Michelin Guide Restaurant – Manifest

First published: 12th July 2023 by French Entrée

Liverpool may be loved for music and football but its evolving food scene is fast-becoming a world-beating attraction…

Everyone knows the city of Liverpool for its iconic music, culture, maritime history and of course, football.

Now in 2024, the city’s independent food scene rivals long-established attractions such as the Fab Four, the River Mersey and Anfield on the itineraries of tourists flocking to the city.

The growing list of accolades Merseyside’s restaurants, bars and bistros have received shows why. Such is its culinary stature, Liverpool was the only place in the UK to feature in TimeOut’s 2024 overview of the best cities for food in the world, ranked 11th and ahead of heavy-weights including Copenhagen, Seville, Osaka.

This list is informed by the taste buds of local diners, who had their say on everything from how affordable it is to dine in their city to the one essential dish on menus and must-try local delicacies.

According to TimeOut, Liverpool features ”everything from cult street food vendors to contemporary small plates” with a thriving network of independent growers driving this delicious renaissance. By keeping supply chains local, restaurants are bursting with the best seasonal produce while sustainable practices ensure a low environmental impact.

Different parts of Liverpool have become synonymous with innovative and exciting food and drink. Bold Street, one of the main thoroughfares running from St Luke’s Bombed Out Church to the retail centre, features an eclectic mixture of international restaurants, bars and shops. Brilliant food hubs including Duke Street Market and Renshaw Street Food Market are an easy way of picking and choosing delicious meals from some of the city’s greatest independents showcasing an international array of flavours.

Many of the city’s pubs and bars offer fantastic homegrown craft beers and gins while the Albert Dock is the perfect spot to take in Liverpool’s iconic waterfront. Dining and drinking in sight of the Three Graces, the Pier Head and the Liver Building is a befitting way to savour some of Liverpool’s best bites and beverages. The Baltic Triangle, an area to the south of Liverpool’s city centre developed in a reclaimed post-industrial zone, is home to many creative businesses and inspiring bars and restaurants, including highly-praised restaurant Manifest.

Located on Watkinson Street, this restaurant is one of the jewels in the crown of the city’s food scene, featuring in the National Restaurant Awards 2024 rankings. Led by chef Paul Durand and wife Charlotte, the open-plan kitchen is at the centre of a space that has an industrial-style yet offers a warm welcome to visitors.

The National Restaurant Awards praised the “craftsmanship” of Durand’s cooking with the oils, preserves and breads, all made in-house, “elevating dishes and breathing new life into classic combinations”.

Affordable and delicious, the setting may be casual but food, produce and service are all taken very seriously. Other achievements for Manifest include numerous features in the Michelin Guide, with the latest listing praising “carefully cooked, flavourful modern British dishes accompanied by a well-presented wine list”.

The signature dish is Sweet Onion Tart which utilises members of the allium family including Roscoff Onion as the star of the dish in a nod to them being brought to Liverpool by boat – in a ship’s manifest by Brittany farmers.

The Manifest menu offers a mouth-watering take on a food and drink culture rooted in Liverpool’s rich history and proud community while looking to a delicious and exciting future. Asparagus from Claremont Farm on the Wirral rubs shoulders with Creedy Carver duck on a menu that is full of tasty food combinations. Scouse, the meaty stew that has given Liverpool residents their nickname, is beloved in the city and even has its own Global Scouse Day. But a new generation of chefs and independent restaurants such as Manifest’s Durand and his team are revolutionising Merseyside’s culinary reputation with a forward-thinking approach to food and drink. It’s something that switched-on locals have known for some time but looks like the rest of the world is now catching up on too.