Northern Quarter Bars – The Good Ones
The Northern Quarter built its reputation on independent bars and that reputation is still partly deserved. But the area has also developed a second layer of hen-party venues and tourist-trap cocktail bars in the past decade, and they’re mixed in with the originals in a way that can be confusing if you don’t know what you’re looking at. The guide below sticks to what’s worth your night.
Port Street Beer House – Port Street
The best place in the NQ to drink craft beer. Port Street has been running one of the most interesting tap selections in Manchester for years – UK and international craft, rotating regularly, with enough cask real ale to keep the traditional drinkers happy too. The staff know what they’re pouring. The bottle list is substantial. The room is pub-sized and unpretentious. Pints from around £5.50-£7 depending on what’s on. This is not a destination for cocktails or shots – it’s a destination for beer. Go on a weekday if you want space. Weekend evenings fill up quickly and it doesn’t take bookings.
Common – Edge Street
Common has been on Edge Street long enough to be an institution. Cheap-ish beer, indie/alternative crowd, no pretension. It’s the kind of place that’s exactly what it looks like – a slightly scruffy bar with good music, a basement that runs club nights, and a back courtyard that gets busy in summer. Pints from around £4.50-£5.50. Common is for people who want to drink without spending £12 per round. It’s also a decent gateway to the rest of the NQ bar scene – you can end up anywhere from here.
Cane and Grain – High Street
American-style bar with a menu of burgers and ribs alongside a long drinks list. Cane and Grain sits between a restaurant and a bar more than most places on this list – the food is genuinely decent, the drinks list covers craft beer, bourbon, and cocktails. Better than its sports-bar aesthetic might suggest. Around £5-£6 for a pint, cocktails £9-£11. Good for mixed groups where some people want to eat and others want to drink.
Soup Kitchen – Spear Street
Basement bar and club venue on Spear Street. Ground floor is a cafe by day, bar by evening; downstairs is where the nights happen. Soup Kitchen is one of the better small club venues in Manchester – the sound system is decent, the bookings are interesting (independent music and club nights rather than mainstream), and the prices are reasonable. Cover charge on club nights varies but rarely exceeds £8-£10. The bar queue can be slow when it’s busy but the drinks are fairly priced. Late licence makes this the right call when you want to keep going past midnight.
The Castle Hotel – Oldham Street
A proper pub in the middle of the NQ. The Castle Hotel does real ale, live music on weekends, and none of the nonsense that surrounds it on Oldham Street. It’s been a pub since the 1800s and the feel is accordingly old-school – tiled floors, back rooms, a function space upstairs where small bands play. Pints from around £4.20-£5.50. The Castle is the best answer to anyone who thinks the NQ has lost its soul – it hasn’t, it’s just moved away from the main drag a bit.
What to Avoid
Tib Street and the blocks immediately around Piccadilly on a Friday and Saturday night. The bars along that stretch have increasingly moved towards the stag and hen party market – £20 pitchers, fake cocktail menus, promoters on the pavement trying to drag you in. Nothing wrong with a good time but the quality drops sharply and the prices don’t. Also avoid anything with “bottomless” in the window display if you’re looking for a proper drink rather than a race to get value from a two-hour all-inclusive.
A Suggested NQ Bar Crawl
Start at Port Street Beer House (early, while you can still find a spot). Move on to The Castle Hotel for a pint in a proper pub. Head to Common for a cheaper round and to find out what’s happening that night. If it’s late and you want to keep going, Soup Kitchen downstairs. That’s a full evening without setting foot in anything you’ll regret in the morning.
