Cane and Grain, Manchester

I love Cain and Grain. The sticky sauces, the oozing burgers, and chips piled with everything edible they had to hand in the kitchen. It's a proper carnivores' night out. The staff are always dead chatty, and really try to make your experience memorable for all the right reasons. All of these things generally add up to a pretty fab time had by all. 

A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to try out their new menu. I mentally prepared by having a sausage butty with brown sauce for breakfast at work, in the hope that an early start with the meat goods might somehow stretch my stomach for later*.

* Note, this was a terrible idea, and did not work one bit. 

It was already quite busy when we got there, but we were greeted by the lovely Charlie, who seemed very excited that we were there in an 'official' capacity to put the menu through its paces. Her enthusiasm was infectious, and she seemed to know the menu inside out. It seemed only fair that we let her pick everything we ate! I love a surprise. 

BBQ chicken wings: Never used to be a fan you know. Bones, skin, and all that cack. However... The more decent wings I eat, the more I'm loving them. These are little round plump ones, not the greasy type which are more skin than meat. Gorgeous. 

Full rack of pork baby back ribs: The size of these... Who can eat a full rack? They are massive, but worry not, they will box them up for you if you find yourself stuffed too soon.

Bacon cheeseburger - beef patty, cheese, bacon, lettuce, pickles, proper burger sauce on a sesame seed bun: Guilty pleasure...  A Burger King Bacon Double Cheeseburger. It reminds me of being at college and having one at least three times a week. Had to try it. The bacon is really crispy, and the addition of home made burger sauce adds a nice tanginess. This tastes like real food where I can pick out actual flavours, unlike its BK counterpart.

Sauces (clockwise) - Dr Pepper, Kansas City and Sticky BBQ: All the sauces at Cane and Grain are excellent, but the Dr Pepper one blew our minds! Dip your chips in these.

Beer battered deep fried pickles: I love a pickle. Pretty much anything pickled. Except eggs, that's just perverse. However, there's someone I know who enjoys a deep fried pickle more than most; my pal Vicki. And whaddya know? She was round the corner as we were eating, so was summoned to join us! She approves... High praise indeed.

Hot as fuck fries - jalapenos, hot sauce, cheese and crispy bacon: Sweet Jesus, they really are. It's this kind of stuff that I could bathe in and eat my way out. I didn't, I just ate them in a fairly civilised manner.

Smoked pit beans with pulled pork: These. I think I ate most of them. Sorry.

Drinks: I wish I could remember all the drinks we had. It turns out I didn't even photograph them all. This is what happens when you suggest your server surprises you. I do remember a Flying Dog Snake Dog IPA, and a Kona Big Wave, but the cocktails are beyond me. They have a cracking selection of drinks, and their cocktails have never disappointed yet. If you enjoy a cocktail, I'd recommend that you visit their First Floor Bar too.

I urge you to go to Cane and Grain. I've been quite a few times now, and have never yet been disappointed by anything I've had. If you love your meat, this is definitely the place for you, yet I've also been for just drinks. They're a great all rounder, where you'll aways be made to feel welcome.


Disclaimer: I was invited to sample the new menu by Cane and Grain. We were under no obligation to say nice things or befriend their staff, the last bit is just in our MO. 

Boozy Bowling at All Star Lanes, Manchester

It's one of my favourite venues in Manchester; the hallowed All Star Lanes. I knew I already loved them when it was just a twinkle in Great Northern's eye, and they didn't disappoint me. Their 50s styling, friendly staff, American diner menu, constantly changing specials, and frankly outstanding cocktails really rock my socks. 

It's probably one of my most frequently visited venues for all the reasons listed above, but they are also bang on the money when it comes to throwing a party! We booked the private lanes for my friend Lucie's 30th (have a nosy here), and went back over the Bank Holiday to sample the new Boozy Bowling. 

How do you like this; two hours of unlimited bowling, booze and American bites for £35? Yeah, we thought it sounded pretty darn good. So off we trot, ready to don some amazingly unflattering shoes.

So this is how it works. On arrival you give your names, which are then popped onto the boards on the private lanes whilst you sort your hoofs out. We had our own little seating area, and two lanes meant that between four of us, we were pretty much constantly bowling with no waiting around. This in itself feels like a real treat! Granted, it also caused some interesting bowling induced bum cheek and tricep injuries the day after...

Your server will come over pretty sharpish, and explain that the booze is either unlimited Prosecco or bottles of Coors (we had a mix), and that food would be arriving around every twenty minutes. Great!

If you do become overly involved in stuffing your face, the game reminds you that it's waiting too! Oh the shame of being told off by a blue snail...

I am notoriously terrible at bowling, due to the fact I am lacking in any sort of technique, and generally break my nails within five minutes of getting there. However, it's too much fun for me to care much. The food is more my area of expertise!

Pretzel bread with smokey cheese sauce and fries: That cheese sauce is like crack. I'm pretty peckish as I'm writing this, so this picture is utter torture. Probably bad timing. This bread is really soft but has that distinctive pretzel taste, and goes perfectly with the cheese. We thought that this looked like a lot of chips, which is funny, because we managed to snaffle the lot!

Southern fried chicken skewers with barbecue sauce and mac 'n' smoked cheese croquettes: Those beautiful words... 'Southern fried'. These dipped in barbecue sauce were just heavenly, and the probable cause of the snail who equally sauced me!

Mini corn dogs and deep fried rice balls: So much golden food... The thing is though, you're bowling hell for leather, so surely you are still in a calorie deficit at this stage! I lapped up those sticky rice balls dipped in the cheese from earlier.

Sliders - marinara meatballs with tomato sauce and pulled pork and 'slaw: We were getting really full by this stage. Just before these arrived, we had just had another round of pretzel bread, so our carb reserves we pretty well stocked. If these had come a little earlier, we would have been a little more successful at polishing the lot. Fret not though, for they were promptly boxed upon our server seeing how disappointed we were in ourselves.

We wanted for nothing. I have no idea how much Prosecco we drank, because our glasses were constantly being topped up. The staff were fantastic, and the food was to the usual brilliant standard. The only thing we would have changed was maybe getting the sliders earlier, and perhaps end with something sweet to perk us back up.

Having been some of the first to try Boozy Bowling, the venue were also really keen to get our feedback on how this could be improved in the future, which I really liked.

Here's what my pals had to say about our afternoon of fun...

• We had the best time! The private lanes really add to the group activity, and meant that we weren't fighting to be heard over other people.
• Wasn't sure what to expect but very pleasantly surprised!
• We didn't expect the private lanes, and were absolutely thrilled when we arrived. Such a great idea.
• It was amazing! Loved the private alley, felt very indulgent.
• Our glasses were never less than half full, the staff were attentive without being overpowering, and the food came just at the right intervals.
• The private lane section was ace. The staff were amazing and so attentive (glasses never empty and all friendly and fun to speak to) 
• Loved every minute, the staff were fabulous and didn't make us feel at all ashamed of our gluttonous behaviour

I urge you to try this deal the next time it's on. It's amazing value at £35 per person, and looks like it'll only get better next time round.

Cabana, Manchester

So we were well peckish, and about to go and watch Anthrax and Slayer; a Brazilian meat emporium was the obvious choice (nods to Sepultura). We arrived in Manchester to near 'end of days' style weather, and threats of going on a carousel, which incidentally never materialised. 

Cabana is one of the latest openings in the newly refurbished Corn Exchange. I've already tried quite a few of the new places, but was captivated by Cabana's twinkly lights and meaty promises. When I was asked to review it, I jumped at the chance. Pre-gig was the perfect opportunity - two birds and all that. 

We were enthusiastically greeted by a young chap whose name I unfortunately didn't catch, but he was very keen to tell us all about Cabana and was spot on with his recommendations! 

Two for one cocktails... my old friend. We couldn't resist veering away from the food menu to warm those cockles (cockles that were almost frozen off by that Arctic style blast outside). For some reason I appear not to have taken pictures of them all; that was obviously eagerness to drink them.

We were a bit over-faced by the menu, so were happy to run with whatever our chappie recommended. I must apologise for the quality of the pictures; it was quite dark inside and outside looked like it might never be light again.

Starters
Guaca-molho: I love a bit of guacamole with tortilla chips. I could cane my own body-weight in them, and on occasion, have come pretty damn close! I liked the little bits of sweet onion mixed in.

Spicy Malagueta chicken wings: That Malagueta sauce is on everything, including a big bottle on the table. Overkill? Nope. It's immense! Sweet, a little spicy and all kinds of ace. Run with it. 

Parmesan and wild honey: Who would have thought that this would be so great? I can't say I've ever had parmesan in chunks before, but this was bloody marvellous!
Pulled pork sliders: Little bits of pulled pork rammed inside dough balls. Very clever. I tried to eat mine in some sort of lady-like fashion. Don't bother, it makes more mess! Down in one please.

We were a little surprised when the manager suggested that we both have the same main, but ran with it. Feel bad about that two birds comment now, because that's what we had!

Spicy Malagueta chicken skewers: There's that sauce again, but I was secretly quite pleased! Those little charred bits from the grill were absolutely delicious. The sauce is perfectly sweet, and turns quite sticky when cooked. Mouth is watering whilst writing, again. 

Sides
Sweet potato and standard fries: Exactly what you would expect; crunchy fries which were well seasoned. It was nice to have a bit of both.
Rio beans: One of my favourite items that we tried. These beans had a lovely after-kick from what we thought may be smoked paprika. Lovely.
Homeslaw: This is a 'dressing' style coleslaw for all of those mayo haters out there. Really crunchy with a subtle tang that went well with the sweet chicken.

We declared ourselves way too full to attempt a dessert, for we feared that we had already eaten enough to make us nod off through Raining Blood. We did however perk ourselves back up with another Caipirinha, which seemed to do the trick.

I'm very excited by everything that's going on in the Corn Exchange. Firstly, there are lots of lovely restaurants and bars in the same venue, meaning you're never far away from somewhere to have a quick drink before or after your meal. Secondly, it's a stones-throw from Victoria Station, so there's little wasted travelling time. Lastly, it's all inside which is perfect for nesh people like me. I'm not a fan of winter and all the horrors which accompany it.

Go to Cabana with your mates if you like barbecue charred meats, plentiful sides, chatty staff and lovely cocktails.


Disclaimer: I was invited to Cabana to try out their meaty goodness. I was under no obligation to get excited about that sauce, eat so many beans or talk their waiter's head off. 

Cane and Grain - The First Floor Bar, Manchester

Before we start, I have a couple of questions for you. Do you like cocktails? Yes? Great. Now then, how do you feel about the kind of food where you end up with sticky hands, bits dripped on the table, and quite possibly a splatter on your top? You're down with that? Oh good. If you did answer 'no' to these, it's probably best that you stop reading now. Time is precious my friend.

I first went to Cane and Grain around this time last year. It had just opened, and my friend Emma and I ate too many ribs and sides. No, there was no learning from this on the subsequent visit. Their hidden First Floor Bar has become a bit of a favourite of mine recently, with its ambient seating area, elegant cocktails and terrifying taxidermy light fittings. The staff are always an utter delight to have a chat to, and are well versed in the drinks and food they serve.

So then, off we trot the other day to check out some of the brand new cocktails, which were helped along with some of the tantalising meaty treats as mentioned above.

We were greeted by Jen; a lovely bubbly lady with a genuine enthusiasm for everything she described to us. We agreed that the best way forward was to remove any element of choice, as everything sounded far too wonderful to possibly choose between them.

I'm going to cover cocktails first, as the second you clap eyes on the food, you're going to be transported elsewhere for a bit.

1862 (left):  A strong bourbon based number with a peppermint kick.
Amaretto Sour (right): Sour but with sweet almond from the Amaretto.

Corn n'oil (left): Another strong one, this time rum based with a hint of lime.
Casablanca (right): More rum, but with tropical flavours. A bit cakey, this can only be a good thing.

Bees Gimlet (left): Gin with syrup and honey. Sweet and simple, again with dessert-like qualities.
Ramos Gin Fizz (right): Creamy cocktails turn my stomach as I'm not a fan of milk, however, this opened my mind! Gorgeous. Gin based with egg whites, citrus and sugar syrup.

So to the food. I should have taken pictures of our hands and the table afterwards. Sauce bloody everywhere! 

Beef Short Ribs with Dr.Pepper sauce: Why did I not take a picture of the inside of these ribs? Oh I remember why... because we were too busy eating them! So tender, sweet and sticky. Big old Jacob's Ladder style bones too. 

Half Rack of Baby Back ribs with rum sauce: Smaller and sweeter than the short ribs, and smothered in rum sauce with soaked sultanas. My mouth is watering, and I'm considering making a trip there this very second. 

C&G Burger: Nothing standard about this house burger. A quarter pounder with smoked pulled pork, Monterey Jack and pickles. It ran down my wrist. Gloppy burgers rock my socks.

Truffle Cheese Fries: Seriously, Cane and Grain do amazing fries. Never underestimate a good portion of fries folks. Recall how disappointed you are when you get a pale, limp chip? These are golden and crisp and salty. Yes. I didn't have these particular ones as I have a very melodramatic reaction to truffle, and my eyes were on the prize that was the 'Hot as F*ck' item below...

Hot As F*CK Fries: Christ alive. Happiness is hot as f*ck fries. Fries, Monterey Jack, Louisiana hot sauce, crispy onion bits and wait for it... bacon wrapped jalapenos! Anger has set in. I need these now. I'm having a Chinese for tea, but it's just not going to cut it.
Carolina Slaw: I've become very fond of this kind of 'slaw. This is what happens when your co-diners are generally adverse to mayo. Crunchy veg with a tangy dressing. 

So I've upset myself horribly reliving my First Floor Bar experience. I have the most horrendous craving for ribs, which will not be satisfied by anything within a reasonable distance of my chair. Yes, I felt like I may never be clean again when I left, and I'm fairly sure I had hot sauce in my hair. Word of advice, go with someone who doesn't mind a clean up operation with 'Wet Ones' before you leave - those with cleanliness OCD will not enjoy it one bit!

Go to Cane and Grain if you love cocktails, bones covered in barbecued meat, and a belting chat with the folk who serve them.


Disclaimer: We were invited to the First Floor Bar to try the new menus. We were under no obligation to say nice stuff about them, or clean the table with wet wipes afterwards, but it was quite frankly a slip hazard. 

Yard and Coop, Manchester

Yard and Coop was a bit of a last minute decision, but we needed brain food. I had to go anyway, because their strawberry milkshake was on my 'to do' list for the post Charlie and I are doing on Manchester's best milkshakes. It was practically essential... 

It had a pleasant vibe about the place, they were playing half decent music, and the front of house folks were friendly types. I'd clocked an odd looking bottle of blue stuff, which I was later informed was blue Curaçao by my learned amigo. Although there isn't a huge selection of cocktails, the two I had were pretty, pretty good. 

Juice Springsteen - vodka and blue Curaçao with lemon juice and cherry bitters topped with apple juice: Yes, I did buy it because of the name, what of it? This was a bit like sherbet in a bottle, and made me feel a bit giddy. Good stuff!

Paulaner Heffe-Weiss Dunkel (5.3% ABV): A decent selection with a tick in most beer boxes. This was a pale wheat beer which wasn't overly strong for a craft type. This was later followed by a Kona Firerock (5.9% ABV) IPA.

Strawberry milkshake: I'm not giving too much away here because there is a list pending. I shall say this though; it was awesome. 

Jimi Hendrix - El Jimador Blanco tequila, Hendrick's gin and Fevertree Elderflower garnished with cucumber and watermelon (sans cucumber): Cucumber is the devil's fruit, so I asked them to lose it. This drink was huge! I loved the delicate elderflower flavour and chunks of watermelon.

I warn you, this is what happens when your friends love sides as much as you do. I can't decide whether that look on our waiter's face was saying 'bravo!' or 'you horrendous greedy pigs'. I can't say that I consider either to be an insult...

Buttermilk fried chicken - boneless thigh, Yard and Coop original dusting with Bourbon BBQ sauce: Thigh was definitely the bet decision. More flavour and beautifully tender. I love the idea of mixing and matching the cut, dusting and sauces though. Have a different combo every time you go!

The Bee’s Knees wings - cayenne pepper, lime and honey, served with blue cheese sauce: These are pretty big wings! I was a proper lightweight and only tried a bit of that delicious sauce, but I was assured that they were 'bloody lovely'.

But what if I want wings!?

Massive Cock Burger - full buttermilk chicken breast, chorizo, salty battered jalapeños, lettuce, tomato, mayo and siracha chilli sauce in a brioche bun, topped with dill pickle and served with chips: Slightly prone to exaggeration... I wouldn't say it was massive, but then again I'm used to huge burgers like Jon's Steeplejack at The Farmer's Arms. It was pretty darn good though, and the chips are no afterthought either; beautifully crisp and perfect dipping material for the magnificent sauces.

Gravy and chip shop curry: So to the sauces. I was hoping that the gravy might be the (dare I say it) KFC type which is pale and viscous and spicy and tremendous in every way. Sue my ass. I like it. Anyway, it was not, but was still so good we practically dealt with every drop. Chip shop curry... genius idea. I'd like to take this home and eat a vat of it in my pyjamas with a bowl of chips. Dirty bird.

Onion petals with chorizo - onion pieces in crispy tempura batter with crispy chorizo sausage, horseradish and beetroot salsa: I was blinded by the word chorizo and didn't read the rest of it like a buffoon! Petals, perfect. Chorizo, champion. Beet-rot?! Mortal enemy number two right there. I accidentally ate it too. I'm sure it's wonderful for those beet loving perverts amongst you, but I'll be sticking to the petals on their own in future. Close one that.

Battered dill pickles in tempura batter: Oh yes, these were more like it. Tangy jalapenos deep fried in batter? Yes please. Although they had a little warmth, they weren't so hot that you couldn't taste the loveliness within.

Thai street salad - red cabbage, cauliflower, carrot and red chilli: Gee whizz, this had a kick to it! A lovely change to coleslaw, this salad was sweet, crunchy and had a considerable amount of fire in its belly!

Yard and Coop wasn't what I thought it was going to be. I imagined something a little more fast-foody. What we actually got was a friendly place which was comfortable to sit in, with options stretching beyond chicken, chips and spicy beans. The menu has a fantastic range of sides and accompaniments, which is perfect for lovers of 'bits'. It's the perfect place to go with your pals to have a little chat over a few drinks, with some rather nice food.

Joe's Southern Kitchen and Bar, London

I really like fried chicken; almost as much as I like burgers. Joe's Southern Kitchen and Bar was on my radar this time last year, but we ended up going somewhere else. Bozos. We were back in London for a few days this week, and decided on the last minute to give Joe's a try. We went to the original one in Covent Garden, but there's also a new branch opening in Kentish Town.  

The bar area displays an impressive amount of spirit bottles (with lots of tequila might I add...) and the dining room is comfortable yet sleek; the kind of place that wouldn't look out of place in New York. 

On arrival, we were given a choice of where to sit; either in the sunshine at the front, or in the shadows at the back. We opted for the back due to a number of rather excitable children in the former. One barometer for greatness (for us anyway) is the selection of beers available. Whilst the choice was not huge, they did have a select number of little belters, including Anchor Steam. I was spitting feathers after a dash on the tube and minor battle with a ticket machine, so opted for the homemade lemongrass lemonade. We were revived and refreshed pronto. 

We were booked into St John for dinner later that day, so we sensibly opted to keep it light. Fail. If you read my blog regularly, you'll realise we made the same mistake with Mishkin's less than two weeks ago. Some folk never learn.

Coq’n’balls - fried chicken and monterey jack cheese balls with hot sauce: Paddy took great pleasure in ordering these... Fried chicken, mixed with cheese, covered in breadcrumbs and fried. They must have been so smug when they popped these on the menu.

Crispy Southern Fried Half Bird - sweet tea brined bird with lemon dust and tabasco honey: It's like a KFC bucket, only if they used proper chicken, and it was actually good. This has set the bar for any future fried chicken I may sample. It featured this afternoon in my mental 'what could you just eat?' thing. It made me angry. This is a good thing. It was a wonderful balance of moist chicken and ultra crispy, seasoned skin.

 Southern fried potatoes: Like roasties, only spicy, and therefore better.

Blue Plate Special - Joe's Southern Fried chicken meal with fries, chicken salt and BBQ pulled pork beans, served with Joe’s homemade lemongrass lemonade: This was a tenner. Yes, that's right, ten English pounds. Although I chose lemonade, you can also pick from beer or wine. Utterly bargainous. I ate about half owing to the fact I was being a total lightweight. Those beans were delirious. Spicy, with bits of pulled pork. Heaven. Ten quid...

I'm hoping that Joe's will jump on the bandwagon and set up shop in Manchester like every other London based bugger, otherwise I may have to go every time I visit London. What made this experience even better was the wonderful service we received too. Every member of staff we came in contact with seemed to be genuinely happy, and wanted us to have a good time. Fake or not - they're nailing it. One word of advice - go.