New Japanese restaurant Kitten opening soon in Deansgate Square – what’s it like?

A new restaurant and bar is opening in Deansgate Square this week, offering modern Japanese fine dining and contemporary cocktails.

The interior aesthetic of Kitten is surely one of the most visually striking settings in the city.

Diners entering the ground floor restaurant in the the New York-style tower are greeted with vast eight metre high ceilings, walls of bamboo and Venetian plastering, an extensive marbled bar and a towering five metre bonsai tree.

Guests can dine with a front row seat to the sushi chefs, with dishes including the finest grade tuna and hamachi, whilst glancing into the semi-open kitchen to see dishes grilled over one of the largest charcoal Robatayaki grills in the city. 

Prices and full menu details will be announced on Friday morning ahead of the venue’s official opening – but from our preview visit, Manchester diners are in for a serious treat.

Taking centre stage in the venue, the sushi chefs are serving up a raw menu featuring a selection of freshly made dishes including black and blue tuna with pickled kohlrabi and squid ink tuille, and a jaw-droppingly pretty platter featuring salmon, tuna, sea bass, squid and nigiri.

Japanese panko prawns are crisp and golden on a bed of crispy vermicelli with a chilli dip, while sushi rolls come stuffed with snow pea and avocado, with scallops mixed in a miso mayo and caviar.

The star dish on our preview was a whole sea bass cooked over the charcoal grill – huge, succulent and full of flavour, having been marinated in red miso and sesame with garlic and lime.

Tempura squid, yasai vegetables and nobashi noodles will all feature on the menu whilst crisp tofu, wild mushrooms, Robata sweetcorn, heritage tomatoes and charcoal-seared aubergine form a selection of vegetarian and vegan dishes.

Traditionally cooked over open flames, the Robata menu looks to include the finest cuts of beef; T-bone with pickled red radish and sesame miso dressing, chicken yakitori with pickled heritage carrots and pink ginger as well as carefully crafted duck, pork and lamb dishes. 

When it comes to the kitchen team, head chef Josh Gabrielides has joined from Ivy Asia and head sushi chef Daniel Zhou from Peter Street Kitchen, whilst the team also boasts experience from Sticks and Sushi and other top ranked Pan-Asian restaurants around the country. 

Kitten’s cocktail menu features classic yet inventive combinations enhanced with Japanese influences, crafted by Tim Herbert – previously of Wood and Co. 

Across the weekend diners will be able to enjoy live music, DJs and entertainment and on warmer days guests can dine al fresco dining in the Square.

Kitten will join other operators in Deansgate Square including Atomeca, General Stores, Flourish, Salvi’s and The Green Lab.

Kitten will open on 17th June and be open daily from midday until 11.30pm on weeknights and 12.30am at weekends, serving food and drink throughout.