It’s only been open a matter of days but Lottie’s Bakehouse has already impressed customers with its Chinese buns and freshly baked loaves
06:00, 27 Sep 2025Updated 08:29, 27 Sep 2025
Lottie’s Bakehouse in Manchester (Image: Manchester Evening News)
Greater Manchester certainly isn’t short of amazing places to eat and drink, and there’s one area where it really excels. Wander the streets of the city centre and it won’t take you long to smell fresh baked goods wafting through the air from one of the many bakeries.
There’s a real variety, from those specialising in classic French patisserie and the award-winning sourdough spots, to the families cooking up the recipes spanning all manner of cuisine from Brazilian and Polish treats to Caribbean pasties and Chinese speciality buns.
On the latter, there hasn’t typically been quite as many Chinese bakeries in the centre. While Chinatown buzzes with all sorts of flavours and cuisines, typically there have been fewer bakeries, with many people’s chosen spot being Wong Wong Bakery on the edge of Chinatown.
Now, a little further down the road and tucked away in a basement, a brand new traditional Chinese bakery with a twist has opened it’s doors.
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Named Lottie’s Bakehouse, in a nod to it’s location on Charlotte Street, the subterranean bakery only opened its doors in mid-September, but the response has been phenomenal – with queues out the door and up to street level.
Lottie’s Bakehouse in Manchester (Image: Lottie’s Bakehouse )
Blending traditional Chinese bakes, Lottie’s serves a delicious mix of traditional Chinese treats and Japanese fusion baked goods. But that’s just scratching the surface.
Putting their baking skills to the test and showing their flair for creativity, the team of four hospitality pros that have launched it, have also serving up French toast, croissants twists and Portuguese egg tarts, all infused with authentic Chinese flavours.
Using flour and ingredients sourced from the UK and Japan, one of Lottie’s staples are its buns in a wide variety of flavours and cuisines.
The baked goods at Lottie’s Bakehouse in Manchester City Centre(Image: Manchester Evening News)
Soft and pillowy, some of the best-sellers have been the taro salty egg mochi bun (£3.30), milk butter bun (£2.60) and chicken floss bun (£2.50).
Wander the shelves though and there’s something for everyone – spanning sweet and savoury. Pandan coconut buns (£2.60) stand out for their fluorescent green filling, while the cheese flat bun (£2.60) is a quick and easy lunchtime treat, as is the popular sausage bun.
Nodding to one of the owner’s, Jack’s, background as a sushi chef there are also tuna seaweed rolls wrapped fresh every day alongside garlic butter buns, chocolate mocha bun and the classic char siu.
Lottie’s Bakehouse on Charlotte Street(Image: MEN)
Others buns however nod to other Asian food cultures, including The Roti Boy, which people may better know as the Kopi Roti Bun.Originally from Malaysia, the bun has become a favourite across Asia – soft and fluffy on the inside with a light coffee-infused crust, it’s a perfect balance of flavour and texture.
Speaking about the crossover of flavours and creativity at the bakery, co-founder Jack, who used to work as a sushi chef at Sushi Marvel, said: “The innovation has come from our main baker, he’s travelled around a lot and experienced a lot of places such as Malaysia and that’s why we have the coffee bun for example – I’m leaning a lot from him.
Pineapple buns at Lottie’s Bakehouse (Image: Lottie’s Bakehouse )
By the counter there’s also the Maple Syrup French Toast, made with their own freshly baked loaf bread. Each slice is dipped in a rich butter mixture, then glazed and caramelised until golden brown.
Boxes of egg tarts with a twist have been selling out quickly too, as the team fuse the classic Chinese egg tart with a buttery croissant base to create a Croissant Egg Tart, plus there’s cakes like the matcha swiss roll and basque cheesecake to take home too.
Many fill up a tray of pre-packaged baked goods and take them over to the til for takeaway, but the bakery and cafe also boasts a number of tables and chairs for those that can’t wait to tuck in.
Lottie’s Bakehouse in Manchester(Image: Lottie’s Bakehouse )
You can also take cakes and treats home, including the huge bags of toasting loaf that come in a variety of flavours including orange toast and cranberry toast
There’s also a selection of drinks to choose from including speciality coffees and teas spanning options such as Spanish Latte and Toffee Latte to the usual cappuccino, americano and classic latte, all from £4.
Lottie’s also serve a range of matcha, including the mango and strawberry variety (from £4.50), plus hot chocolate, tea and refreshers in flavours including passionfruit and peach.
An egg custard and croissant crossover at Lottie’s Bakehouse(Image: MEN)
“We never expected to be so crazy with the queues when we opened,” added Jack.
“We’re trying to introduce new new products out every day and gradually increase that quantity over time, but it’s been very busy.
“If I was to recommend anything I would say the milk butter buns, that’s really nice, but my all time favourite is the meat floss buns as I had those growing up – we’re doing a limited release of those every day.”
Lottie’s Bakehouse, 10, Charlotte House, Basement M1 4FL.