Reviewing lunch time food and evening dining in Manchester's city centre
The Hobbit
(7 comments, 18 posts)
Posts by The Hobbit
Portland Plaice, Portland Street, Manchester
32 years ago
by The Hobbit
in Food Shops
With eight pound coins rattling round in my back pocket and seeing as Friday is the sabbath of the fish and chips faithful, I decided to venture to the aforementioned establishment after work for my weekly prayer to the mushy pea gods (pea wet being the messiah). Staring up at the menu (which was as much point as yesterday’s election). I opted for fish, chips and gravy, standard Friday fodder from my neck of the woods.
First they loaded the tray with a huge amount of decent sized chips, which made me slobber with excitement. The excitement was soon replaced with confusion as I watched them pick up a huge fish and place it on the chips, I wondered if they had forgotten about the gravy? As the chip attendant moved to the back of the shop and lifted a lid off a pan, I gazed in open mouthed horror as they poured gravy over that lovely fish, like watching Chariots of Fire, it was all happening in slow motion.
There are some things in life that you just don’t do. They aren’t written down, or passed through the generations, they are just known! You don’t eat yellow snow, you don’t pull on Superman’s cape, you don’t piss into the wind, you don’t call ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson a softarse and you NEVER EVER EVER POUR GRAVY OVER THE FISH. Taking my tray of spoilt sodden sabbath nosh, I headed back to my Apartment, bottom lip trembling with disappointment.
I sat down and opened the carton to determine as to what extent the school boy error had ruined my meal (I take that back, a school boy would not make such a bad mistake). The actual quantity of the meal surprised me, the fish was even bigger than at first glance and the portion of chips was epic.
On their own the three elements that make up this meal where excellent, the chips were cooked to perfection and lightly seasoned to add taste. The gravy was truly awesome, tasty, runny enough to soggyify your chips and thick enough to stick to your ribs (as it should). Even after gravygate the fish was also top notch, the inside was expertly cooked, sadly cannot comment on the crispy batter, but I still consumed the entire meal.
After the roller-coaster of emotions I would definitely recommend the Portland Plaice. I don’t think it be will beaten on the size of the portions (justifying the cost??? Slightly over priced in my opinion) and the quality of the product was excellent, but PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE make sure they get what you ordered right.
Boots, Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester
42 years ago
by The Hobbit
in Food Shops
Meal: Boots Meal Deal, Chicken Sandwiches, Walkers Max Chargrilled Steak Crisps and a Strawberry and Banana Innocent Smoothie
I have been putting off reviewing a Boots Meal Deal for some time now, because I find it very hard to force myself to have a boring meal, Boots meal deals are generally not bad, but they are not that good either, today I decided to take one for the team.
Having walked into the store with and air of disappointment already hanging over me like a cloud, my mood soon brightened when, to my surprise many of sandwiches were ‘Triples’, with different fillings in each, WAHOO.
Feeling clucky I went with the chicken triple. The bacon sandwich was edible but the bacon was a combination of over crispified in parts with a mild front of mayo sogginess in majority of other areas, disappointing overall. The salad and chicken sandwich was better, all the salad filling was fresh and tasty but it seems the lettuce was seasoned with a essence of soil, again letting down the sandwich.
Spotting the cloud of disappointment reappearing on the horizon I started on the final chicken and stuffing sandwich and I have to say the cloud quickly dispersed. The chicken was perfectly cooked and the stuffing was as near perfection as you will get on a sandwich from a shop, only getting better if you raid the fridge on a boxing day morning for a leftover breakfast (don’t shake your head, we have all done it).
Overall the sandwiches were respectable, the chicken was excellent, only some of the ingredients of the meal let it down, with the size innocent smoothie working against the overall rating, luckily the crisps counter acted this.
Go, Arndale Centre, Manchester
02 years ago
by The Hobbit
in Food Shops
Meal: Large Beef Baguette, with Cheese and Salad.
Having become fed up with the so called “quality baguette’s” from other unnamed establishments (you know who you are), I decided to give “Go” a go (wake me up before you go go). They offer a large option for their baguette’s which is right up my street; combined with the “build your own” ethos I was anticipating a high standard of sandwich.
I decided to give the beef a try. In my opinion choosing a beef based meal at these types of places sorts the men out from the boys (or cow’s from the calves). It was surprisingly tender and easy to chew for a cold piece of beef, but lacked a bit of taste for my palette, a pinch of salt could have worked wonders. The baguette itself was excellent, crusty but not too much to give you jaw ache and tasted like proper bread (instead of drying wall paper paste like other places), the salad was also nice and fresh.
The decor was quite funky and the place seemed to be kept very clean and tidy, it could have been a cool little place to eat lunch. Sadly it is situated on one of the main walk ways of the Arndale Centre, with some of the tables very exposed. With all the troglodytes that amble through dragging their knuckles, this could certainly put you off the quality food on offer; I recommend the take out option.
I would definitely recommend Go for the quality and cost compared to other places, sadly the location isn’t ideal, I will be going back to try one of their pizza’s.
Philpotts, King Street, Manchester
02 years ago
Meal: Cumberland Sausage & Egg on Brown Toast
As a matter of principle I would normally avoid Philpotts, they rob you blind for the sandwiches, the till-tender should be wearing a mask pointing a gun at you whilst you are paying. On this occasion, with my cupboards bare and a case of the early morning munchies I decided to give Philpotts a try (it is in the same building I work in after all so convenience was key).
After three minutes of walking round in a daze trying to find the tiny breakfast menu I finally succeeded in locating it and was happy with the choices on offer. I decided to plump for the Cumberland sausage and egg on brown toast (Healthy option!). Impressed that they actually cooked everything apart from the sausages there and then.
The breakfast was excellent, the bread was nicely toasted, eggs cooked to perfection with plenty of brown sauce. The only thing let that the meal down was the Cumberland sausages (which I think were just regular sausages) that were over cooked and had been sat out under the heat lamps too long.
This particular Philpotts was a nice place to eat the meal, quiet and calm atmosphere and the staff were helpful enough.
Overall there are other places that do better breakfast meals for the price, but it has changed my opinion of Philpotts slightly. The meal was very satisfactory for the price.
No.1 Oriental Buffet, Whitworth Street West, Manchester
42 years ago
by The Hobbit
in Restaurants
Meal: All you can eat oriental buffet
Having sampled various “All You Can Eat” buffets, many of the oriental persuasion, I was wary off this place. Past experiences have taught me that the food is pretty average and fills you up incredibly quickly because of all the cornflower these types of places pour into the grub.
I can honestly say I was pleasantly surprised at the quality and variety that was available, I even tried TWO (count them TWO, unless its meat based I steer well clear) VEGETARIAN options because they looked so appealing and I thoroughly enjoyed them. They offered a wide variety of main meals and starters, which were well cooked and didn’t seem to have been sat there all morning. All the main meals on offer had massive amounts of meat and veg with the correct amount of sauce. Some AYCE places the dishes are swimming in the sauce and you need a fishing net, waders, and an underwater sonar to find the beef/chicken, but not this fine establishment.
The overall ambience of the place was a little 70′s seaside restaurant/fish bar for me with no atmosphere at all, although it was clean and tidy and the staff were pleasant, attentive and helpful.
Overall you cannot argue with the quantity and variety on offer and all the dished were more than edible, some even really pleasing. For £5.90 it’s a freakin’ steal and would definitely recommend it over other AYCE’s.
Giovannis Deli, New York Street, Manchester
02 years ago
Meal: Hot Big Beef Panini (Beef, mushrooms and cheese)
I expectted a lot from this meal and ordered with anticipation and excitement, oh how wrong I was. Although the panini was hot and of a substantial size to quench your appetite for the afternoon, the beef was over cooked and had become rubbery making it hard to chew. The cheese and mushrooms were a nice touch which gave the meal added taste if a little greasy.
The service was good and the staff were pleasant enough. You can see the food being prepared which is always a thumbs up in my book and the surrounding are nice if you would like to eat in.
I would recommeded a hot panini from Giovannis, due to the size and variety, but stay clear of the beef!
Rustica, Hilton Street
22 years ago
by The Hobbit
in Food Shops
If you’re looking for a traditional breakfast menu, then look no further. Excellent quality food that can cater for any size of appetite.
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