Last week I was beyond excited to hear that a Bill’s restaurant would be opening up in my adopted hometown of Manchester. Having visited their Soho restaurant on Boxing Day last year, I was itching to go back for some delicious, no nonsense, comforting Bill’s food.
It’s situated next to Byron, just off Deansgate, and is decorated in true Bill’s style. Their restaurants have this instantly recognisable identity, with the most subtle of differences. As you can see, they have kept it true to Manchester with small touches such as the huge Manchester stamped fire alarm bell. Definitely something that’s good to see with a chain restaurant!
Anyway, the food! We went in on a Saturday lunchtime and started off the weekend in style with some alcoholic drinks (sorry not sorry). They have some nice craft beers such as Camden Pale Ale, which Mat opted for, and a lovely pink fizz, which I went for.
Diving straight into mains, I had Bill’s fish pie, which is made up of queen scallops, tiger prawns, salmon, cod, peas, baby onions and a creamy mash to top it off. I had high hopes for this dish, being a huge fish pie fan, but although delicious, it was unfortunately lacking in the quantity of some of the seafood. I counted one scallop and one tiger prawn, which was pretty disappointing, especially considering the amount of salmon and onions filling it up. The mash was on point though, creamy with a kick of English mustard.
Mat enjoyed the chipotle, coriander & lemon marinated half chicken, which came with chilli buttered corn and sweet potato fries. He found the chicken to be nice and juicy, marinated to perfection with plenty of flavour. As for the corn, we both loved this, as the chilli butter gave it an extra kick.
We finished off with a dessert of mini cinnamon doughnuts, with strawberries and chocolate dip on the side. Fluffy, fresh and filling, we demolished them in record time! Overall, a great experience at Bill’s and we can’t wait to return for some weekend brunch. The service is also top notch and our waitress was particularly helpful and chatty, which is always lovely to see.
Will you be paying Bill’s Manchester a visit?
BILL’S MANCHESTER
8-12 John Dalton Street
Manchester, M2 6JP
