The MCR Coffee

Hmmm, a bit deflated writing this one — which shouldn’t be the case after a flat white.
The name is great and it pretty much screams «independent coffee shop lover in Manchester come and try my beans» however under the surface it’s just not packing much punch.
It wasn’t bad by any means but the coffee was average and my croissant didn’t come with any jam or butter (fine, but still shouting average in your face).
The young girl seemingly holding the fort by herself was doing a great job and was pleasant when serving me and delivering my choices, however her alone was not enough to bump this up.
They had an interesting selection of sandwiches though so I’ll try and stop by again soon to taste one of those and then review at full capacity — it does have the potential to be a good spot but right now, you’re middle of the road MCR Coffee.

The MCR coffee co. is based on Oldham street right in the heart of the NQ.
I popped in as I was looking to try somewhere new, but it didn’t live up to my expectations.
The coffee isn’t as great as I would expect from a specialist coffee company and, serving it in mugs, doesn’t make it look great either.
With the likes of megastars Foundation Coffee and Fig and Sparrow just around the corner, serving better coffee, this place is a bit of a let down.

Fair coffee and chai. The wifi is not working on the last two times I have visited. Needs sorting.

In an attempt to avoid a chain coffee place, I walked right into one! Unawares, a friend and I ordered a cappuccino and a flat white. I was happy with the £2 price tag due to the general lack of good coffee at a somewhat reasonable price these days. While waiting for the order, I admired the posters of gigs and things happening around the city but recoiled in horror at the huge ads for insurance or something or other plastered to the tables! Worry crept in, and rightly so. Within several minutes of leaving the place we both dumped our coffee-​flavoured-​milk-​gone-​bad tasting drinks and went elsewhere to satisfy my friend’s craving. I was done with «coffee» for the day after that experience! c*

Oldham Street location? Wow, now that’s about as central as you can get in the Northern Quarter. Like Java, Coffee Republic is one of the oldest coffee bars in Manchester as I remember it from my weekend trips to the city to buy my latest poster from Panic in Afflecks. Unlike Java, it’s a chain, but a more wholesome option than the likes of Nero, Bucks or Costa. And there’s just something a bit more boho about it. The chalkboard menu that looks as if it’s been hurriedly and artistically scrawled together, the soundtrack from the mid-​90s which this morning meant me hearing ‘How Bizarre’ for the first time since high school (recently a friend of mine said that Manchester never left the 90s, and I agree with her), and special offers like an Americano before 11am being a mere quid. One for the earlybirds! I took full advantage of that.
The outside seating is great for people-​watching along one of the best stocked vintage boulevards in the area — although the shop-​front today was graced by one of those classic Manchester characters, the N4C. That’s a Northern Quarter Crazy. She smoked, she gurned, she had full-​on conversations with herself. Like an urban fox, you’re almost guaranteed to see one or two at certain times of the day. Anyway, there’s something pleasant about having a cuppa adjacent to tattoo parlours, piercing studios and sex shops. Or is that just me? Hey, I embrace the Soho of the North! Here you can get all your archetypal classics… hot foamy beverages, herbal teas, sandwiches and cake, and there’s a few unusual options like the special milkshakes. My Americano didn’t appear to pack much of a punch until I was walking past the G-​Mex about half an hour later and appeared to be in the throes of delayed coffee shakes all of a sudden. Those cheeky beans that creep up on you afterwards, I ought to give them a clip around their little ears!
There are some fantastic places to enjoy the very same things on Thomas Street but if your shopping limits you to Oldham Street, there’s nothing wrong with refreshing yourself at Coffee Republic instead. It fills a gap; it does the job, and the coffee’s alright too. My bone of contention is the wifi. Oh, the free wifi. Yes, it is indeed free, but it times you out after… wait for it… 20 minutes. And then you have to go up to the counter for a new ticket. Which seems to be a mercenary way to either kick out stragglers or get you to order more stuff. Naughty Coffee Republic, naughty! If your counterparts in the very same area can offer it all day with no limits, why can’t you?

Walking around on Oldham Street. Day dreaming and looking for few new shops. And after a bit, what can I see? Coffee Republic. Mhm… I’m the coffee lover, not just a coffee lover, so obviously, went in to check it out. It looks good I must say. I mean the decorations, the cups, give you a nice feeling. So, I’ve ordered a latte and I’ve decided to stay outside to enjoy a tiny bit of the sun. My usual cigarette without which I can’t survive, and my new cup of coffee. And? And nothing, a massive disappointment. The coffee was bleah. I like it strong, and tasty, to feel like I’m getting all the energy in less than a minute. This sounded a bit weird, I need to admit. Anyway, the coffee was rubbish. I’m not sure if it was just me, with my pure luck, that I got the worst coffee for the day, or if that’s the usual coffee that they serve, but certainly, I won’t be around to verify. The lady that served me was really nice. I’ll give credit for that. And the coffee shop is quite small and full of hearts around. I’ll give credit for that as well.

The thing that attracted me into Coffee Republic was the fact that I could get an Oreo milkshake in there. This sounded like heaven to me. In fact, you can get a good variety of chocolate milkshake treats in Coffee Republic. Nowhere near as many as somewhere like M1lkshake in the Arndale Market, but it’s there as an option nonetheless.
In the end I decided an Oreo milkshake was a bit extravagant so I went for a small hot chocolate instead. £2.10 wasn’t the cheapest price ever but it wasn’t the worst and it tasted just fine, so I couldn’t really complain. There’s a bit of seating outside Coffee Republic so I sat outside for a few minutes and watched the world go by and being nicely warmed by my hot chocolate.
I did enquire about using one of the two computers at Coffee Republic for the internet. I was told that the wifi is free if you have your own laptop which is great, but using one of the computers costs £1 for 15 minutes and £3 for an hour. Personally, I think this is quite expensive.