Grinch

Came here for a recently
event which was in the basement. It was jam-​packed with about 50 people. They staff were pretty quick serving but there was not much choice. I think the only bottled beer (lager) I think was Estrella — a beer from Barcelona. Although its a nice beer, would have nice to have more choice.
According to their web site, you can hire this area for occasions and it suitable for 100 people «bar style» or 60 seated.
Maybe I should give it ²⁄₅ because of the lack of bottled beer choices but that would seem a bit harsh. It was as Unilocal says «A-​OK».

I came here for a social event on a Saturday night.
I really liked the space downstairs where our event was happening. The mirrors on the wall did make the place feel spacious even though it got busy in the evening.
Cocktails were nice and well-​priced.
Next time I’m trying out the pizzas!

After some walking around with Friends, we decided to go into Grinch. The relaxed atmosphere, super-​friendly staff are the reasons why I go to Grinch, so we sat ourselves down and got a few drinks.
Great service on this occasion, and a few good cocktails never hurt.

Looking for a quiet drinking spot in the time between New Year and ‘back to work’ (January 5^th) proved difficult — most independents are taking some time off, so we found ourselves slightly perplexed as to where to go.
After some walking around, we headed into Grinch; there were a few tables occupied and a good atmosphere, so we sat ourselves down and ordered a bottle of white wine.
There seemed to only be one member of staff at that moment — around 3pm — but they steadily started to arrive behind the bar. This caused no problem whatsoever however as he went from table to table to ensure everyone was happy and had enough to drink, as did the additional members of staff when they arrived.
Once we had finished our wine, it was happy hour (5 — 7) so indulged in a cocktail each. I had the sweet shop shake up, which was just as sickly but delicious as it sounds. Served in a large mason jar style mug, it was totally worth the £5 paid. Tasting not unlike melted skittles, there was plenty of ice to water down the sweetness, and the pic&mix sweets definitely swayed me to order!
Great service on this occasion, and a few good cocktails never hurt.

Well done Grinch — your chicken won me over.
Admittedly I had very high expectations about this place. Friends had been and recommended it but for one reason or another I hadn’t tried it until last night. We had booked for 7:30 and by the looks of it, it was a good job we did; the compact dining space was near enough full.
Our server was a little moody, which left us feeling a bit deflated. Every one else around us seemed to be interacting with their server and having fun — perhaps we caught her on a bad night. Everything seemed like a bit of an effort and we had to ask to order drinks.
Three of us ordered the Special Fried Chicken and one had the cheeseburger. The food arrived really fast. It was fresh, tasty and moreish. The housemade bbq sauce was incredible. The crisp coating on the chicken was perfect although the chicken inside could have been a little more moist.
As with so many places, the toilets were a massive disappointment. I know reviews should centre around the food, service and atmosphere of a place, but the toilets are all part and parcel of the experience (especially when I’ve had a pint of cider) and these were just plain odd. Tiny cubicles, messy, strange painted tiled walls and wobbly fixtures. Apparently the mens weren’t great either.
Also, I was really focussed and involved in conversation for most of it so didn’t get to look at the décor. It was only upon leaving that I noticed the painted porn on the walls — very odd.
I’d eat the chicken all day long, so the toilets, service and porn are kind of forgiven.

Slow service. Loud music. Poor veggie options.

The location is nice but the food isn’t very good for the price. I ordered a chicken dish that was basically pub fare.

Bit of a tacky, chain-​like feel to the place. Nothing too wrong with it though and it’s never too busy.

I’m glad Grinch has got good Unilocal ratings. I was worried it would fall prey to the too expensive hostilities, which are a concern for us all. Personally I feel that this is one of those all too few places that really do justify their price tag.
Grinch is a lovely wine bar, situated a minutes walk from King Street, in the poshes and trendies area of Manchester’s city centre. Its got a few tables outside, but the interior is the main draw. Its got a huge elegant bar, and old double-​width spiral staircase and a wall-​length mirror which doubles the size of the room by illusion.
Its got a great range of drinks with some lovely cocktails that are cheap between 5 and 7pm, and some crisp pints of Moretti in the correct stemed pint glasses.
Food is great too. The pizzas are lovely, and relatively affordable. I particularly recommend getting their bowls of olives as a drinking snack. Lovely.
Its also a decent place to take the family, and they allow kids too.

Judging from its side street location and unimpressive front seating area I did not have high expectations of Grinch. I only ventured in there because a friend persuaded me that it was the place to be 5−7pm due to it’s half price cocktails for students. Well, I must say as soon as I stepped in the door I realised that I had underestimated this place. Low lights, modestly artistic, elegant and cosy. Nice.
This relaxed place serves real authentic food, mainly delicious stonebaked pizzas at acceptable prices, but you would also feel very welcome just chilling here with a cocktail, absorbing the peaceful atmosphere. Oh and the cocktails are real cocktails. Not for the feeble!
Whenever I have paid a visit to this charming place it has always been rather empty. Perhaps due to its non-​descriptive name, and the fact that there is nothing exterior that would attract a passer-​by to walk in. So, dear readers, trust me and make a trip. Especially if you are a student avaliable between 5 and 7pm, who wants cheap cocktails and discounted pizzas.
Oh and it is also absoloutly the perfect place for a date! Enjoy.

Grinch is the kind of place that is ideal for meeting up in town after work or before going to a play or a gig. It’s generally packed out between 5 and 7pm, the reason being that the £5 pizza deal and happy hour cocktails are a bargain. Like everyone else, I think it’s great for these reasons, but would be unlikely to go at any other time. The rest of the food can be quite expensive (it’s okay, but not amazing and pretty overpriced) and also the tables are quite tightly packed, so you do quite often have to do a bit of a contortionist act when sitting down or standing up. These are only very minor negatives though — this is a place that knows its market and caters very well for it.

«A cautionary tale — grinch is not a fast food restaurant — everything is cooked to order, in busy periods a delay may occur — so relax !»
The relaxed atmosphere, super-​friendly staff and efficient service is one of the main reasons I’ve been going to Grinch for over a decade. The other is their legendary happy hour — which runs 5−7pm every day of the week — and includes killer cocktails for £3.50 and mouthwatering, stonebaked pizzas for £5.99. I’ve sampled most of both and have never left disappointed — which speaks volumes about Grinch’s consistency and kick-​ass chefs!
The menu also includes nachos, potato skins, tapas and bruschetta for starters and nibbles and steak and fries, caesar salad, fish and chips and burgers with swiss cheese, dill pickles and fries for mains. For me though, it’s all about the Rossa pizza — goats cheese and yellow peppers gently melted on top of a crispy base of mozarella and tomato sauce. So lipsmackingly good you’ll want to stay long after happy hour and order another one!

I do like Grinch. It isn’t very noticeable from the outside which I actually quite like, you don’t get any old punter walking in here. I like the laid back music played here in the evenings, the staff are always great and the drinks, if you make sure you come between 5−7pm happy hour, are delicious and cheap. The pizzas, which are actually pretty tasty (in particular the orientale duck — sounds strange but surprisingly good) but there’s a variety of other dishes including Thai curry, burgers and Moroccan tagine. Your best bet is to come straight after work.

Grinch is a weird one. First of all, it’s hidden down a little street and you’d never know it was there, it’s not one you stumble across. However, when you do, it’s a nice suprise.
We wandered in here one day to take advantage of the happy hour, cocktails for £3.50 and they do a deal on pizzas too.
The waiter jumped on us as soon as we got through the door, despite the place already being buzzing with customers due to the city centre location and the happy hour. Throughout our meal the waiter was beyond attentive, the bartender was skilled and brought our drinks over himself rather than waiting for the waiter to be ready, a nice touch.
The food was excellent, the pizzas are huge! And freshly made too which was a huge bonus.
Our intention was just for a quick after work catch up but we ended up staying a bit too long and getting slightly merry.
This place is perfect for catching up with friends or even a date, the relaxing atmosphere is perfect to make you feel at ease, there is no pretention about Grinch, it’s simply a good restaurant in the centre of Manchester.

I’m confused.
The food is delicious and well priced.
The place has a really warm and intimate ambience, perfect for dinner for two.
The staff are helpful and friendly.
Saturday night sees Jerome McMurry play some swinging soul and jazz.
All things considered, this is a nice place.
So why is it named after that bright green, Christmas wrecking, narky bastard who always ate alone?

5−7pm: All pizzas £5
A great deal as the pizzas are delicious and well worth a fiver.
Drinks are fairly expensive but the place has a nice atmosphere and good service — perfect for a quick bite in central manchester.

Grinch is a technically classed as a wine bar, in my opinion it’s more of a relaxed casual restaurant. The food is reasonable, the Fish and Chip are quite nice, chips are just frozen fries though. They have a happy hour between 5−7pm which is pretty good value if you are having a couple of cocktails and a pizza. Didn’t have a pizza myself when I last went but if I go again I would definitely order one, they look very nice and for £5 during Happy Hour you can’t go wrong.
Drinks are a bit on the pricey side outside of the offers and the cocktails are nice, done well but nothing to write home about.
I did note that it’s probably best to book a table (especially on a weekend) here as I noticed the doorman asking people before they got in if they have a table booked — and ones who didn’t were advised to wait or go elsewhere — guessing it gets quite busy.
Ok place to go.

I have been visiting Grinch for over ten years now and i still love it! It’s easy going, good simple food, great cocktails, awesome décor, friendly staff, reasonable prices — what’s not to love? It’s really quirky and has a real buzz of manchester about the place. Check out duck and hoisin pizza or the thai curry, followed by dime bar pie… mmmmmmmmm. thanks Grinch.

The Grinch has a beautiful interior, and is one of those cool city centre places to have a quick munch.
The star of the menu’s seem to be the pizzas. I had a chilli chicken one which was very sickly but imaginative at least. The prices are quite steep considering the quality of the food; £9 for my Pizza.
It’s a nice place to go anyway, worth trying out if you are looking for somewhere more chic than Pizza Hut.

A nice restaurant located centrally off Cross Street. Its got a good menu — the mezze and the duck pizza are recommended — with a stylish interior. You can come here for just drinks, or for a full meal, and there is nice seating outside on Chapel Walks. Staff are lovely. Its no Michelin starred place but it has a good atmosphere, does what it does very well and has been popular for years — always a good sign!