As summer is fast approaching, it’s the perfect time for days out, romantic dates, or fun plans with mates. Although, since we all know that the UK weather can’t ever be fully trusted, I thought it would be helpful to give you some fun indoor and outdoor ideas for dates. These are ideal for mates dates and would be perfect first date ideas too! So whether you’re heading into your hot girl single summer, or you’ve been checking out some elite dating apps, and want to plan some fun first dates, hopefully this will help!
Casual Dining
Manchester is the perfect city for incredible food served in a casual, affordable style, so you don’t need to be suited and booted or remortgage your house to enjoy great grub. Manchester really is a cultural hotspot with hundreds of options from authentic international delicacies, to locally sourced and home grown dishes. So the only issue you’ll have is making a decision!
Koffee Pot/Birria Brothers:
Koffee Pot has been a Manchester institution since the 80’s, serving up incredible british breakfasts in its classic 60’s greasy spoon style restaurant, complete with egg and bacon wall paper.
Choose from Traditional English, Irish, Scottish or veggie/vegan fry ups, as well as a selection of classics including turkish eggs, pancakes and waffles. But as the neon sign will tell you, certainly don’t discount their famous hot salt beef bagel.
If breakfasts isn’t your thing, you’ll be excited to hear that Koffee Pot has a new room mate.
Once breakfast is finished, the lights are dimmed, the candles are lit and Birria Brothers Mexican takes to the stage in Koffee Pot’s kitchen, ready to serve up a huge choice incredible slow cooked meats and veggie options in fresh taco shells, along with other classic’s like loaded nachos and quesadilla, and a deliciously traditional rotating specials menu, including ox tongue fritters and fried pig ears.
Not to mention their extensive list of delicious margaritas, which by the way, are 2 for the price of 1 during their happy hour. Whats not to love?
Elnecot
A long standing classic in Manchester’s coolest neighbourhood Ancoats, Elnecot offers an incredible menu of british cuisine with intercontinental flavours and twists, alongside a delicious cocktail menu and a weekend bottomless brunch option too.
Elnecot is the perfect venue for a casual vibe, without sacrificing food quality. The windows that surround 2 sides of the restaurant make for a bright, spacious feel and the friendly, helpful staff make a visit to Elnecot a really special experience.
However, in my opinion, the real reason to visit Elnecot is their summer BBQ.
Outside on the corner of Ancoat’s thriving Cutting Room Square, Elnecot’s huge chrome BBQ sparkles on summer days, and its impossible to resist the smell of delicious beef burgers, lamb chops and a rotating selections of other BBQ staples.
Can you think of a better way to spend a summer afternoon than sat out in the sunshine eating delicious BBQ food, without having to light it and clean it yourself!?
Elnecot BBQ is also available to take away and conveniently a very short walk from Ancoats Cotton Field Marina. The perfect spot for a summers day.
Ancoats Marina
Around the corner from cutting room square, you’ll find the beautiful Cottonfield Marina. A classic stop off for traveling narrowboat holiday makers, and home to many other boat dwellers, the marina and its surrounding park is a perfect sun trap spot for picnics, take away BBQ or just a little break from the hustle and bustle of the city. Why not order yourself some picnic or BBQ food and take a trip to the water? I’ve been obsessed with some of the BBQ selection at Iceland. Plus you can get free next day delivery when you spend over £40 so you can plan your date ahead of time!
The marina is also home to some fantastic bars with out door space to sit out by the water, including cocktail bars Finders Keepers and House of Esk, wine and small plate connoisseurs Flawd, and beer house Cask, all great locations for a casual date sat out in the sun, or when the clouds inevitably come, great spots to find a cosy corner inside.
Outdoor space in the city:
If Ancoats Marina isn’t your thing, there’s plenty other outdoor spots around the city to find a little peace and quiet for a picnic in the heart of Manchester.
Castlefield Marina: On the other side of town, you’ll find Castlefield Marina, with beautiful walks along the canal side, plenty bars and restaurants with outdoor seating and fantastic food, and grassy banks and benches to sit around one of Manchester’s oldest canal networks, with views of old brick mills and waterworks.
Parsonage Gardens: A tiny little park, and a moments peace, a stone throw from Deansgates busy shopping area, ideal to take a little picnic and catch the sunshine in a pretty, quiet park.
St Johns Garden: A short walk from Spinningfields, where you’ll find many delicious food options, including an M&S food market, perfect for picnic snacks, is St Johns Garden, another beautiful green space, hidden away behind Quay Street’s Everyman Theatre.
Sackville Gardens: Right on the edge of the vibrant gay village and Kampus complex, full of beautiful bars and casual restaurants with outdoor seating such as Madre (Tacos), Nells (Pizza) and Red Light (fancy cocktails), is Sackville Gardens, a great little green area to take your Nells pizza, or a coffee and pastry from Local favourites Pollen Bakery.
Alternative Picnic Options:
We’ve already talked about some of the great take away options and where you can take a short walk to eat them, but if supermarket sausage rolls and triangle sandwiches isn’t your thing, here’s a list of some really great ‘on the go’ foods you and your date can get around the city and take a romantic stroll to one of the many parks and squares in the area.
Elnecot BBQ – Cutting Room Square, Ancoats
Fat Pats sub rolls – Portland Street
Rudies Pizza – Cutting Room Square, Peter Street & Portland Street.
Nells Pizza – KampusGreek Gyros Stall – Corner of Deansgate and Peter Street
Society Food Hall – Barbirolli Square, next to the Bridgewater Hall
Activities
For some people, first dates can be a little daunting and the idea of sitting silently eating with a new person can be kind of scary. A great way to break the ice and create some great conversation is taking on a few activities whilst you share a drink or two.
Manchester is full of venues that combine great activities with a well stocked bar, so you can engage in something fun whilst taking the edge off with a little cocktail.
Black Cat Club
Well loved Tapas Restaurant El Gato Negro recently opened their little sister bar, The Black Cat Club, where they combine delicious drinks and bar food with fun activities such as Darts, shuffleboard and table football. Its the perfect spot for a casual first date.
Roxy Ballroom
Roxy now have two city centre locations, where you can drink, eat and play all sorts of fun games, shuffleboard, tenpin bowling, arcade games, mini golf, beer pong and many more, so if its an hour before dinner, or a whole night affair, Roxy has got plenty to offer.
Junk Yard Golf
If you’re looking for more of a party atmosphere for your first date, Junk Yard is a fun, adult themed mini golf bar, with funky cocktails and bars stationed throughout their 3 varied courses, along with fun lighting and a great soundtrack, guaranteed to get the party started for you and your date.
Flight Club
As the name suggests, Flight Club is Darts focused, with state of the art technology that calculates scores, offers up loads of different styles of games, this is such a fun activity, even if you’re not a great darts player, many of the games are designed for beginners. Their bar and food menu is also worth checking out.
Base
For something a little different, base is a bar that offers baseball stumps, where you can get fully kitted up and stand in front of a machine bowler who will pitch baseballs in your direction whilst you try your best to return them! Not for the feint hearted, but certainly a fun night out.
Dating in the City
If you are using some of these ideas for dates, hopefully some of these casual suggestions will help with getting to know someone new in safe environments, where first impressions are more about laughing and playing games than they are about how you hold your cutlery or how much you earn.
Many of the bars I’ve mentioned here also employ the ‘Ask For Angela’ Scheme, to ensure that everyone can enjoy a safe space, knowing the staff are looking out for them as well as serving delicious drinks and food.
Happy dating!
LL x
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