Mr. Thomas's Chop House

Although I have always been interested in food, I never really explored the food scene in Manchester when we lived in the area 20 years ago. We spent some time in Altrincham and were regular visitors to Franc’s on Goose Green (still going) and The French on The Downs (sadly long since closed). With a newborn son it wasn’t possible to try Altrincham’s Michelin starred restaurant Juniper (across the road from The French). We then didn’t help ourselves by moving to Stockport which compared to Altrincham was a culinary desert. Once we marooned ourselves near the A6 our best opportunities to eat out were on occasional visits to the centre of Manchester for Saturday shopping exhibitions. One of our early finds was Mr. Thomas’ Chop House, an easy stroll from Market Street and the Arndale Centre where most shoppers hang out.

Fast forward 20 years and a return trip to England had become urgent due to some family issues. While pulling the trip together, my plan was to take the day that I arrived easy and then head out for dinner at Damson Media Center. That plan was thrown out of the window three weeks before I was due to leave when Middleton’s own Mark Burgess (ex-Chameleons) announced an early evening acoustic gig at the Ruby Lounge for that day. Even better, the support act was going to be a get-together of Mark Burgess with the rest of the members of The Sun & The Moon, the band formed after the Chameleons split. For me, this was an event that rendered food completely unimportant. The resulting lack of evening plans meant that a hearty lunch was called for and that meant that a return visit to Mr. Thomas’ Chop House was in order to turn the nostalgia dial up to 11.

Mr. Thomas’ Chop House was opened by Thomas Studd in 1870 on the site of a Georgian townhouse. It was renovated in 1901 and much of the interior from that time remains. The narrow front of the four-storey bow-fronted Georgian brick building gives little hint of what lies inside. The front door opens directly into a small bar with standing room only. The actual serving area is divided by an archway and the second half of the bar opens onto a slightly larger section with a couple of tables for drinkers. A large green-tiled arch signals the entry to the high-ceilinged dining area and this is by far the nicest part of the Chop House where the openness means that the interior particularly shines. This homely space combines large swathes of green and fawn tiles with dark varnished woods. The floor is a mosaic of black & white tiling that adds a starker contrast to the cosier walls. The soundtrack was an interesting mix of 60s Motown classics interspersed with Mancunian sounds from the likes of Oasis and The Smiths. During the summer of 2013 they were exhibiting and auctioning paintings by local artists displayed all round the walls of the restaurant.  

The emphasis on the menu is on traditional British food. One of my fondest memories from a number of previous visits was their haggis Scotch egg with HP sauce that was seriously tasty. Sadly it has long since moved on from the menu even though I regularly check their menu in the forlorn hope that it has been reinstated. The best way to kick things off was to grab a pint of Black Sheep Ale (Black Sheep Brewery Masham, North Yorkshire) from the bar and then wander through to the dining room.

My starter was Tim’s Crispy Corned Beef Hash Cake. This is a blend of home-made corned beef (a 10-day process) and potato served with a poached egg and HP sauce. The corned beef was the major component inside the hot crispy cake so it dominated although the potato and onion combined with it for a wonderful blend of flavours, especially in combination with a dollop of HP sauce. My biggest disappointment was that the poached egg had been cut so the yolk oozed over the cake as it came to the table. I’m very particular about always wanting to have control of my own yolk. 

The main of steak & kidney pudding combined steak & lamb’s kidney in the pudding and was served with a side of chips, mushy peas and a jug of gravy. The doughy suet pudding with its interior of rich, tender slow-cooked meats was a rich bearhug and it was easy just to sit and revel in the mixture of scents when it was first cut open. The mushy peas were lovely and the chips were great but inconsistent where the thickest ones tended towards being undercooked. The gravy was a touch salty but having plenty of it to pour over the other ingredients was difficult to pass on. This was a wonderfully nostalgic heap of comfort food for someone who spends most of their time in the US where steak & kidney is viewed with horror.

After two satisfyingly rib-sticking courses there really was no need for a dessert.

After a break of a few years since my last visit, Mr Thomas’ Chop House still continues to deliver hearty, satisfying food consistent with their brief. It’s gratifying that somewhere with such a unique interior has food that is good enough to warrant repeat visits on at least an occasional basis.

Overall Rating – 3.5/5

When it came to the evening the decision to pass up dinner for music was more than justified. A set by Andy Whittaker and Andy Clegg got the evening off to a great start, although I was hearing the music for the first time. Next up was an abbreviated set by The Sun & The Moon. Four songs by three of the four original members, only let down by John Lever who was still on holiday in the Greek Islands so temporary help was drafted in to play the drums. It was genuinely heartwarming to see old bandmates breathing new life into songs that I’ve loved since turning Cardiff upside down tracking down a copy of their first single. I never saw them in their original guise but it was worth the wait to hear I Love You, You Bastard the standout track from that Speed of Life debut EP. Things got better when it was followed by Dolphin my favourite track from their one and only album. The short set was rounded out with Limboland and Death of Imagination. More dates are planned as are additional (re-)recordings so hopefully they’ll add more songs to the set.

By the date of the concert Mark Burgess’ acoustic set had morphed into a Chameleons V concert, the latest iteration of his almost made it band from the 80s. I’ve been a (rabid) fan since hearing Swamp Thing playing overhead at HMV in Cardiff but their acrimonious split shortly after meant that I missed seeing them live. An out of the blue reformation in 1999 produced albums of acoustic reworks of their old tracks as well as new material with live shows in England and North America until they fell apart even more bitterly than before.

The mostly middle-aged audience were there for Chameleons material so the set was an intentional crowd pleaser revolving around classics from all three 80s albums. Everything started with a turbocharged version of Don’t Fall, one of the highlights of The Chameleons’ debut album. Having played these songs on and off for 30 years it’s second nature for Mark Burgess to present them and his comfort transmits itself to the band and audience. That’s not to say that the band are complacent in approach and they put their all into it. Highlights of the regular set, in addition to the aforementioned Don’t Fall, were a glorious version of Tears, On The Beach and Caution. They introduced a new song as an untitled work in progress that bodes well for the album slated for release this year. Extended workouts of Soul In Isolation and Second Skin hurt the momentum of the set for me by heading off into the wrong side of indulgent. However, the encore of The Fan & The Bellows, a first attempt at The Beatles’ Across The Universe and most especially Swamp Thing finished everything on a high note.