I was Naked, Smelling of Rain

Gigi is a lavish Italian restaurant just off Deansgate, with 1950s décor and a menu that sticks to the classics.

Northcote’s Michelin-starred restaurant is the jewel in the crown of the Ribble Valley. We get a first look at the new autumnal menu.

Pentonbridge Inn is a Michelin-starred restaurant with rooms in north Cumbria. Eight courses of bunkum-free fine dining from head chef Chris Archer.

Dahlia Stereo is a Latin American-inspired open-fire kitchen and bar off the Northern Quarter’s Stevenson Square, with a pitch perfect soundsystem.

Manchester’s new 509-bed Fusion Students building on Deansgate opens for 2026/27 with roof terraces, a gym and karaoke booth included.

Manchester has a glut of taprooms, and Balance Brewing’s is far and away the best. Drinks, decor, service – all a cut above.

A Georgian front room in Rusholme houses Moon Grove, an independent gallery with an unusually ambitious international programme.

New Adelphi Exhibition Gallery opened in 2016, providing a permanent space to showcase the University of Salford Art Collection within the New Adelphi School of Arts and Media.

1863 offers a seven-course Lake District tasting menu that overdelivers at every turn. Cumbrian ingredients, clever ideas and classical cooking techniques.

Schofield’s could be Manchester’s most grown-up bar. Very precise drinks in an upmarket city centre venue. It’s not cheap, hey, but true class costs.

Sampa’s underground space is the perfect place to learn about both her new mind-expanding dishes and vintage sherries, reimagined for the late 2020s.

An Ai Weiwei-inspired menu at Aviva Studios’ dining space The Social, balancing East Asian small plates with a teahouse-style atmosphere.