Manifest
Liverpool, Merseyside
CONTINUE READING
Already a member? Log in here
Subscribe to our newsletter to gain access to limited free articles, reviews, news and our weekly newsletter.
The Good Food Guide Membership: Save £100s at Britain's best restaurants - try for free for 30 days
The Baltic Triangle is a former industrial area that has become a creative hub, attracting a crowd of indie start-ups and alternative enterprises. Manifest references the city’s maritime history, and the whole place slots easily into the local, independent vibe: the old factory floor faces a narrow street but large windows with Dickensian square panes bring light into the intimate restaurant space. Any sense of restriction is countered by a narrow open kitchen where the brigade step around each other in easy, well-choreographed formation. The semi-industrial interior makes good use of natural stone and wood, while several large iron pillars still display the hallmarks of their original textile function. Although the menu is short, divided into the ubiquitous small and large plates, the choice and combination of ingredients is intriguing enough to make decisions difficult. Among the ‘snacks’, the cult favourites are the ‘still-warm’ salt-and-vinegar crisps, just out the fryer (beware the salt levels). The restaurant boasts its own charcuterie drying cabinet, and our serving of coppa, dressed with chive oil, was lush, sweet and delicate. The other stand-out dish on our visit was a sweet onion tart with caramelised Roscoff onion, pickled silverskin, black garlic, crispy leek and ricotta that was beautifully crafted and cleverly contrasted the different oniony flavours and textures. A sense of adventure runs through the menu that, perhaps, needs diners to be equally curious. A dish of seared cod loin, sea beet, fermented turnip and trout roe, for example, looked pretty with concentric rings of white, cream and saffron although the unusual sweet-sour sauce might not be to everyone’s taste. Nonetheless, readers have been enthusiastic and positive about the kitchen’s ambition and it’s been praised as a welcome addition to Liverpool's dining scene.
