Disorder’s executive chef Bryan Barber shares his big plans for their exciting new menu

Bryan Barber, 30,  from Stockport, plans to draw inspiration for Disorder’s menu from around the world.

The Bar and restaurant is all set to open on February 17th 2023 in the Northern Quarter.

His career has taken in classic French training, a unique, historic twist on British cuisine, BBQ smokehouse and sushi.

He’s bringing this variety of experience, along with his passion for Asia and its cuisine, to Disorder where he takes on his first executive chef role.

The Disorder food concept takes inspiration from izakaya bars in Japan, which are small, family run venues which offer drinks and a small menu of delicious dishes designed to go with the drinks.

This style of eating is sociable, casual dining with small plates designed for bar goers to graze on over a longer period of time.

All dishes on the menu will have a backbone of an Asian twist.

Manc-hi is based on a Japanese Menchi sando, which has black pudding added as a nod to the north west.

The KFPB is a sando with fried chicken, lemongrass peanut satay sauce and a spiced berry jam, a delicious, more savoury peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Small dishes with Asian twists include Mexican style tostadas, the Chicken Katsu features katsu curry chicken and Asian slaw, and delicious Buldak fries.

Buldak is a fire chicken instant noodle from Korea which is the inspiration for loaded fries topped with home made fire sauce, oyster mushrooms, crispy noodles and nori seaweed.

Bryan will be cooking a significant amount of the menu on a konro grill, which is a traditional Japanese grill where food is cooked on a ceramic pot over charcoal.

He will also be making all gyoza on the menu by hand and has incorporated unique twists such as mustard, sage and apple into a pork five spice gyoza, to give it a British twist.

Bryan said: “I am passionate about creativity and cooking with no borders or restrictions.

“The menu works so well as it offers a broad range of flavours and references, but they all work in a cohesive way. It’s not being inventive for the sake of it. At Disorder, we’re introducing unknown pleasures and my menu is definitely unknown pleasures for the tastebuds.”

Bryan has also perfected a way of cooking watermelon so it reduces to a salmon like texture and this is combined with cream cheese and subtle Asian flavours and ingredients to create a unique take on a salmon and cream cheese bagel as a Mexican tostada.

A significant proportion (two thirds) of the menu is vegan or vegetarian and there are plant based options for the meat dishes listed.

These will always include fresh vegetables as Bryan’s philosophy is not to use meat substitutes when delicious veg can make a great alternative.

He’s sourcing his meat from Littlewoods butchers in Heaton Chapel which also supplies Michelin star restaurants and can trace its produce back to an individual farm and animal.

This focus on high quality ingredients is also what is going to help create a real point of difference for Disorder and ensure it is firmly on the Manchester foodie map.

James Stewart, co-owner of Disorder, added: “I have worked with Bryan on a previous launch and was always blown away by his passionate and inventiveness. Our menu is not super serious, but the quality of the ingredients we have chosen and the level of testing and detail that have gone into our menu certainly are.”

Bryan is creating his recipes from scratch and working from flavours and ideas rather than what’s gone before. Other stand out items include humous made from Edamame beans and a smoked lamb sausage skewer, which will be smoked on site and served with tzatziki for a
high end lamb kebab.

Joining Bryan on his kitchen team are; Zuzanna Krawczynsca, age 17 from Tameside as demi chef, Charlie Gibbs, age 22 from Norwich as chef de partie, Holly Leech, age 20 from Gorton as sous chef.

Disorder opens 17 Feb over two floors at 78 – 88 High Street. The ground floor is the eatery and the lower floor will be a speakeasy, dive bar, playing host to live music from bands, DJs, rap artists and more. Across both floors, the back bar will rival those on a world class stage with unknown pleasures from a variety of international beers and delicious, bespoke cocktails, as well as the classics.

Follow Disorder on Instagram @disordermcr