After a brief period of closure the much-loved pub and restaurant has reopening to the public
Inside the new-look pub in Castlefield (Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
Offering beautiful views of the Bridgewater Canal Basin, The Wharf at Slate Wharf near Castlefield, first opened its doors in 1998. Known as Jackson’s Wharf back then, it only stayed around until 2005.
With plans for an apartment block on the site unsuccessful, it reopened as a pub in 2012 under the guidance of local operator Brunning & Price. Ever since, it’s become a firm Castlefield favourite, somewhere punters flock on a a sun-soaked summer’s day to enjoy a pint in the mammoth beer garden, or retreat to in winter to sit by the fire and feast on a proper Sunday roast.
Now, after a brief period of closure, it has re-opened its doors following a major makeover. Sat in a prime position overlooking the water, the pub and restaurant has entered a new chapter with some noticeable interior changes.
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The countryside-style boozer has retained its cosy and welcoming nature with the downstairs offering a more casual lounging feel, where additional wingback armchairs meet cosy corners and roaring open fires.
Upstairs, guests will notice a more significant change in mood, the space is lighter, with dark brown furnishings replaced with a brighter, more modern take on a pub restaurant space. Large windows offer unparalleled views over the canal basin and the ever changing Manchester skyline, complemented with 500 pieces of artwork adorning the walls.
Overlooking the canal basin, the pub has become known for its beer garden, roaring fires and cracking roasts (Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
The Wharf reopens under the management of Natasha Metcalfe with service of 11 years at the Wharf. Natasha Metcalfe said: “We’re so excited to throw open our doors and show you what we’ve been working on.
“After 13 years and tens of millions of pints poured we felt it was right for us to give the building a bit of love and took the opportunity to introduce more of what our regulars and locals had been asking for in the way of cocktails and tweak the seating areas in the pub at the same time, taking on board all of the feedback from our guests and incorporating it in to our new look when we met with our design and build team.
Sat in a prime position overlooking the water, the pub and restaurant has entered a new chapter with some noticeable interior changes(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
“Without doubt the bar is the best part of the transformation, we’ve gone for a “pubbier” feel and added comfier seating for lounging all day as well as a few more tall and sharing tables that are perfecting for drinks and a brand new cocktail menu, an even bigger spirit range as well as a raft of new dishes on our menu from our talented team of chefs.
“We’ve also softened the feel in the pub, making it perfect for lunches without losing the cosy, warm and snug feel of an evening that we love so much. We also wanted to try and make service a bit quicker in the process so we ripped our entire bar and all of our beer lines and re-designed it from scratch for speed so that we can make drink service even quicker for our thirsty customers, and brand new beer lines means we’re serving the freshest and crispest pints in the city.”
Inside The Wharf in Castlefield (Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
It was important to the team at the venue to carry on its reputation for serving up hearty food favourites and crisp local lagers, and it’s made sure to make that a focus of the refresh. The Wharf’s new food menu is more refined, however its traditional British “pub food done exceptionally well” remains.
The menu changes daily and includes classics such as the Wharf’s beer battered fish & chips, chicken, ham & leek pie, and 8oz bacon chop with fried egg and grilled pineapple. For something a bit different, there’s the French onion soup with gruyere cheese croute; caramelised pork belly with ham hock fritter; and slow roasted duck leg with bubble and squeak.
The Wharf Castlefield’s fish and chips(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
Diners can also opt for the pan-roasted scallops with samphire, buttered spinach and shellfish butter sauce, or a sharing baked camembert with truffle, honey and toasted focaccia. A new daily nibbles menu is available, priced at £25 for 4 dishes (Monday – Wednesday) and includes pork and apple sausage roll with apple sauce, crispy duck fat roasties, pork chipolatas with honey mustard and halloumi fries, tomato relish.
New puddings include spiced white chocolate crème brûlée served with ginger snickerdoodle cookies, and a lemon curd, raspberry & vanilla cheesecake pot. And soon-to-be-everyone’s guilty pleasure, proper hot chocolate made with liquid chocolate, toasted marshmallows, whipped cream & triple chocolate brownie.
Blackberry and sticky apple sponge(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
There is also an option for guests to enjoy ‘small pudding & a hot drink’ which includes a hot drink of choice, plus a smaller version of one of the Wharf’s puddings for £9.45.
Lovers of the Wharf’s roast need not fear because the Sunday staples return on February 1 with all the classic accompaniments. There’s also the addition of a new Sunday side sharing board with pigs in blankets, buttered mash, cauliflower cheese and duck fat roast potatoes.
View of the canal basin from The Wharf(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
Within the heart of the pub, the Wharf’s bar continues to offer one of the city’s largest gin selections (with 140 gin variations), now serving over 150 wines, a new cocktail list, which includes homemade barrel aged Negronis, Manhattan and Old Fashioned – and more than 20 draught beers and ales served in frosty, ice-cold beer glasses as well as a variety of canned and bottled options.
At the weekend there will be live music running from 8.30pm on Fridays to get the weekend started and the Wharf’s monthly pub quiz is back from Tuesday, 24 February.
Large windows offer unparalleled views over the canal basin and the ever changing Manchester skyline(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
The Moorings, outdoor bar continues to serve frozen cocktails, chilled rosè and pints. And just in time for spring, the huge canopy will be taken down late March, welcoming warmer months, in the sunshine, at the Wharf’s huge beer garden.
For Natasha, there’s a lot to love about the new space, but one thing stands out in particular. “Personally it has to be the new sofa space by the fire, we’ve always had comfy seats, but now we’ve so many more, including Chesterfields and a raft of board games on hand that would make for a lovely afternoon of lounging with a coffee, cocktail and everything between.”
The Wharf is located at Blantyre House, 6 Slate Wharf, Manchester M15 4ST.