Manchester bar and Cheshire pub named among best in North West

As hospitality venues continue on the road to recovery, almost 100 pubs and bars across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have scooped a prestigious County Winner title as part of the 2022 National Pub & Bar Awards.

Amongst the 94 venues are a Cheshire pub, and a city centre Manchester bar.

A few years back, the Church Inn in Mobberley was named as the best pub in the UK, having secured the top accolade at the National Pub & Bar Awards back in 2019.

Now, the a traditional 18th century country inn has been named again as one of the best in the region.

“With its chocolate box setting, you couldn’t really imagine a more quintessentially British pub than the Church Inn,” we wrote after our visit.

“As the name might suggest, it’s directly opposite the village church of St Wilfrid’s, with shrubs and trees shrouding the roads to its entrance.

“Step inside and it’s like being inside a Harry Potter novel. Decadently dark interiors fizz with drops of light from flickering wax candles on every antique table.”

The pub sources its food from local artisan bakers, farmers, butchers and cheesemakers, and all their seafood is delivered on a daily basis.

The majority of its ales come from within a 15 mile boundary, with one pump dedicated to craft ales from further away.

City centre bar Flight Club has also been selected as one of the region’s best.

The King Street bar, which opened its Manchester branch in 2018, has reinvented darts for the twenty first century, developing a range of fast and exciting multi-player games, built to bring people together.

They also hold a Brunch Social every Thursday to Sunday, with Prosecco and bottomless pizza.

The other venues to make the North West list are The Black Bull in Sedbergh, Cumbria; Bowland Beer Hall in Lancashire; and Roxy Ball Room in Merseyside.

The National Pub & Bar Awards aims to put exemplary businesses across the UK in the national spotlight, showcasing the hospitality industry’s diversity, creativity and vital importance to the UK economy.

The pubs, which have been selected on overall best practice across a number of operational categories, will be officially crowned at a red carpet celebration in London on 22nd June.

At the grand final, 15 Regional Winners will also be announced, as well as the esteemed accolade – the overall National Pub & Bar of the Year.

“Just from being out in these venues, you can see how much pubs and bars mean to people across the UK,” says Tristan O’Hana, editor of Pub & Bar magazine, which hosts the event.

“With visitor numbers increasing, it’s more important than ever for operators to deliver a standout service during every visit – no matter the business in question.

“These 94 County Winners are wonderful examples of the brilliance of today’s modern on-trade.

“If you live near one of these sites, make sure you pay them a visit!”