Freight Island

Ian Jones, Food and Drink Editor

Visit now

Freight Island

Mayfield Depot, 11 Baring St, Manchester, M1 2PY
  • Saturday12:00pm - 12:00am
  • Sunday12:00pm - 10:00pm

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Freight Island
Book now

Since opening in those crazy days of summer 2020, Freight Island has successfully transformed itself into one of the North’s most exciting urban market and entertainment spaces.

This season has seen the arrival of Ornella’s Little Kitchen, offering an intimate restaurant setting with table service, alongside other additions such as MOREJOY Chinese BBQ, Gooey’s indulgent weekend French toast, and Hello Oriental’s signature desserts. Returning house favourites include Patterson’s, Burgerism, and Mega Gyros

Additionally, Kantina Thursday is a new weekly supper club at Freight Island, spotlighting bold UK culinary talents through rotating chef residencies. Each Thursday, a £25 prix fixe menu is served communally on The Platform, with a new collaboration announced monthly.

From music to food and drink, with some awe-inspiring bookings along the way, Freight Island is a one-stop shop for all things fun.

What's on near Freight Island

Rock and Goal
Until
ActivityManchester
Rock and Goal Tour

Join Joe Feeley a Mancunian through and through, who guides you into Manchester’s two pillars of cultural excellence with his Rock and Goal tour.

From £9.99
deathcrash Press Image
MusicManchester
deathcrash at YES

Quiet introspection and cathartic eruptions – the mysterious kids in the corner of the Brixton Windmill scene bring their new album Somersaults to YES.

From £17.45
jonathan schofield giving tour
Manchester
The Kimpton Clocktower Tour

Explore the incredible history behind one of Britain’s grandest and most storied commercial buildings: Manchester’s Grade II listed Kimpton Clocktower Hotel.

From £25.00
Craft Beer Tour Around Manchester
Until
ActivityManchester
Craft Beer Tour Manchester

Join Craft Beer Tour Manchester for a journey through some of the cities best local breweries and artisanal beer serving bars. Discover the personality of Manchester’s beer through a diverse

From £45
Abel Selaocoe_Spring 2026_credit Phil Sharp_sq
Until
MusicManchester
Inspirational Artists at RNCM

The RNCM launches its second Inspirational Artists series, spotlighting a huge range of touring musicians and ensembles, each bringing something unique to the stage.

From £12.50

Where to go near Freight Island

Mayfield Park (Map location 13) - Manchester Bloomtown Map photos
Manchester
Mayfield Park

Manchester has a new green heart: The 6.5 acre Mayfield Park, complete with the largest public playground in the city.

One Star Doner Bar
Manchester
Bar or Pub
One Star Doner Bar

One Star Döner Bar is the latest addition to the fast-growing Escape To Freight Island, the exciting urban market located at Depot Mayfield.

Manchester
Music venue
The Star & Garter

The Star and Garter is a legendary Manchester pub and music venue located in a grade II listed building on Fairfield Street.

Manchester
Restaurant
Mayfield

Mayfield is about to be reborn. Innovation, audacity and imagination are in the air, as energy, ideas and life return to this neglected part of Manchester city centre.

La Clique at Depot Mayfield
Manchester
Event venue
Depot Mayfield

A former railway station now acting as a multi-purpose event space and home to various pop-up events

ABC Taproom
Manchester
Bar or Pub
ABC Taproom

ABC Taproom is part of the Alphabet Brewing Co. Open Friday and Saturday nights, go here to enjoy some of Manchester’s very best beer.

Culture Guides

A busy image created using generative AI. The image depicts a man at the centre with grey hair and rosy cheeks, surrounding him are fairies that appear to be created in his own image with multiple limbs and unique bodily proportions. Around them are hundreds of vials, microscopes and dated scientific equipment.
Exhibitions

Spring has sprung a wealth of great exhibitions in the North West, from intimate photographic shows to huge installations.

Theatre

Closer, riskier, more immediate. Our small-scale theatre picks stretch from unsettling fables about nationhood to the inner workings of a mind trying to hold itself together.

A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
Cinema in the North

There's no shortage of great films out at the moment, whether you're looking for the latest blockbuster, that hot arthouse flick fresh from Cannes or a cosy classic.

Fatoumata Diawara by Alun Be.
Music

This month’s live music picks move between ambitious new work, grassroots celebrations and a few memorable settings.

Food and Drink in the North

Spring has arrived, bringing with it al fresco dining and a rush of high-profile food and drink-related events in Manchester.

Emily Lloyd-Saini as Grace in Space and Harrie Hayes as Lieutenant Strong in Horrible Science
Family things to do in the North

Whether you’re after storybook theatre, museum wanderings or illusion-bending play spaces, there’s plenty to keep curiosity ticking through winter and beyond.