This top Manchester gin bar has launched a new bottomless brunch – and it’s buzzing

With over 570 gins on offer and one of the best terraces in the city, Atlas Bar, in the railway arches of Deansgate, has been a Manchester icon for two decades.

The bar opened back in 1996, and when owners Mark and Elaine Wrigley took over in 2012, they set about turning it into the city’s top gin bar.

But it’s not just about the drinks. Atlas has become well known for its popular monthly gin supper clubs, which showcase perfect serve gin and mixers, cocktails and high-quality food, combined with entertaining stories.

They also serve breakfast, brunch, freshly ground own blend premium coffee and lunch daily, as well as a snack menu into the evening.

And now, they’re offering a new bottomless brunch, with food and limitless drinks for 90 minutes, from £35pp.

We went to try it out.

You get to choose a dish off the breakfast or lunch menu, with options including a full English breakfast (with vegetarian and vegan versions available), breakfast muffins with a choice of fillings, or a range of Eggs Benedict options from bacon or spinach to smoked salmon or chorizo and avocado.

Dishes on the lunch menu, if you fancy an alternative to breakfast, include a smashed quarter pounder beef burger with Emmental cheese, or a falafel version with hummus and spinach, as well as a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich, a classic BLT, or three cheese toasted sourdough.

We went for a salt beef bagel, and the gloriously nostalgic chicken in a basket.

The dish of fried chicken on a bed of chips, served in a basket, was a popular dish in pubs and restaurants in the 1960s and ‘70s. 

It has been brought up to date at Atlas, the chicken coated in a crisp spiced corn crumb, served with a zingy spring onion slaw and utterly addictive, sensationally seasoned skin-on fries. But it still retains the comforting charm of the retro classic.

The salt beef bagel, meanwhile, sees the tender salt-cured brisket topped with melted Emmental cheese and vibrant pickled red cabbage, as visually appealing as it is delicious.

When it comes to drinks, there’s plenty of choice, no matter what your preferred tipple.

There are cocktails – a Bramble, a Bloody Mary, an Aperol Spritz, and a fruity Mimosa or Bellini made with peach or tropical passionfruit.

Wine fans can go for a few glasses of red or white as well as prosecco, or if spirits are your bag, you can opt for a Defiance vodka and tonic.

If you prefer a pint, there’s a choice of Amstel or Inch’s cider as well as Heineken 0.0%, any Frobishers fruit juice or tea and coffee if you want to go alcohol-free.

And there’s gin, of course.

The Atlas gin and tonic is made with their own premium small batch London dry gin, created in collaboration with Defiance Spirits, a local distillery who are based in Oldham.

There is a nod to Manchester, plus botanicals from every continent of the globe in the fragrant, flavourful gin – from honey, raspberries, lemon myrtle and turmeric to pink peppercorns, citrus, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, star anise, lemongrass and allspice.

Crisp and refreshing, it’s served simply and elegantly with Fevertree Mediterranean tonic and a pink grapefruit garnish.

But whatever you choose when it comes to the food and drink, you’re in for a fun time at Atlas’ bottomless brunch.

Service is quick and friendly, the setting is relaxed with a catchy soundtrack of 80s classics, and on our visit the place was pleasingly full with couples, groups of friends and even a hen party adding to the celebratory atmosphere.

This new bottomless brunch is buzzing. So make sure you book your slot soon and don’t miss out.