20 Stories is a modern british restaurant in Spinningfields, Manchester.
Nineteenth-floor restaurant and rooftop terrace above Hardman Square. Modern British menu against panoramic Manchester views; the bar opens later.
Signature dishes: Sustainable steaks, Coastal seafood
Must order: Sunday roast on the dining-room side; the bar terrace handles cocktails.
Tip: Book a window table; ten minutes before sunset is the slot worth holding.
Address: No 1 Spinningfields, 1 Hardman Square, Manchester M3 3EB
Mohammad Arshad opened Mughli on Manchester's Curry Mile in 1991. Family-run, focal charcoal pit, Mughlai cooking, lamb chops by the platter.
Signature: Charcoal-grilled lamb chops, Tandoori platters
Order: Charcoal lamb chops and the chargrilled paneer; finish with kulfi.
Tip: Kitchen runs to 00:30 Friday and Saturday; Sunday is family-lunch crowd from 14:00.
Indian street-food and craft-beer hall in a basement off Piccadilly. Twelve keg lines pour Bundobust's own brewery beers alongside the snack plates.
Signature: Vada pav, Okra fries, Bhel puri
Order: Vada pav with chilli butter, okra fries and a pint of Bundobust Mango Lassi sour.
Tip: All vegetarian; gluten-free options marked. Bookings rare on weekends; arrive at 17:30.
Basement dim sum in Manchester's Chinatown. No-frills round tables, har gow and siu mai by the bamboo basket, roast duck and char siu in the window.
Signature: Har gow, Siu mai, Cantonese roast meats
Order: Har gow, siu mai, char siu pork and the chiu chow dumplings.
Tip: Saturday and Sunday lunch packs out; weekday lunch is calmer and the kitchen is just as sharp.
Started as a 2014 Cotton Street pop-up in Manchester; now an AVPN-listed pizzeria. Dough ferments 24 hours, sixty seconds in the wood-fired oven.
Signature: Margherita, Diavola
Order: Margherita first, then a Diavola with Italian salami if you want heat.
Tip: Walk-in only at Ancoats; arrive by 17:30 on weekends or expect a queue running across Cutting Room Square.
Family-run Indian cafe since 1984, on Soap Street behind the Arndale. Rice-and-three counter, canteen-style, still under ten pounds a plate.
Signature: Rice and three curry, Vegetable curry
Order: Rice and three curry: pilau plus chana, saag and a meat curry.
Tip: Open 12:00 to 19:00 weekdays; takeaway queue moves fast at lunch.
P G and Lilawati Sachdev opened Lily's in 1972; pure vegetarian, family-run, packed with regulars. Best Vegetarian at the 2018 Food Festival.
Signature: Gujarati thali, South Indian dosa
Order: The Lily's thali, a daily-changing tour of Gujarati and Punjabi vegetarian plates.
Tip: Ashton-under-Lyne is twenty minutes by tram from Piccadilly; closed Monday and Tuesday.
