Hidden under Turner Street, this subterranean café and alcohol-free bar is well worth hunting down. Go for the wholesome treats and stay for creative events spanning music, live literature and more.

Tucked just off Princess Street, Seesaw is part-café, part-workspace, part-cultural hub. What began as a group of creatives taking over a vast former warehouse has evolved into one of Manchester’s most interesting meeting points, aiming to “break down barriers between work and play”.

Ancoats’ go-to LGBTQ+ hangout, Social Refuge is more than just a café, housing a bookshop championing a platform to authors and thinkers who may not receive as much attention in mainstream bookshops.

Our new favourite café, Nibble provides extensive options for vegan and gluten-free dining and also offers wholesale catering. This includes a local gym where they supply food without refined sugar. So if you work nearby, go to your managers and get them to order the stuff in. You have no excuse.

Did someone say savoury? The new Viet Deli on Blackfriars street is a quick sandwich-lover’s dream. Serving up the best and most traditional Vietnamese bánh mì in the city. Pair that with the freshly brewed Vietnamese Egg Coffee and you will have yourself a very good day.

Start your day with a taste of Greece, delicious brunch dishes and specialty coffee at Kallos Café & Wine Bar. With the stripped back interior, European style terrace tables out the front and sat opposite the park, it feels like just the place to start a slow Saturday morning.

No alternative purpose here, just good coffee and great food. A North American brunch spot and coffee house that is absolutely swimming in its Americana flavours – and plenty of maple syrup. Their house syrup is imported directly from a specialist in Canada. It’s authentic and goes more than an extra mile to replicate its roots.

Blanconero is a sleek little coffee spot in Salford where espresso is the main event. Inspired by Italian coffee culture, it serves up seriously good brews without the fuss. It’s the kind of place where you pop in for a quick shot and end up staying for a second round.

When Eastern Bloc Records left Oldham Street to reinvent itself as a coffee shop/record shop/event space, we were pretty skeptical. Well, we were wrong! After taking a year or so to truly find their feet, E Bloc is now the nicest space to grab a cup of coffee on Stevenson Square. They’ve still got the most knowledgeable electronic music specialists selling records upstairs too.

Tucked away beneath the beautiful glass roof of Burton’s Arcade is specialist coffee shop Pot Kettle Black – vigilant against over roasting, this place presents its brews in trademark red mugs, served with a glass of water and a Viennese wafer. It’s spacious, cosy, and that little bit off the beaten track. The brunches here are good, too.