The Cook Shop

This is a great cookshop! I don’t know if you’ll find better in the city centre. He even has the more obscure items!
For general cooking, catering, and especially baking, this guy has a great selection. If you’re looking for something but can’t find it, ask him and he probably will locate it within the shop. If not, he can probably order it in for you.
The owner of this stall is very friendly and helpful, and has been able to get things for me I doubt I could get anywhere except the internet.

The Cook Shop have one stall in the Arndale Market, another in Ashburner Street Market (Bolton) plus an online shop ‘Kitchen Details’. There are signs of a real cook behind this business. For starters, The Cook Shop emphasize the importance of a good kitchen knife: they stock three of the world’s top brands — Henckel, Shun and Global. I have a Global knife myself — a beautiful thing — strong and sharp. Take the tomato test — try slicing a tomato. Clean slices means your knife is sharp; a squashed tomato means you need a better knife. I could go on, but I think you get the idea! (BTW, if you are doing a big spend at The Cook Shop you might like to talk to the main man — the girl pointed out a wiry Asian gent busy on his mobile/​laptop as the one who did all the buying).
The rest of their stock is similarly high quality top brands — display baking equipment/​cupcakes, mason jars, julienne peelers, microplaners, potato ricers, food mills and some Le Creuset items. And if they don’t have what you’re looking for in stock, try asking them to order it for you — every item of their stock is so well-​chosen that I would put a lot of trust in the judgement of their buyer. Plus, it’s an independent local business — so let’s support it.

Okay, a little backup here, friends who know me well. My name’s Emma-​Lou H, and I’m a baker. Cakes and crumbles, pies and quiches, brownies and flapjacks, cookies and shortbreads… if it can be eaten alongside a nice cup of tea or mug of coffee, I can throw it together. But every now and then a recipe will crop up that challenges me somewhat. I can find those ingredients, sure, but where’s my springform tin? My electric hand whisker? My multi-​tiered cupcake stand?
Here! From knives Patrick Bateman would be proud of to decorative doilies for show-​standard prettiness, everything for the amateur baker or serious chef is right where you’d need it. It’s a tiny little spot in the Arndale Market crammed with delights from some hugely recognisable brands, and it represents a genuine treasure trove of cooking brilliance. Look out for little gadgets and measurers that make your job far easier and storage solutions for your kitchen. A classic example of how some great local shopping can be done in the eclectic Arndale Market — make sure you stop here before whipping up some Christmas yummies!