Alston Bar & Beef At The Corn Exchange

Manchester’s first speciality steak and gin restaurant opens in the autumn at The Corn Exchange. The much-anticipated restaurant and bar will be accessed via a dedicated external entrance on Cathedral Street and will bring the highest quality steaks in the UK to the city, alongside a selection of the world’s finest gins.

The 160-cover venue, which will contain an additional private dining area, spreads over 6.500 square feet and is the first English venue for its award-winning Scottish counterpart Alston Bar and Beef in Glasgow. The £2 million restaurant will be the first venue in Manchester to offer Tweed Valley steak which is selected from the top one per cent of Scottish beef and dry hung for 35 days, for optimum flavour. The chosen cut of beef will be seasoned and cooked in a high spec Montague oven which can reach a temperature of 600 degrees, sealing in the flavour to deliver a tender and delicious steak.

At the bar, an initial selection of 58 gins from all over the world will be available, several of which are distilled here in Manchester, including Manchester Three Rivers and Manchester Gin. A selection of bespoke gin-infusions, created in-house will also be on offer. Each will be created using a blend of botanicals, many of which have been foraged from the Manchester area and created via a cold-compound process.

Guests will enter the venue via a feature staircase and will be greeted by the bespoke stylish bar centred around the extensive gin offering. The restaurant space will draw the eye to a 10m-wide mural feature wall which has been specially commissioned from Manchester-based street artist Tank Petrol. The space is completed by a high spec show kitchen and private dining room catering for up to 12 guests.