Manchester restaurant Mamucium launches new surprise sharing menu – plus two new tasting menus

Mamucium in Hotel Indigo has developed a reputation for dishes influenced by Manchester’s culinary heritage. And now, the launch of a new sharing menu means diners are able to try more than ever before.

The new experience is an all-encompassing journey through executive chef Andrew Green’s concept of modern British food with a Mancunian twist. Ideal for larger parties, dinner becomes a more interactive experience, as dishes are shared across the table.

Mamucium’s chefs will create a number of small plates made using the finest seasonal ingredients, which means guests will be able to experience completely new dishes each time they visit.

And the menu is a complete surprise, with each dish unveiled at the table as it is ready – although regulars might find a few elements from their old favourites make an appearance in one form or another.

We went to try it to see what’s in store for curious diners.

Following a selection of breads and tapas style snacks, our dinner begins with a little bowl of onion soup. But no ordinary onion soup. This rich broth, a take on French onion soup and heady with white wine and intense stock, takes over 24 hours to make, chef Andrew tells us.

“The onions are cooked down for 12 hours in Lancashire lamb fat,” he says. It’s worth the time. It’s superb.

The chefs are happy to cater for diners’ individual dietary preferences and requirements, too. A vegan-friendly alternative to the lamb broth on the evening we visit is a full-flavoured tomato soup with quinoa and basil oil.

The next dish is smoked salmon, which comes with a salmon mousse, earthy beetroot puree and compressed cucumber – or creamy burrata, tomatoes and balsamic pearls for vegetarians.

“The salmon we have on the menu is smoked right here in Manchester,” says Andrew. “It’s award-winning, too, having won two stars at the Great Taste awards.”

Cheshire beef hash is presented theatrically, a glass cloche filled with smoke lifted at the table to release the most incredible aromas.

Soft, salty and packed with robust beefy flavour, it’s served with a softly poached egg and spiced ketchup.

Seared scallops with celeriac puree is a tempting meat-free alternative, while golden chickpea fritters are vegan-friendly.

A tender fish dish is served with Cumbrian pancetta and white bean ragu, and juicy crisp-skinned chicken comes with seasonal mushrooms and dauphinoise potatoes made with British Blacksticks Blue cheese.

Then the puddings arrive in miniature: peanut bread and butter pudding with honeycomb ice cream, and rich chocolate marquise with caramelised orange.

The star, though, is a vivid purple Vimto macaron. Sweet, chewy and deliciously fruity, it’s also available on Mamucium’s afternoon tea menu.

“I’m really excited to see the response to this new concept,” says Andrew about the new unlimited sharing experience.

“I’ve always been incredibly passionate about being creative and bold, putting a modern twist on classic dishes people know and love.

“Here, guests can come in and try something new, pushing them out of their comfort zones and generating conversations. I want them to leave having experienced unique flavours and ingredients that perhaps they wouldn’t if they were left to their own devices.

“It’s a surprise menu, and it’s left to the chefs to use the flavours we’ve got in the kitchen that day.

“It’s a journey, but it touches on some of our key dishes. And it also means diners get to try a lot of what we do here.”

In other words, it’s perfect if you can’t decide – or just want to try a bit of everything. And with plates of food of this quality, who wouldn’t?

But if you’d rather know what you’re getting in advance, Mamucium has also revealed two accessible new tasting menus.

Launching on 15th April, guests can choose from a five or eight course menu (from £49 per head, or £89 with wine flights) consisting of classic dishes that have been given a unique, northern spin inspired by the chef’s Manchester roots.

Think modern, deconstructed Lancashire hot pot – cannon of Herdwick Lamb, confit leg parcel, shallot, potato pearls, carrot and lamb jus – and Manchester tart with homemade raspberry jam, banana crisps and shaved coconut.

The new unlimited sharing experience at Mamucium launches on 15th April priced at £59 per head, and requires advance booking.

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