The Rose & Monkey Hotel

Don’t be fooled by the name, The Rose & Monkey Hotel is more than just a place to lay your head for a snooze. Rather, it’s one of the Northern Quarter‘s most vibrant live music venues-slash-self-proclaimed dive bar, injected with a fair amount of old-school pub vibes. It’s packed with Old Manchester charm and progressive punters who want something a little more authentic than another shiny bar with exposed piping.

Best of all, as summer finally looms over the horizon, it’s got one of the best beer gardens in the city. It’s huge, catches the sun during the day, has heaters for the evening, and lends itself to friendly chats with neighbouring tables. The only downer is it has to close at 11 pm so the local residents can get some kip. Fair enough. We can’t all be 24-hour party people, all the time. 

Inside, the atmosphere is exactly what you want. The weekend DJ plays all the big alternative hits from the past few decades – think Bowie, Pixies, Kate Bush. (Readers of a certain vintage who grew up going to the legendary SMILE night at the Star & Garter back in the day will feel right at home – it’s that same blend of smart, danceable indie disco anthems.)

We’re reliably informed that everyone behind the bar is in a band or doing something creative, and it feels like the punters are too. This isn’t a place for Shaz and Baz to neck blue WKD, but at the same time they’d be welcomed in for a pint – it’s not snooty or elitist. That’s largely down to the doorman, who does a fine job of setting the scene (think: friendly, but no-nonsense).

It feels like there are a million bars in the Northern Quarter, but few are like The Rose and Monkey Hotel. In fact, forget bars, this is an old-school Manchester pub in all the right ways. Think of it as a glimpse of what the city could have become minus the corporate landlords. And if you’re ever round Marple way, be sure to check out the owner’s other equally great pub, The Strines Nightingale.