I've been to Eat. a few times now and it's usually when I'm rushing through the arndale at lunch…read moretime and need to grab something quick. Today was one of those days and on my way back to the office I picked up a baguette, a small soup, some grapes and apple juice and a yoghurt. The lunch was over £10 which is pretty expensive for lunch but it's a lot of food. I find there's always a good selection of sandwiches, wraps, flatbreads, salads and soups as well as some hot options prepared behind the counter.

I've always been a fan of Eat. I used to work just opposite one last year and therefore every…read morelunchtime I would pop over for something to munch on. It was always good during the winter because they do these huge big soups, different ones each day and they're so tasty and warm, just what you need for a winters afternoon in Manchester. I wandered in here today around 8am as I realised I'd never had breakfast at Eat despite always looking at it on the menu board longingly! I went for the Eggs Benedict, inexpensive at £2, it was small but very satisfying, just what you need in the morning. As I was ordering I was impressed by Eat's range of hot food on offer, the breakfast was a range of different muffins but lots of them including good vegetarian options, the weeks soup menu was available to look at and I was impressed with the new additions since my last visit including Thai Green Chicken Curry and Chorizo and Chickpea. One really good thing about Eat is the vast vegetarian selection, they offer two soups everyday and one of them is always veggie. They have a range of breads on offer to go with your soup, these are served in 'wedges' complete with butter, my favourite is the soda bread...mmm! Other than the soups they also serve hot pies which always look amazing but I've never had one yet...I may end up back here for lunch at this rate though so watch this space! Eat also serve a range of hot drinks, sandwiches, cakes and desserts, long story short...check it out!

The leading independent sandwich chain!! Found in the thriving lunch time highway of Portland…read morestreet phil potts is a bit more sophisticated then your standard issue cheese and pickle sarnie. Trying to think how many fillings and combinations is like trying to calculate the amount of stars in the universe (1024 according to the all powerful google), but it's all a tad on the special side which is nice. So imagine replicating a ham sandwich for a Mediterranean tuna sandwich and your getting there. But all this specialness doesn't come cheap, with sandwiches beginning around the £4 mark it is maybe okay just for once or if your feeling crazy twice a week. Additionally there's not masses of seating which is a shame as the place is quite cosy. But on the whole, if your feeling classy head here.

Philpotts is like the anti-Subway. Yes, it's a chain, yes, you get sandwiches made right in front…read moreof you... where exactly am I going with this... Let's start again. If you're going to pick a sandwich chain, Philpotts is a great bet. They're based in Chester which in my book makes them entirely Mancunian... well not quite but they're at least Greater Mancunian, and it's a small chain. You sure as heck won't find one on every street corner, although you'll find five in Manchester. This Brazennose Street offering (remember how much I like Brazennose Street, remember, and not just because of its strange name) has everything you could want in store, from grab and go sandwiches to gourmet soups, cakes and puddings to piping hot coffee, and, well, wouldn't you know it, sandwiches made to order. Just exactly what you fancy. I find this confusing as I'm rubbish with a large variety of choice, but I know that you real proper people will find that just stunning. I myself prefer to take a template and add some of my own accessories. I need at least a base sandwich to start with. Just like with pizza. But the BF is the exact opposite and relishes in 'making his own', so this is perfect for those types. As you'd imagine the office crowd love this place at lunchtime so get there early to avoid disappointment. Plus there are all sorts of seasonal specials, with three exclusive offers to choose from each day. Philpotts also provide catering and business lunches with sandwich platters and made to order items. As chains go, this is certainly a superb choice. Praise be to Philpotts.

This is a small sandwich shop on Swan Street, just on the edge of the Northern Quarter. They have a…read moregreat menu that's got loads of options all based around sandwiches, paninis, omelettes and jacket potatoes. You'll be looking at around £2 for a sandwich or potato with filling. Cygnet Sandwich Bar's ingredients are always fresh and there's a great range of salads to add to your saindwich. It's all made to order. There's a few nice little extras available too, like hard boiled eggs. Yum! If it's an all day breakfast you want, they do one here for a fairly standard £4. It took me quite a while to get served because the guy behind the counter was busy chatting to a friend. I really dislike it when people choose to carry on whatever conversation they're having rather than serving a customer. Dull.

I really like this sandwich bar. Its so much better than Subway! I hate the way Subway has been…read moreslowly proliferating across Manchester, pumping out the smell of tasty but incredibly unhealthy sandwiches into the streets of the city. This sandwich bar, like a few other pioneering sandwicheries in Manchester, serves good, large sandwiches with fresh healthy ingredients for a couple of quit. This one is not quite as good as the Fruit & Nut sandwich bar in the university precinct on Oxford Road but its still pretty good, and is the best in the area.

This is a nice Pret A Manger location, on the corner of Oxford Street, a couple of minutes away…read morefrom Central Library and the Town Hall, it's pretty much your average Pret A Manger, food and coffee, catered more towards the "to-go" market, but with some seating options and friendly staff. I came in to grab some soup, like most Pret stores the selection is fairly good, with both veggie and meat options, there are generally 3-4 soups, on this occasion, I opted for the Pea and Mint soup, the flavours of the soup was fantastic, it was full of fresh and healthy goodness, feeling a little under the weather, it certainly did me a lot of good. I did find there were way too many peas floating in the soup, and I did have to pick a couple out, however. The store is clean, tidy and looks fairly nice, there is bar-style seating in the window, which I like as you can watch the world around you in a busy corner of Manchester. As mentioned, the staff always seem super friendly and happy to help, they seem genuinely happy to be there, which is a huge positive. I do find 5 PM closing a little early, but there are other Pret stores open around the city, and with a big target market being city workers getting coffee/lunch on their way to the office, it is understandable they feel the need to close early, even if it isn't ideal for my routine. 4*

I think Pret a Manger is a great place if you are after healthier but not boring lunch options…read more They have a range or really interesting tasty and nutritious salads, featuring trendy ingredients such as quinoa and avocado. They change the selection daily, so you won't get bored. Hot options are available too, such as soups and rice pots. Drink prices are average for this kind of food chains, about 1.70 for a cup of tea. Take-away will save you a couple of pounds compared to eating in. My only reservation is that there might not be enough seats if you are eating during peak hours and want to eat in, but it doesn't make the food less tasty;)

Had a really good breakfast takeaway at a reasonable price. Not the biggest inside but a nice…read moreatmosphere.

Crazy cow cafe is great for breakfast and lunch. I used to come in here for my lunchtime sandwich…read moreto take away or occasionally sit in for a hot chocolate or coffee. They also do great burgers and fries too, and everything is so cheap! I'm not a massive social networker, but I do have to give Crazy Cow two big thumbs up for signing up to twitter to promote their daily specials to their regulars. Genius! Last week: Cumberland sausage, Fried Onion and tomato chutney Baguette £3.95 Yesterday: Spicy lentil and tomato soup £1.50 Today: Bangers and mash served with peas and red onion gravy £3.95. I'm there!!!

A handy place for a non-alcoholic pit stop in the Spinningfields area of Manchester city centre…read more Pret cakes and sandwiches always taste deliciously fresh. I had a double berry muffin which was delicious but maybe a little too much berry content made it a bit soggy. My dining companion had a nice festive mince pie, which was good but very crumbly making it a challenge to eat. One pet hate is the use of take out cups when staying in. Come on Pret - get some decent cups!!

This Pret is just fine and dandy. It's walking distance from my office, far enough for me to…read morestretch my legs but close enough to not become a pain. Watching all the non-working folk flock to Spinningfields on a sunny day is one of the most depressing (first world, Manchester based) problems ever. It's packed at lunchtime, so be prepared. There's always a bit of a queue, but these workers know how to move it along. Step up, hand your items over, pay, leave. It's all done in a friendly manner but don't expect chit-chat. The sesame chicken noodle salad is delicious, though comes with a tonne of unnecessary lettuce, and the halloumi/red pepper toastie is a real stand out, served with spinach and harissa creme fraiche. Chains, as ever, aren't the most inspiring places to eat but, when you're hungry and working hard, you just want some food. A positive example in a saturated field.

This place has been taken over recently and being conveniently located two minutes from the office…read moreit was only a matter of time before I gave it a go! Having not been the first to brave the new food it was after my friends who came in once lunch with a rice and chicken combo that smelt great! I opted to go all out one Friday and went for the chicken and rice - there is a couple of hot choices including meatballs and a curry. The guys behind the counter are attentive however not so great at explaining what each dish is - so its a leap of faith! Whilst waiting to pay I also realised they had some delicious looking flatbreads and added that to my order before paying and heading back to the office with my polystyrene box of goodness! The chicken and rice were super tasty - although on first sight it looks like it could be dry with a little amount of sauce but I was so wrong! The sweet chilli kick is a good blend of flavours too. The box is set out so you have an option for salad and other extras for me it was some green beans in garlic which wasn't too overpowering. The flatbread was also yummy if not slightly over cheesy having said that though I was already stuffed from the rice and chicken! I'm not sure people have really give the new owners of Office Hours a go yet but I totally recommend it - forgo your daily Gregg's and for a middle eastern lunch!

This is one of those places you've probably walked past a million times without really noticing…read more I'd been guilty of this until today, when out seeking sustenance on a lunch break. A quick glance at the window offers with the promise of a meal deal plus a non-existent queue, were more than enough to lure me. The very friendly staff explained the meal deal to me; choose any sandwich, wrap or panini and get any crisps, yoghurt or chocolate bar free. They add £1 for any drink from the bottom shelf of the fridge, so in total, you're looking at around £4 for three things, which isn't bad at all. I opted for the pepperoni and cheese panini, a can of Diet Coke and a Muller Corner yoghurt which was spot on. There is indoor seating, though not much, and a few outdoor tables and chairs too, which are sheltered from the elements - perfect for warm, summer Manchester afternoons (when it's peeing it down, like today). Office Hours isn't exactly true to its name as it's open on a Saturday morning, but this is great, as they serve what looks like a very good value full English breakfast, for about £4 with two of everything. Next time I'm hungover, I'll definitely be trying it out.

I've been working in NQ for nearly two months now and lunch has always been harder than you might…read morethink. To start with I was quite extravagant, spending a tenner on burgers, artisan pies and the like - after spending my wages I started to bring in my own rabbit food salad *sad face.... But that was until I tried Rustica! I'd ways walked past and thought hmmm, not for me - what a fool I was. First of all Theres a great atmosphere in the shop; Motown playing, the girls chatty and friendly and a nice selection of pasta and hot/cold sandwiches. I plumped for the chicken club, it was warm, tasty and filling - everything you want from lunch, and only £3.35 - stuff your tesco meal deals! Don't let the functional layout stop you trying the best place for a cheap, quality bite to eat in the NQ!

Rustica. My god. Never have I been so honoured by such a small sandwich maker. I was first…read moreintroduced to rustica by a friend, now come every lunchtime if I'm within the 3 mile radius of rustica I endeavour to go in. A very small little kitchen with a counter it is on unlucky times brim to overflowing with folk desperate to eat one of them. By them of course I mean the sandwiches. It doesn't matter what you have its all made with look and affection. But if you really want something that fell from heaven there is one award winning bad boy the milano. On a granary bap it is filled with...... prepare yourself chicken, bacon, pesto, parmesan, mayonnaise and salad (this you can pick from the buckets of iceberg and sweetcorn bits etc). This is the single greatest sandwich I've ever eaten. The only time I don't have one is when the hour dictates its breakfast then I have a breakfast bin lid (a huge bap stuffed full of a big breakfast).