Great pub that pours a proper Guinness and has wonderful food. The staff is attentive and friendly.read more

Walked in @ 5:00pm. The bartender was wearing a shirt…read moreadvertising the beer I ordered. Hé paused 5 seconds and then told me it was unavailable. He then suggested a "similar" beer that I'd already had on several occasions that was not even remotely close to the AmberAle that I was looking to drink. Seriously? He flatly was a jerk. Must be new protocol in Manchester pubs. Experienced it repeatedly. Was more interested in the chat with his mates then providing any service whatsoever. Don't waste your time unless you enjoy a surly uninterested bartender and crap service.

Place is always great for a few drinks with anyone your with, food is good and prices are decent!…read moreDeals like burger and pint for £8-£11, always got a performer on the Friday and Saturday and great for watching football, boxing, American football. If your lucky to get a booth at the back of the bar you'll have your own screen on the table with charging slots which is helpful! Staff is all friendly and helpful

decent number of screens, food is good as wellread more

Right hear me out! You'll either love this place or hate it depending on your capacity for…read morestudents. You could easily add or take off another star according to where you stand. I think this place does what it intends to very well. Cheap booze... The cheapest in town. Food is of scream pub quality (Ok, cheap and included in beer deals). So here is why I love Courtyard. When the students leave it is empty and has an enormous beer garden.... which gets sun and becomes my first choice for early afternoon beers on a summer boozing session. The other reason it is one of those gold mines which shows ALL (yes all) premier league 3 o'clock KOs. Hazaaaaa. Great place to go with mates then but not for couples...

Lovely bar usually, today we have turned up the bouncer has refused to let us que or come till 7…read morehalf an hour later he's allowing ques outside and we now risk missing the match.

It's good for a pint and to watch soccer, er football make that. The kitchen was closed but they…read moreallowed outside food. Good selection of ales.

We went to Tib Street Tavern a few weekends ago to watch the first half of a Sunday Liverpool game…read more- the promise of some good food before having to watch football was enough to get me on board! Only knowing it as 'somewhere to watch the match', I was pleasantly surprised at the general atmosphere and interior of the pub/bar. We sat downstairs and managed to bag a table (roughly an hour before kick-off) at the edge of the room, giving me a good people watching spot and the other half a great view of the many, many large screens. People started to trickle in at the same time as us and, by half time - when we left to meet up with some friends - it was rammed, including people sitting on the stairs to capture what was supposed to be a Liverpool victory. Food wise, it's a simple menu but there's something for everyone. I had the steak sandwich with fries, and it was nice enough. The steak was cooked as requested, but the fries were a bit greasy, and the ones hidden under the sandwich were lacking any texture at all. As a place to go and find a compromise on a Sunday, I'm happy to be in Tib Street Tavern.

There are two entrances to Dive (Tib St. and Oldham), but I came in through the smaller Tib St…read more entrance, which has a "grungier" sort of feel to it. Best way to enter into a place called "Dive" is through the seedy back door, in my opinion. Going down the stairs you see that seedy quickly turns to classy with awesome wooden interior with a slight Americana feel to it. It's a cool mix of cozy and warm while being fresh and new, with an overall laid back atmosphere. Try to picture something being rough but varnished at the same time. Spool-style wooden tables and high chairs are all over the place, so there isn't a lack of areas to sit and rest your drinks. If you want more of a lounge feel, there are a few alcoves - one with its own bar and big screen TV with leather red/brown couches. It's cut off a bit from the main area with a red curtain partially closing it off, so you can get a slight escape from the rest of the area. The Americana feel isn't overly-apparent just by the decorations and atmosphere, but it becomes obvious that's what they're going for when you see the staff dress. Waitresses are dressed in a 80's TV-style casual southern belle fashion, while bar staff is reminiscent of lumberjacks or Rosie the Riveter, even accompanied with leather half-aprons that look like they could double for a new style of utility belt. Cocktails cost £7.50, and are pretty generous with the liquor - definitely not weak, even though they remain flavourful. I started with a Gin and Juice (Beefeater Gin, cloudy apple juice, elderflower), and moved on to ginger beer and Blind Pig flavoured ciders. Even the gin and tonic or bourbon and coke were pleasantly strong without overpowering things. They've got great food to choose from, and good lunch specials if you're wanting a bite without the evening party atmosphere. The macaroni and cheese balls are a cool take on an American classic, but be careful - they're served hot! That's a common theme with the food it seems; the crab cakes were delightfully crispy/crunchy on the outside while the interior was a bit too hot, but creamy and full of flavour. There was a live band the night we went, with Anna Sin playing 50's and 60's jams. Their opening song was Route 66, and they killed it throughout the rest of the night with classic hits. This definitely fit the atmosphere, but I was less enthused by the DJ music. The house music seemed to be an eclectic mix and fairly disjointed, but got better as the night ran on. It feels like it'd be perfectly suited to some jazz or blues music, or 50's to 80's classic American songs. Dive is open until 5 a.m. on Friday and Saturday evenings, and while the phone reception is poor (usually cuts out as soon as you get downstairs), they've got free wifi so you can connect that way when you get in. As a disclaimer: this is a review based on the launch party I was able to attend. That being said, I've got a strong feeling I'll be back to give an updated review soon! Very tempted to come back for lunch to get a proper meal in.

Came here for the launch party. There are two entrances, one is in Oldham Street and another is on…read moreTib Street. Cocktails are great - I had Gin and juice. It has a very strong American theme, the staff wore plaid shirts and jeans. Some female staff dress very southern like Daisy Duke. American tunes, American drinks - like Bourbon, Root beers, etc. There is one main bar and a smaller bar in the lounge area. A big dancing floor, live band and DJ area. A few big tables in booth style set-up, and some high tables around the bar. It was a fun night but the tunes were a bit off - live band was playing American oldies, DJ was playing was playing random American songs but I feel some rock or 80's would suit things better.

Never have I ever. Stay tuned... this is a long and crazy story (little did she know, I'm a…read morefreelance writer!). The bar woman (heavy-set, red hair) who works there isn't wrapped tightly. I went there on Sunday night/Monday morning with some nice bartenders as a plus-one during a "bartenders-only" time. I am visiting from Toronto, Canada (first-timer) and was jiving with everyone. I go to pay via card and my friend and I were jokingly arguing about who should pay. I grab the machine before my friend can reach it, then I turn around, and begin keying in my password. The bartender then startles me by SCREAMING at me to "TURN AROUND! TURN AROUND RIGHT NOW! YOU NEED TO FACE ME WHEN YOU'RE USING THE MACHINE!" I turn around and jokingly say, "Why? You want to see my password or something?" and then she yells "I WAS ROBBED!".... Like, huh? Funnily enough, I was recently robbed (Manchester can be quite gritty). So I calmly tell her that and ask what being robbed has to do with anything. I was literally standing still, holding the machine, and keying my password into it, albeit with my back facing her. How are you freaking out about "robbery" while I'm in the midst of paying you? Weird. I promise you, it was completely out of left field. It's like she was transported into some traumatic setting from her past, wherein I was the perpetrator. So I pay and slowly hand her the machine. She snatches it rudely and people are looking at her wondering why she's being so aggressive to me. I shake it off, change the topic, and continue enjoying the night with everyone. I was never loud, drunk, rude, or obnoxios to anyone at all. And I deliberately ignored her existence. Now the bar's about to close and my friend asks if there's time to go for a smoke and come back to finish our drinks. She says yes, but we have to be quick. 3 minutes later, my beer's gone, all the tables are cleared, etc. So I calmly ask her where my beer's gone. She says she took it off the table since they're closing. I express my confusion, since my friend asked 3 minutes ago if there's time, and mumble to myself that that's $10 literally down the drain (the conversion from GBP to CAD is killer). Then -- again --, she immediately flies off the handle saying "YOU'VE BEEN AGGRESSIVE WITH ME ALL NIGHT! YOU'VE BEEN GIVING ME ATTITUDE ALL NIGHT! GET OUT! YOU'RE BANNED! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE HERE AGAIN!" Excuse me? You've got that backwards lady and everyone saw it. Don't try to make me look bad just because you embarrassed yourself. I just responded by asking her repeatedly, "Who do I look like that hurt you? Who do I remind you of?" I don't even care that she banned me. For one, I'm just a tourist passing through. And second, why would I go somewhere where I'm hated for no reason? I don't feel safe around this woman and other people who go there shouldn't either. She needs serious help. I am really disturbed by this bartender's behaviour. At least when you're robbed, there's a clear motive. Not sure what was motivating her aggression and hatred. To the owner who I met that night (yes, I'm the black woman with long dreads, seeing glasses, and a toque), please have a serious word with your bartender. She will surely try to paint me as a villain but ask anyone I was there with. And check any CCTV footage. No one deserves to be treated so poorly without cause. You don't have to like me to treat me with basic human dignity. Gah-lee.

Traditional-looking pub? Yes. Decent selection of ales? Alas, no…read more Did a search for pubs close to Chinatown before a meal and this place popped up so thought to give it a try. They were showing the footy on their two big screens so it was fairly busy in there (I say busy, there were probably 20 people but it's not particularly spacious). They had Timothy Taylor's Landlord and Black Sheep Brewery's Best Bitter available - the few others were more well known lagers etc. A pint of Landlord cost £3.90 and it was supposedly happy hour so who knows what they normally charge. It just doesn't have anything that would make me want to return in a hurry to be honest, there are better boozers only a few minutes walk away. Timber to Seven Oaks...

great atmosphere, kind of edgy. traditional pub with nice bar tenders and a queue-yourself juke…read morebox. its card only, which isnt a problem for me. bathrooms and floor are super clean (no food)

While I really do like these grunge pubs, the thing that annoyed me about this one was that they…read moreonly accepted card, which I personally don't appreciate, being the type of person to prefer to use cash when I am at drinking establishments. However, that aside, this pub I have to admit was certainly pretty cool, especially since it was a grunge pub, but then again I really do like grunge pubs like this one, so I'm certainly quite delighted that I randomly wandered into this one.

cool spot with large screens for football, with good music in the background in a another section…read moreon day time. Nice place to socialize or hang out with colleagues or friends with drinks.

I almost feel bad giving Bierkeller 3 star because I do like this place and go quite a lot but in…read morecomparison with other places that I've rated 4 stars I just can't justify it! It's a little bit of a confusing layout because this place contains four bars under one roof, when you first go in your in what they call the 'Ski Lodge' which is the upstairs bar, when you go downstairs you have 'Shooters', 'Around the World in 80 Beers' and Bierkeller. Bierkeller is a massive room with long, wooden tables representing the German beer house, they sell steins which are really reasonably priced. I would tell you about the deals but I am really confused by them! There are posters all over telling you what deals are on but there are so many it just confuses you (well it confuses me anyway!)! We ordered food using my friends taste card which meant we paid £15 for four meals! Bargain, the food is pretty average but I got a Bratwurst which was really good. Don't have high expectations for the food but it you want some filling grub really cheap it is a good place to go. 'Shooters' has a cool bar area where you can play FIFA on giant screens, just make a deposit at the bar and they will give you the controllers. There are also pool tables and it is a great place to watch the football. 'Around the World in 80 Beers' do what they call suitcases of beers, you can either get a full suitcase (£70) or a half suitcase (£35) which hold a selection of beers from around the world, it is a really great way to try new beers. This place is cheap and cheerful and the staff are really friendly, if you want a nice night out sampling the independents then this certainly isn't the place to go, but for a chilled night with your mates, playing FIFA and drinking cheap booze this is place will be a good starting point.

Second City really couldn't be in a better location for the current Ancoats regeneration; located…read moreon Cutting Room Square alongside Cutting Room and Rudy's, it's an excellent sun trap and alternative to the usual Northern Quarter haunts. We visited whilst we were waiting for a table to come free at Rudy's on an unusually warm Manchester evening, so naturally spotted a place to sit outside. I think this is the only thing Second City has above Cutting Room next door; the latter don't appear to have an outside license so seemed to be struggling, but it's rare that the weather will have this much of an impact. It's not huge inside but there's plenty of space to sit and stand, plus the bar spans most of the room, so you're more than likely to find somewhere to get served. With the aforementioned weather, no one else was inside so it was a quick and efficient experience. As with any sports themed bar, there's also lots to do inside - large screen TVs, game consoles etc. - all of which will keep you busy on the rainier days! Two cans of Beavertown for under £10 and a relaxed 20 minutes in the sun. No complaints.

Discovered this place a few weeks ago while I was looking for a place to watch football on a Sunday…read morenight. I really enjoyed the vibe. They have a huge screen to broadcast football games and whilst I found it hard to find a place in Manchester where I could get both, Football games and nice food, I have to say that the food there is really good. I would recommend this place for those who are looking to grab a bite while watching sports