Tender Cow at Mackie Mayor is a steakhouse counter restaurant in Northern Quarter, Manchester.
Native-breed beef counter inside Mackie Mayor. Dry-aged rump and a smashburger built around the same beef; the burger queue is the long one.
Signature dishes: Rump steak, Smashburger
Must order: The smashburger double; rump and chips if you want a fork plate.
Tip: Sit at the long table by the kitchen; the burger is faster from the bar.
Address: 1 Eagle Street, Manchester M4 5BU
Mexican counter inside Manchester's Mackie Mayor food hall. Soft corn tortillas pressed in-house, three filling options on rotation, agua fresca by jug.
Signature: Tacos, Tostadas
Order: Al pastor and birria tacos; tostadas with the daily ceviche topping for two.
Tip: Order at the counter, then find a seat at the long communal tables and they bring it across the hall.
Northern Quarter pizza-and-plates room in a converted Victorian warehouse, Manchester. Brick walls, open kitchen, sourdough pizza served all day.
Signature: Sourdough pizza, Sunday roast
Order: Wood-fired sourdough pizza; the burrata with peach in summer.
Tip: The kitchen runs to 22:00 most nights and 23:00 weekends; the bar handles cocktails after.
Eighty-cover American room on the corner of Hilton and Tariff Streets, Manchester. Northern Quarter brunch crowd from 10:00; cocktail bar runs late.
Signature: Burgers, Brunch plates
Order: Buttermilk-fried chicken sandwich and the Bloody Mary; brunch eggs on toast.
Tip: Half-price food on Mondays; brunch and lunch for a tenner most weekdays.
All-day Northern Quarter kitchen on Tib Street with a global, vegetable-led menu. Brunch through dinner; weekend tasting flight on the bar list.
Signature: Confit chickpeas on toast, Saffron turmeric chicken
Order: Confit chickpeas on toast with whipped feta; the saffron and turmeric chicken.
Tip: Brunch crowds 10:00 to 13:00; late afternoon is the calm slot for a quiet table.
Mexican counter inside Manchester's Mackie Mayor food hall. Soft corn tortillas pressed in-house, three filling options on rotation, agua fresca by jug.
Signature: Tacos, Tostadas
Order: Al pastor and birria tacos; tostadas with the daily ceviche topping for two.
Tip: Order at the counter, then find a seat at the long communal tables and they bring it across the hall.
Stockport Road neighbourhood Italian that grew from a Levenshulme market stall. Regular pizzas, regional pastas, cicchetti and weekly specials, plus Italian-leaning Sunday roasts.
Signature: Pizza Napoletana, Italian-style Sunday roast
Order: Pizza of the week; the Italian Sunday roast on a Sunday afternoon.
Tip: Twenty minutes south of Piccadilly by train; pair with a Levenshulme Market stroll on Saturdays.
Manchester branch of Will Beckett and Huw Gott's London steakhouse. Native-breed British beef dry-aged in cellar; weekday Steak and Sides at nineteen.
Signature: 35-day dry-aged rump, Lobster mac and cheese
Order: The 35-day dry-aged rump with bone-marrow gravy and triple-cooked chips.
Tip: The £19 Steak and Sides lunch runs weekdays 12:00 to 17:30; book ahead.
Northern Quarter pizza-and-plates room in a converted Victorian warehouse, Manchester. Brick walls, open kitchen, sourdough pizza served all day.
Signature: Sourdough pizza, Sunday roast
Order: Wood-fired sourdough pizza; the burrata with peach in summer.
Tip: The kitchen runs to 22:00 most nights and 23:00 weekends; the bar handles cocktails after.
Eighty-cover American room on the corner of Hilton and Tariff Streets, Manchester. Northern Quarter brunch crowd from 10:00; cocktail bar runs late.
Signature: Burgers, Brunch plates
Order: Buttermilk-fried chicken sandwich and the Bloody Mary; brunch eggs on toast.
Tip: Half-price food on Mondays; brunch and lunch for a tenner most weekdays.
All-day Northern Quarter kitchen on Tib Street with a global, vegetable-led menu. Brunch through dinner; weekend tasting flight on the bar list.
Signature: Confit chickpeas on toast, Saffron turmeric chicken
Order: Confit chickpeas on toast with whipped feta; the saffron and turmeric chicken.
Tip: Brunch crowds 10:00 to 13:00; late afternoon is the calm slot for a quiet table.
