Northern Monk Refectory

Martin Kevill

Last Updated 28 March 2019

Northern Monk Refectory, 10 Tariff St, Manchester, M1 2FF – Visit Now

Formerly known as Kosmonaut, Northern Monk Refectory reopened in 2018 as Leeds brewer Northern Monk’s first North-West venue. Expect real ale with a variety of cask and keg lines. Much like its previous inhabitant, the decor is classy but welcoming, all wooden floors with a laid-back atmosphere and a not-too-loud soundtrack.

Honest Burger’s pop-up review:

Whenever the Mumford and Sons invite themselves to Manchester, twenty thousand people scurry over to the Arena and stand gawping with their £8 hotdogs as four sweaty men pretend to be Irish for a few hours. Why? I don’t know, but it does tell you one thing at least… Manchester loves a visitor.

We recently had the pleasure of welcoming Honest Burgers, a butchery-led, Southern favourite, renowned for its 100% British beef patties and loved for its homemade rosemary chips, which are prepared daily and go toe-to-toe with every chip that’s ever gone before them. The pop-up was in Northern Monk’s Tap Room on Tariff Street, filling the vacancy left by the Hip Hop Chip Shop and putting its much-anticipated burgers alongside Northern Monk’s vast range of quality beers.

If these burgers were genuinely honest, they’d call me fat and tell me to get a haircut

Honest Burgers started in Brixton Village and stretched out across London, before flipping its smoky big boys out of the Big Smoke and into the likes of Reading, Bristol, Cambridge and Brighton, expanding rapidly while keeping its original ethos intact. Now, with a new site opening on Bridge Street in April, the team came to Manchester for the week to say hello.

I had the Honest Burger and some Beef and Bacon Gravy. Let me just repeat that for you… Beef and Bacon Gravy. Just imagine how that tasted. If these burgers were genuinely honest, they’d call me fat and tell me to get a haircut. Thankfully, I had the only mouth at the table and with one of the best burgers in Manchester sat in front of me, it was used to great effect.

The smoked bacon and mature cheddar gripped the beef patty and it was beautifully pink inside, with a sweet crunch coming from the onion and pickled cucumber. It was just an amazing burger, sat next to some amazing chips, covered in a stunning gravy. What more can I say? Oh yeah, there’s a very good vegan burger too, with a Beyond Meat patty and vegan gouda.

Tom Barton of Honest Burgers, said: “We’re looking forward to bringing our great British burgers, homemade rosemary salted chips, and our US-inspired Tribute burger, vegan Plant burger and bacon gravy to Northern Monk and the people of Manchester.”

There’s something impressive about doing a simple burger very well and Honest Burgers can certainly make that claim

There’s something impressive about doing a simple burger very well and Honest Burgers can make that claim with confidence. The pop-up was great, but I’ve no doubt the permanent site will be a success too and there’s not long to go before it’s finally here. To quote Marcus Mumford, I will wait, I will wait for you.