Reviewing lunch time food and evening dining in Manchester's city centre
Posts by Gavlar
SPAR – City Tower, Piccadilly Plaza
01 year ago
by Gavlar
in Food Shops
As most of you that have read my reviews know, I am a great admirer of the meal deal from SPAR, this (sometimes expensive) convenience store is not normally my first choice for shopping establishments but since the City Tower chapter opened I have been converted (only at lunchtimes mind!).
The meal deal they provide is a perfect lunchtime filler at the standard price of £3
My last review of SPAR was for a wrap, and while the wraps were my preferred choice when it came to the SPAR meal deal, I have been seduced by the slightly more healthy* option of the pasta salad.
So, my meal choice of the last few weeks, and my reason for lack of reviews recently, has been the Honey and Mustard Chicken Pasta, Vimto and Mini Cheddars, and will be what I am reviewing today. As with my previous reviews, the drink and crisps come as standard so don’t want to focus on them as they taste the same regardless of where they are purchased.
The main part of the meal, is without a doubt, wonderful. You have to dig around for one that has a decent ratio of chicken to pasta but most of them (check at the back) are perfect. the pasta is cooked perfectly and the sweetcorn/peppers mix beautifully into it. The chicken isn’t amazing and is a bit on the thin side but is actual chicken and not some processed concoction you get from some takeaways. The whole thing is drizzled in a very nice honey/mustard dressing and finishes the dish off perfectly. I do advice giving the packet a shake before opening to get the dressing suitably covered over all the pasta, as it seems to settle a bit on the shelf. (Note: this does cover the provided fork in dressing so a napkin is required for a quick wipe).
As its pasta, it does tend to fill you up a bit more and I have sometimes found I leave the crisps for a later snack as am usually a bit full after I have washed everything down with a bit of Vimto, but I suppose I could always swap the crisps for some chocolate as allowed by the meal deal but then I do like having a snack in the afternoons 
* Health benefit claim is not based on any actual facts or figures just speculation and rumour
Baguette Express, Mosley Street
21 year ago
Meal: Jacket Potato with tuna mayo, Walkers Crisps and a can of Irn-Bru
There has been a lot of fuss in the office the last couple of days over this new found eatery, A big step up from the likes of Subway in terms of quality of food and customer service, with the bonus of a huge menu (not just baguettes!).
In the interests of comparison, I decided to go for the baked potato with tuna, as this is what I ordered recently at a similar style of eatery down the road. I wanted to see how it compared to another local dish as well as how it favoured my own palate.
So the fight is on…. Baguette Express, Mosley Street Vs Giovannis Deli, New York Street
The potato was cooked to perfection, crispy skin… fluffy potato innards with lashings of tuna and mayonnaise. the crisps and drink were from popular well known brands so not much to say on that front. The only problem I can think of was that the tuna mayo tasted like it was missing something… At Giovannis this was mixed with some chopped peppers and onion to add a little extra crunch but this was just plain tuna and mayo.
In terms of price, Baguette Express wins hands down, while I took advantage of a “2 dine for £4.99″ meal deal, the normal deal is a main, snack and drink for £3, so it fits in nicely with the standard £3 meal deal floating around town at the minute. At Giovannis it was £2.50, just for the meal but as I said it did add that little extra which I think is worth the extra price.
I didn’t eat in, but there is ample room if I did, there is the standard stool/table combination by the front window, with a comfortable looking sofa area between that and the counter area, and then a magical spiral stairway up to a mezzanine level which wonders I did not get to see, but the murmur of happy patrons above suggests it was a reasonable place to munch your manc lunch (see what I did there….).
All in all… I really enjoyed this meal and at a very reasonable price, I shall definitely be going again, will I buy the potato again? hmmm not sure, probably not with tuna as it didn’t do it for me, but with a wide range of other toppings available I will probably be getting it at least once more.
Subway, Mosley Street
81 year ago
by Gavlar
in Fast Food Chains
Meal: Foot-long Steak and Cheese, w/ lettuce, tomato and mayo (no drink or snack)
I was actually a little disappointed with my lunch today, its been a while since I last visited Subway and I think its going to be another while before I do again. The steak was chewy and tasted a little bland and the bun was over toasted to the point it started to disintegrate when I picked it up. At over £5 for just the sandwich, I actually feel a little robbed! The only upside to this disaster of a lunch was that the lettuce and tomato was fresh and very enjoyable, but if I wanted a tasty salad, I would have ordered one.
I could probably put this down to the lunchtime rush as it was a little busy in there and had to queue for 5 mins or so before I made my order but that’s not an excuse for rushing and spoiling a customers meal.
Giovannis Deli, New York Street
11 year ago
Meal: Baked Potato with Tuna Mix and Cheese
Having only ever had a breakfast barm from Giovannis I looked forward to sampling their main menu.
I opted for a baked potato with tuna mix and cheese, the mix involved chopped pepper and onion.
The meal was very nice indeed, the potato was cooked just how I liked with a slight crisp to the skin while still soft and fluffy in the middle. The tuna mix was equally nice and the grated cheddar cheese topped it off nicely, although there was quite a lot of it.
A thoroughly enjoyable meal and I would definitely recommend it and have it again.
SPAR – City Tower, Piccadilly Gardens
31 year ago
by Gavlar
in Food Shops
Meal: SPAR Meal Deal – Chicken Tikka Wrap, Mini Cheddars and Bottle of Vimto
Im actually very impressed with the SPAR meal deal, Any sandwich,wrap or pasta salad + any drink + any snack, all for a very reasonable price.
Its in direct competition with the Boots meal deal in terms of quantity and price, but far surpasses it in terms of quality.
I have marked it down on ambiance as after all its a SPAR not the Savoy and the checkout staff weren’t very helpful or friendly (I had to ask for a carrier bag)
Overall not too shabby and I really enjoyed my tikka wrap.
Rice – Piccadilly Gardens
01 year ago
by Gavlar
in Fast Food Chains
Meal: American BBQ Chicken (minus mushrooms)
The chicken is combined with peppers, noodles and baby sweetcorn mixed with a nicely cooked egg-fried rice covered in a tangy-sweet bbq sauce.
I’ve had this meal a few times now and it has to be my favourite meal from Rice. I order the meal without mushrooms as Im not a fan of the fungi.
This meal is a perfect stomach filler and wont leave you wanting more, the price is a little high for a mid-week lunch, £5.99 but as I said it does fill you up and tastes amazing so is worth it as a one off every now and again.
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