Côte Brassiere

St. Mary's Street, Manchester

Côte Brassiere is renowned for being one of Manchester’s finest restaurants. It’s an authentic French bistro which champions modern, relaxed, all-day dining, serving French specialities alongside brassiere favourites for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Côte has long since been on my ‘to dine’ list, and I finally visited for my lunch on Good Friday. Safe to say, it was love at first bite.

Located on St Mary’s Street, opposite House of Fraser, it’s a calm and tranquil retreat just a stone’s throw away from the hustle and bustle of Deansgate. When you enter, you feel like you’ve just stepped into a street cafe in Paris. It wasn’t especially busy when we arrived, which was surprising given that it was the first day of the Easter Weekend, but the lack of staff was immediately apparent, as we had to wait for the manager to greet us. First impressions are everything, and this wasn’t exactly a great one, but the shaky start had no bearing on what was to come. Once we had been seated, service was impeccable throughout. 

Côte run a superb lunch and pre-theatre menu from noon until 7.00pm, on which you can enjoy two courses for £10.95 or three for £12.95. Given the location, and reputation, of Côte, this is excellent value. You’re spoilt for choice, but as it was Good Friday I had to avoid meat, which narrowed down my options.  Whilst I’m not a religious person, I like to observe traditions as much as I can, and no matter where I eat on Friday, I have to stick to vegetarian or fish dishes.

Before the starters, we treated ourselves to one of their delicious-sounding flatbreads. In an Italian restaurant, I always like to kick off with garlic bread, regardless of whether or not I’m having a starter; it just wouldn’t seem right otherwise. Given that bread is one of France’s specialities, it seemed only right that we should be a little bit greedy. We had a pissaladière, a traditional warm flatbread which originated in Nice. It was topped with caramelised onions, reblochon cheese and thyme. It was very flavoursome, a delicious way to kick off the meal and plenty big enough to share.

Pissaladière with caramelised onions, reblochon cheese and thyme

To start, I had Tuna Rillettes, served with toasted sourdough bread, salad and lemon. ‘Rillettes’ is very similar to pâté and is more traditionally made with pork. A ‘rillette’ is apparently defined by its soft, smooth texture, which the tuna most certainly had. Served in a customary mini mason jar, it reminded me of a sophisticated tuna mayonnaise, albeit far tastier and slightly more ‘meaty’, given that it was made with herbs and lemon. The sourdough was perfectly toasted, golden brown and crispy round the edges, complimenting the smooth tuna beautifully. The whole thing was served on a rustic wooden board, and I was mightily impressed with the size of the starter. It could easily have served as a lunch on its own. 

Tuna Rillettes

My main course was also fish, but of an entirely different nature. I had Haddock Parmentier, which is almost like the French equivalent of a cottage pie. The chopped smoked haddock was cooked in a creamy leek sauce with peas and dill, topped with potato and sprinkled with comté cheese. It was deliciously creamy, with plenty of fish and a delightful amount of greenery with the peas and dill.

Haddock Parmentier

When we ordered, we were put on the spot by our waitress when she asked if we wanted any side dishes. She recommended that we ordered some vegetables or fries to go with our mains, which we later learned was totally unnecessary, but feeling under pressure and being too polite to say no, we ordered some carrots. Don’t be fooled, you don’t need them, the main courses on the lunch menu work perfectly well on their own. 

After a gorgeous flatbread, and two courses of fish, I was pleasantly satisfied, but when dining in a place you’ve never been before, it would be rude not to try a dessert. I had the ‘Crumble Aux Pommes’, a French take on the classic British apple crumble. It was apple compote with Normandy butter crumble, topped with vanilla ice cream. The apple compote was very tasty and the crumble was laid on thick, delightfully crunchy. I’m not a lover of piping hot food, always preferring to give my meals optimum cooling down time; however, for my dining companion, the crumble could have been hotter. I gingerly scooped up my first spoonful, expecting it to be piping, but it was more like lukewarm, so I do agree that little longer in the oven wouldn’t have harmed it.

Crumble Aux Pommes

A lukewarm crumble wasn’t going to hamper an otherwise sensational lunch at Côte Brassiere. The food was top notch, and their three-course set menu is insanely good value; it almost seems too good to be true. I loved being able to enjoy top quality food in such relaxed surroundings, with friendly and accommodating staff.

If you were dining in the evening, there’s plenty of choice on the a la carte menu; salads, meat, fish dishes and steaks, all very reasonably priced. They’re also open for breakfast from 9.00 am, offering both a Full English and a traditional French breakfast, something which I’d love to try if, or rather, when I return. 

Cote Brassiere made our Good Friday great. It’s officially on the list of favourite restaurants in the city centre, and I can’t recommend it enough.  C’est fantastique!

All menus are available at: https://www.cote-restaurants.co.uk/cote/