Beyond the bustling chatter of Manchester’s many restaurants are lots of secluded private dining rooms offering a much more intimate dining experience to anyone prepared to seek them out.
With special menus, the option to choose your own playlist, and dedicated servers to wait on you hand and foot, they are the perfect choice for family parties and those special celebrations.
From sky-high towers to some of the oldest buildings in Manchester, we’ve carefully sourced a selection of some of these unique and beautiful spaces just for you.
And with food options ranging from British traditional to fine-dining Thai and dirty American feasts, no one need go hungry either.
The Parlour at Tattu
The Parlour is Tattu Manchester’s private dining room and exclusive event space. The space is serviced by its own entrance, bar and rest-rooms, whilst one-way glass offers complete privacy for the dining room with a view into the scenic Rose Garden and main restaurant above. The Parlour can accommodate up to 35 guests for seated dining, or up to 60 guests for a canapé event.
20 Stories
Boasting unrivalled views from its vantage point at the top of No.1 Spinningfields, 20 Stories’ private room seats 16 guests. Available for lunch or dinner, dine from one of the kitchens’ set menus or enjoy a selection of canapes. Or go for the ‘bowl food’ menu, with comforting options like glazed honey mustard sausage, mash and onion gravy or slow-cooked beef fillet with truffle mash and Madeira jus.
Hawksmoor
Offering an intimate space for memorable dinners with friends, family or colleagues, the Hawksmoor’s private dining room can seat groups of 10-14 at its long oval dining table. There are three specially designed sharing menus to choose from, offering you a chance to sample a range of Hawksmoor classic dishes. Cocktail receptions are available on arrival, too.
The Wharf Pub
This stunning purpose-built Castlefield pub will make you feel like you’re in the countryside. With various gorgeous private rooms for up to 60 diners or 150 guests, and a wonderful terrace overlooking the canals, you really can’t go wrong. They also do one of the most popular Sunday lunches in town.
Chetham’s
If you’re looking for somewhere a tad gothic with a big slice of Manchester history, Chetham’s is a grand choice. Some parts of the music school are nearly 600 years old and there’s a range of contemporary and medieval spaces on offer for private hire. With gothic windows and 17th-century doors, this iconic Manchester location provides a dreamy backdrop to any special occasion.
James Martin MCR
Seating up to ten, the private dining area in the industrial-styled James Martin MCR offering sits somewhere between special occasion and chef’s table (not that chef’s table isn’t a special occasion). Expect high-backed leather armchairs and low mood lighting in keeping with the industrial chic aesthetic.
Wood
For unintimidating, high-end dining you won’t forget, head to Masterchef winner Simon Wood’s First Street restaurant. With fresh and seasonal produce in every dish, Wood is one of our top foodie picks. Private dining on the mezzanine seats 8-20 guests, with the added option to choose your own music – and even set the thermostat to your ideal temperature.
Gaucho
Decorated in Gaucho’s signature black and white cowhide with glittering chandeliers, this private room is anything but understated in terms of design. But if you want to enjoy butter knife-soft Argentine steak and sip on some of the finest Malbec Manchester has to offer, it’s a no brainer.
Banyan at the Corn Exchange
Tucked away at the bottom of Banyan in the Corn Exchange are two stunning private rooms with seating for up to 20 guests and standing room for as many as 60. Both have AV capabilities for presentations and The Root even has a bar that can be slotted into the table for cocktail tastings and masterclasses. Menus start from £16.95 per person.
Piccolino Cafe Grande
Piccolino Caffé Grande located on Clarence Street, Manchester, proudly boasts an open kitchen, wine boutique, cocktail bar, oyster bar, Juicery, event spaces available for hire and a large alfresco terrace facing the Town Hall. Piccolino’s private event space for hire makes it the ideal restaurant for a special occasion. Be it a birthday, an office Christmas party, or a family get together, whatever your occasion you can be guaranteed that Piccolino will make it a special one.
The Mezzanine at Zouk
As you enter the mezzanine floor of the restaurant from its own wide staircase you will see the space overlooks the main restaurant. The space benefits from being slightly quieter and more private than the main dining area but it retains the atmospheric buzz and tempting aromas that Zouk offers. There is a mixture of booth seating and stand-alone tables and soft lighting adds to the special atmosphere of this setting. Few restaurants in Manchester city centre can offer hireable space for bookings as large as 90 people but the mezzanine can easily cater for this number or it can be staged for a more intimate gathering of 20. It is this flexibility that makes this space so popular for large parties and events and it can be hired by the hour any day of the week. Often the space is used for large groups of friends, family or colleagues who opt for a set menu or banquet to share. The area has also been used for weddings, engagement parties, special birthdays, graduation parties, and charity events, curry club quizzes, sports match screenings or corporate work nights out. The Mezzanine has its own PA system and plasma screens or other specialist equipment can be hired in for special events.
The Dalton room at The Ivy
With its white Carrara and grey Fior de Pesco marble tiled flooring, bold floral and palm print upholstery and hanging gilt leaf pendants, The Ivy’s Dalton Room is certainly striking. Seating 18 guests on one long table or 20 across two rounds of 10, it is available for breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as drinks and canapé receptions for up to 35 guests. Dine from a set menu from the Brasserie.