters of moules and frites with garlic butter sauce or vegetable minestrone soup with courgettes, aubergine and pasta followed by mains of classic beef bourguignon with Alsace bacon, root vegetables and red wine-Dijon mustard sauce or pan seared haddock with judion bean cassoulet and sauce vierge. A traditional Sunday lunch is also available at the River Restaurant.

Dessert of pear tarte tatin, chocolate fondant, rhum baba or New York cheesecake caps a delicious meal perfectly.

Breakfast is also served here and customers can start their day with the hearty Lowry breakfast which includes two farm eggs cooked to your liking and served with black pudding, back bacon, Lowry sausage, grilled field mushroom, grilled tomato, hash browns and baked beans as well as freshly squeezed fruit juice, cereal, pastry, tea or coffee.

The wine list offer a superb selection of bottles from around the world, carefully compiled to complement the food perfectly with such examples as Pinot Grigio Castle Ringberg, Riesling Trocken Balthasar, Fleurie Domaine Prion and Malbec Alamos Mendoza. At the River Bar enjoy a variety of exciting cocktails and other drinks as well as snacks and an afternoon tea menu.

The River Restaurant pulls out all the stops for special occasions with a separate dining room, which can comfortably seat up to 22 people, the ideal venue for your big day where elegance and good taste can indeed make all the difference. The restaurant is also happy to host larger occasions for up to 360 people, and you can expect the same well-tuned attention to detail.

To gain further information, just visit their extremely comprehensive Website.

Situated in the Harvey Nichols store in Exchange Square, with panoramic views of Manchester's skyline, The Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie has quickly become one of Manchester's leading destination dining - for its superb modern European food - and drinking venues. The Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie provides three very different venues which open independently from the main store: a formal 92 cover restaurant and a more informal 102 cover brasserie, and an adjacent stylish bar.

This top floor space encompasses a number of cutting-edge design features created by award-winning architects Lifschutz Davidson to provide a stylish environment in which to eat and drink. The mood of the Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie is dramatically transformed from day to night by an integrated lighting system using illuminated glass tanks and coloured, ceiling lighting. By day, the space takes on a cool white appearance, while at night it is transformed with more theatrical, coloured lighting.

A striking black, white and pink colour scheme with polished, black granite flooring, red 'pin cushion button' detailing on the bar, and clean white walls complements these modern design elements.

Second Floor Restaurant:

An à la carte lunch menu is served in the Second Floor Restaurant from 12.00pm until 3pm. The à la carte dinner menu is available from 6pm until 10.00pm; while afternoon tea is available between 3pm and 6 pm (5 pm on Sunday).

A Modern European menu using the finest local ingredients has been created by Head Chef Stuart Thomson. Each course carries around six choices, with starters of, say, shellfish lasagne, salad of lobster, apple and potato; pig's cheek, black pudding, pickled carrots and truffle dressing, or sweetbreads, Cheshire bacon, mushroom bhaji and onion purée.

Main courses could include Morecambe brill, pea tortellini, clam chowder and bacon foam, whilst the more traditional may feel drawn to the fillet of Cheshire beef, truffle mash and shallot purée. But for something refreshingly, in every sense, different do not lightly dismiss the compression of aubergine and red pepper, saffron risotto and balsamic jelly.

Some legendary names appear amongst the cheese selection, but with a roasted peanut parfait with rice crispy crunch and Guanaja chocolate amongst the options, it's an open field.

One of the great virtues of The Second Floor is the views from the large windows which, whilst not exactly on to open countryside, give the same sort of feeling of wellbeing that comes from riding in a well-off-the-ground 4 x 4. And that's before you even start on the pretty faultless food.

There is a separate entrance on Cateaton Street to access the Second Floor Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie, which is served by two express lifts. This allows customers the convenience of direct entry during the day and after the store has closed.

For more details please visit the Harvey Nichols Website.

Photographs - Copyright Chris Gascoigne.

Dimitris is a well-established Greek restaurant with a strong Mediterranean influence, exercising a strong hold over the contemporary café society of central Manchester. Its location at the lower end of Deansgate in a clever conversion of an airy glass and iron arcade, is inspired and tends to encourage a feeling of exhilaration before the eating and drinking even starts.

The interpretation of the cuisine is joyfully elastic and some wonderful variations on traditional dishes appear from time to time. The Greek tapas are particularly pleasing and help towards creating the right atmosphere in this buoyant restaurant.

For ease of choice, the menu is split into a number of sections, dippy, meaty, fishy, cheesy and veggy and chilli. Each dippy comes with two hot pitas, and could be taramasalata or tapenade. From the meaty selection, the char-grilled lamb chops or salt and pepper spare ribs are popular, whilst octopodi, octopus slowly cooked with onions in a red wine sauce, and mariscos, mixed seafood in a tomato and wine sauce seem to reach the parts that others may not.

The ever-popular dolmades, stuffed vine leaves with a tomato sauce, and halloumi, grilled Cypriot cheese invoke well the flavours of the region, underlining the high quality of the food throughout, while the chorizo bravas with potatoes in salsa gives the intended modern twist.

Other substantial main courses include the char-grilled lamb chops, or sirloin steak, and the kebabs of chicken, lamb, pork, fish or vegetables, served with Casablanca rice, salad and spicy sauce. Spaghetti and other favourites such as moussaka and tagine make their presence felt in the vividly designed menu while smaller portions of pasta and other dishes help children end their meal with a smile.

This is a restaurant where eating is made simple through ease of choice and food that is undemanding on the palate, leaving the challenge to come from the company and some agreeable drinking. If you like dessert wine, do not miss their Dulce de Pasas from Spain, described with some justification as liquid raisins.

Dimitris is easy to reach, with Deansgate Railway station a few minutes away and the Metrolink tram running close by. Round the corner is the Castlefield Visitors Centre.

They have a particularly comprehensive Website, with full details of their menu and all their special offers.

Bella Italia is a restaurant that pulsates with Italian style and fashion, where the day starts with breakfast, not least the Inglese, the familiar bacon, sausage, mushroom, tomato and fried or scrambled eggs and sauté potatoes with ciabatta toast so beloved of hearty eaters seeking a good start to the day, particularly when they don't have to prepare it. A vegetarian option is available, along with the bambini of sausages, tomato and scrambled egg, or a strapazzata, scrambled eggs on ciabatta toast. A cappuccino or hot chocolate offers a more gentle awakening and croissant or pastries are welcome at almost any time.

It is always worth remembering that eating Italian is a great opportunity to work away through something rather more liberating than the conventional 3 course English meal. Little and often seems to be the motto but move on to the antipasti and it's immediately obvious this is no easy task, confronted with well over a dozen dishes, not one of which you really have the heart to turn down. The selezione classica assembles a few of the favourite starters; oven baked lemon and rosemary chicken wings, spiced meatballs, calamari, mini garlic butter-filled calzoni and lightly battered courgettes served with flamed pepper and lemon herb dips.

A speck e rucola pizza, added to a traditional margherita brings together two traditions with Italian speck ham providing the second, but it is within the pasta and risotto dishes that you can adapt almost any main ingredient, as well enjoy some of Italy's most traditional treats. Who can deny a well formed spaghetti Bolognese or penne Marco Polo? And not for nothing is a nicely prepared spaghetti carbonara the preferred dish of many.

From a selection of five choices amongst the secondi many will head unerringly for controfiletto ai ferri, a 7oz sirloin steak char-grilled to preference and served with garlic butter, roast field mushrooms, fries and rocket, or the fritto misto, lightly battered prawns, cod fillet, calamari and courgette with fries and a herb lemon and caper dip.

Could anything be more appropriate than The Godfather, for 1 or 2 naturally, with nutty chocolate fudge brownies, vanilla and toffee ice cream with chocolate sauce, fresh cream and wafer curls, and rest assured the coffee will do justice to the meal.

With a wine list that makes few concessions to other countries - and why should it - good Italian food can receive an equally national baptism by wine. For further enlightenment, news about their on-line shop and special deals, a click on their lively Website will reveal all.

Located in the heart of Manchester's vibrant financial district, on the ground floor of the House of Fraser department store on Deansgate, San Carlo Cicchetti is perfect for a meal after a busy shopping trip. A stone's throw from bustling Exchange Square, you could also step in before a performance at the Royal Exchange Theatre or after taking in a move at AMC Cinemas. Cicchetti refers to the Venetian snacks or small dishes that are traditionally enjoyed with a beer or glass of wine, similar to Spanish tapas.

A striking space, with expanses of Italian marble and golden yellow furnishings, San Carlo Cicchetti offers guests a regularly changing, expertly crafted seasonal menu which features the freshest seasonal ingredients sourced directly from the best markets in Milan. Drop in for a hearty breakfast, business lunch or leisurely dinner with family and friends.

Diners could begin the day with the substantial Great Cicchetti Breakfast which offers two eggs, fried, poached or scrambled, served with streaky bacon, two Lancashire Farm pork and leek sausages, sautéed mushrooms and onions, hash brown, tomato, Bury black pudding, toast and tea or coffee. Other items on the breakfast menu include bacon sandwich, eggs Benedict, Scottish smoked salmon and scrambled eggs on toast and pancakes with blueberries and maple syrup.

The a la carte menu includes starters of crostini, with prosciutto San Daniele and Scamorza cheese or a selection of freshly made antipasti including polpette di pesce and funghi misti. You could also try fresh seasonal soups such as summer vegetable with minestrone, pea and proscuitto or Sicilian pachino tomato and basil.

Follow with house specials of carpaccio of Angus beef with parmesan and rocket or tartare of fresh tuna mixed with olive oil, French mustard, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar and wild rocket for a satisfying main course. The restaurant's choice of pasta dishes could include a luxurious ravioli lobster, or spaghettini with prawns, while rustic Italian risotto with pea and scallops will warm you up on a winter day. Alternatively, diners looking for a lighter bite could opt for fresh salads that may include prawn, crayfish and new potato; or a classic duck salad served with rocket, Melinda apples from Trentino, pancetta and balsamic vinegar.

San Carlo Cicchetti also serves a tempting afternoon tea with assorted finger sandwiches, fruit scones and pastries with your choice of tea, a cream tea with fruit scones with jam and clotted cream and your choice of English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Darjeeling or Ceylon and a champagne tea with assorted finger sandwiches, fruit scones, pastries, tea and a glass of Veuve Cliquot Brut.

Desserts of chocolate coated zabaglione flavoured ice cream; pannacotta with fresh fruit; homemade chocolate cake or a classic baked cheesecake will satisfy even the sweetest tooth.

To gain further information, just visit their extremely comprehensive Website.