Rana

Hi, I’m Rana. I am an international student from Indonesia currently in my third and final year of university studying BA (Hons) Architecture. Having lived here in Manchester for almost 3 years, I have seen first-hand how diverse the city is which I think is also reflected in the food culture. You can find almost any cuisine you can think of from British, American, Italian to Chinese, Korean, Thai, Indian, and many more. Most of them have vegan/vegetarian options which is great and there are also some vegetarian/vegan exclusive places. Although the restaurants are quite spread, Manchester has areas where you are more likely to find certain types of cuisine – for example, Chinatown for Asian food and Curry Mile for middle eastern and Indian food.

Toasties at Foodie Friday

My personal favourite way to experience food would have to be pop-up markets. To mention a few, there is the food market in Piccadilly Gardens; the Sunday market in Northern Quarter selling pastries, baked goods, and even jewellery and paintings; during Christmas-time there are Christmas markets around the city centre area selling many different stalls and, in the summer, there is the Manchester Food and Drink Festival.  A bit further away in Stockport, just south of Manchester, there is the monthly Foodie Friday–I recommend you get the toasties here, they are really good!

For inspiration on what to eat and to receive the latest news and offers around food in Manchester, I personally follow Instagram accounts such as @themanceats and @eatmcr where they often recommend new places and highlight ‘unseen’ ones, such as small family-owned businesses.

If you are on a student budget like me, restaurant food may not be pocket-friendly for everyday consumption. The obvious option to save money would be to cook at home with groceries bought from affordable supermarkets such as Aldi and Lidl, but sometimes you just don’t have the time. This is when you may want to get meal deals from supermarkets like Tesco or Sainsbury’s. There are also several cafés around campus to get affordable meals from–my personal favourite is the Benugo Café in Simon Building where they have many options of salads, sandwiches, granolas, and baked goods. You can’t also forget The Market in Uni Place where they serve a range of hot food from jacket potatoes, pasta, Malaysian dishes, Vietnamese, Thai, and others.

The diversity of the food here has proven to make Manchester homier to international students like me, and even occasionally relief our feeling of homesickness. Even if you are not an international student, the variety of food here, from the types of cuisines to the prices, means that there is always something for everyone and you won’t run out of food options!

Written by Rana, current BA(Hons) Architecture student at the Manchester School of Architecture.

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