The Best Pubs In Greater Manchester For Food

Going out for a pub dinner is just one of the things us British folk love doing, it’s also something that tourists are doing more and more when they visit the United Kingdom and honestly, we love that! Finding a decent pub however can be difficult.

You don’t want to get overcharged for bad food, especially as we feel most people don’t like to complain in a smaller establishment like a pub over that of a large restaurant so they’ll never learn from feedback.

That’s why we decided that we’d put together a list of the best pubs for food in Greater Manchester and maybe a couple of pubs in Manchester City Centre if we find any decent ones.

We’ll rate them fair, we’ll talk about the atmosphere, customer service, price and food. We understand that some pubs can be intimidating, especially if you’re part of the LGBTQ+ community as pubs have the reputation as a straight man’s place but times are changing.

Greater Manchester Pubs For Food List

Take a look at our list of the best pubs in Greater Manchester for food and find somewhere nice to eat instead of high end, expensive restaurants that serve two carrots on a slate board. We’ve given our star rating below, we don’t like to promote anything that we feel isn’t good enough and that’s why you’ll only get 3, 4 & 5 star venues from us.

Five Star Greater Manchester Pubs For Food

Four Star Greater Manchester Pubs For Food

• The Drum And Monkey – Alderley Edge

Three Star Greater Manchester Pubs For Food

• The Gardeners Arms – Deansgate Ln, WA15 6SQ
• The Royal Oak – 440 Barlow Moor Road, Manchester M21 0BQ

Don’t forget to look at the reviews below on some Greater Manchester Pubs to see why we rated them how we did. We also like to re-visit places so these listings will be changed when needed.

The Best Greater Manchester Pubs For Food

If you’re looking for the best pubs in Greater Manchester, take a look at the ones we have below. We only add pubs that we think are over 3-star. We don’t believe in telling people to go somewhere which is bad. We have tried all of these pubs ourselves so that we can give our honest views. We have not been invited to go to any of these Manchester pubs, all thoughts are 100% our own.

If you have any Manchester pub suggestions, let us know! We’d love to extend this list and try out more amazing food!

The Drum And Monkey – Alderley Edge, SK9 7LD

We got told about this pub and that we needed to check it out. They sometimes have live singers, events and other fun things planned. On the night we visited there was a live singer although we only got to listen to a couple of songs. We really enjoyed this pub and for various reasons.

They are dog friendly, have an amazing and huge outside area to enjoy and a big parking area for at least 30 cars.

Atmosphere: We really liked the atmosphere in the pub, everyone was super friendly. There was a lot of space to move around, it had an old feel to the interior unlike “new” and “modern” pubs. The only thing we’d say is towards the winter months it can be a little cold in the dining area.

Customer Service: The staff were lovely, they were very attentive and were happy to take our specifications (one burger had yoghurt dip and we asked for that removed, which was no problem at all whereas other places have got funny about it). All of the staff were friendly, smiling and happy to help and answer any questions.

Food: The food was amazing and we couldn’t fault it, if we had to nitpick we’d say too much oil on the flatbread with cheese. We got the flatbread with cheese for a starter, minted lamb burger and steak and mushroom pie for the main and a warm blondie and warm brownie for dessert and they were divine, literally sent from heaven.

Price: Considering the popularity of this place and the outstanding quality of their food we were pleasantly surprised to see that it’s one of the cheaper pubs that we’ve been to. Our order was £59.95 in total and that’s including a 10% tip which was well earned. We only tip in the UK for exceptional experiences.

Overall: We would happily visit the Drum and Monkey in Greater Manchester again in a heartbeat. We’d even take a well-behaved dog or family/friends as the food was that good. They have a private dining area and although we didn’t see the area we imagine it’s for larger parties. If you’re in the area you have to pop in, even if it’s for a glass of wine and live singing (just don’t join in).

This place gets a solid 4 stars from us and we would happily return even if it’s just for the blondie that you can see below!

The Gardeners Arms – Deansgate Ln, WA15 6SQ

We decided to visit The Gardeners Arms on a whim and that’s how this whole list got started. We fancied a nice pub dinner and found that The Gardeners Arms was the best in the area so we headed over.

The Gardeners Arms is dog friendly, enough parking for 15-20 cars and has a smaller outside area which gets very busy in the summer time.

Atmosphere: The atmosphere was chilled and we didn’t feel like there would be any issues, it was comfortable. There was a large group of “workmen” in the pub so if this is something that might put you off keep that in mind.

Customer Service: The staff at The Gardeners Arms were really nice, and helpful and always had a smile on their face (which is something you don’t get everywhere that’s for sure). They were happy to accommodate any changes we made and were very attentive.

Food: The food was nice, the starter Nachos were a little bit of a letdown but their mixed grill was amazing, we both had a mixed grill and couldn’t fault it one bit. The chips they served with their mixed grill were huge and the steak was cooked to perfection (for us). The desserts were nice although we probably wouldn’t order them again.

Price: One starter, Two Mains, Two Desserts and Two Drinks cost us est: £65 which we don’t think is bad at all, considering the location and the food quality.

Overall: We really enjoyed eating at The Gardeners Arms and would visit again if we got the chance. They get a solid 3 star from us after considering everything. If you’re in Greater Manchester, give them a visit and let us know what you think about them.

The Royal Oak – 440 Barlow Moor Road, Manchester M21 0BQ

On the spur of the moment we decided that we’d go and visit another pub, after taking a look online we thought that The Royal Oak looked nice enough to try out and we set off. The first issue that we came across was the lack of parking. You can park down a side street or do what we did and park at Morrisons (supermarket) for a maximum of 2 hours.

Atmosphere: The atmosphere was nice although when we visited it was during a rugby game and was a little rowdy. Thankfully there was a small dining area tucked away. That being said this is a place where you’ll find frequent regulars that visit and some aren’t as inviting as others.

Customer Service: We had a limited customer service due to being able to order and pay for our food and drinks at the table using their app. That being said the staff were friendly when bringing our food out.

Food: The food overall was nice, the steak and ale pie had maybe too much ale in it and the hallumi fries were amazing and the best we’ve had so far while visiting pubs. The price is decent and you get what you pay for. What’s more is they have some great deals so if you’re looking for Greater Manchester pubs with food, this is a more affordable one.

Overall: The food was nice, the customer service was decent but the things that let it down was the lack of parking and especially the state of the toilets. We can only comment on the mens toilets but the floors were wet, there was a door missing off of one cubical and no lock on the other. We’d rate this place a strong 3 star anyday.

Chicken & Ham pie with broccoli and chips. £11.79.

Best Pub Food In Greater Manchester

If you’re looking for the best pub food greater Manchester has to offer, hopefully these examples have given you everything you need to know. We love trying different pubs and are always on the lookout to try new ones so if you think we’ve missed any off the list, let us know!

Let us know if you agree on our rating for any of these places you can get some super yummy greater Manchester food, we’d love to know if places have changed for the better so we can re-visit or for the worse so we can re-evaluate our initial findings.