Food halls have been springing up across Greater Manchester, all aiming to replicate the success of Manchester's Mackie Mayor and Altrincham Market. This recent trend provides small independent eateries with an opportunity to sell dishes to diners gathered in a stylish setting, catering to a wide range of diets, cuisines, allergies, preferences and dislikes, making food halls a popular gathering spot.
Given the expense of taking on a traditional high street unit with overheads and business rates, the prospect of occupying a space in a food hall presents a more affordable option for traders. It has proven to be an effective strategy for revitalising town centres that have fallen into decline.
Altrincham is often cited as a model for town centre regeneration, which began with a food hall.
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Just over ten years ago, the leafy suburb on the outskirts of Greater Manchester was becoming tired, characterised by low footfall and closed shops. The food hall breathed new life into the town, a vitality that remains today.
As people flocked to the town to eat and drink at the rejuvenated market, fashionable restaurants, cafes and shops began to fill the vacant commercial spaces on the high street, transforming Altrincham into a bustling hub that attracts thousands of visitors every weekend to its array of bars and shops.
Successful food halls like Mackie Mayor and Society in the city centre are consistently teeming with patrons throughout the day, not just during weekends and Friday nights.
However, there are also success stories outside the city centre that don't rely on the heavy footfall Manchester's heart enjoys daily.
Salford's Lowry shopping centre is typically quiet until you reach the side overlooking the Quays. Kargo MKT draws customers from across the city-region and beyond.
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This food and drink hub boasts 20 kitchens, accommodates 400 guests, features a 2,000 sq ft outdoor terrace, five shipping container kitchens and a bar with views of Old Trafford and the Imperial War Museum.
Despite only being open for a few years, it's already carving out a reputation in the area, with many opting to dine there before attending a theatre show or exploring the museum or Salford Quays.
Stockport's Produce Hall has been in operation since 2019, a bit longer than some. Like many other venues that have been converted into food halls, Stockport chose to repurpose a Grade-II listed building into a hub for food traders and a bar offering local craft beers.
Just last year, the eagerly anticipated Egyptian Room, the final piece of a multi-million pound renovation of Oldham's Old Town Hall building on Parliament Square, opened its doors as a food hall. The Grade-II listed venue marries Oldham's historical grandeur with modern dining, featuring food stalls and a bar set within the Egyptian-inspired architecture of the 180 year old building.
Heading north from the city centre, Bolton, Bury and Radcliffe markets all provide a food hall-style atmosphere in their establishments. Despite maintaining their traditional markets, each town has embraced this food hall-style table setting, offering a wide range of options for shoppers and locals.
In Wigan, Feast at The Mills is nestled in the shadow of a major redevelopment of one of the borough's historic mills.
Local patrons can enjoy the outdoor venue's offerings of food, drinks and live music at Eckersley Mills. The inclusion of live music pays homage to the town's past iconic nightclub status during the Wigan Pier era.
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The venue will eventually transition indoors as the extensive redevelopment at Eckersley Mills progresses.
However, these are merely a handful of examples of food halls – there are several exciting plans in the pipeline.
Later this year, Manchester city centre will welcome a brand-new food hall, set to house five kitchens all under one 'house'.
House of Social, situated near the HOME theatre on First Street, will feature a variety of independent kitchens serving food from morning till night.
The project is spearheaded by Vita Group and Jake Atkinson, who has previously held the position of operations manager at Mackie Mayor, The Picturedrome and Altrincham Market. The food hall will occupy 12,000 sq ft of space spread over two design-led levels.
Given its proximity to Oxford Road and Deansgate-Castlefield stations, the venue is expected to attract a high footfall.
It will be situated beneath the new Vita Student First Street accommodation, which consists of 100 apartments and 576 bedrooms.
Another upcoming project is the Market Place Food Hall, set to be located on the ground floor of the Rylands Building, which developers hope will provide 'a massive lift for this part of Manchester'.
The former Debenhams department store is being transformed into a food and drink, retail and office block. This redevelopment involves refurbishing the existing 1920s structure and adding a four-storey extension to the roof.
Market Place Food Halls has secured a 15-year lease for the ground floor of the Rylands, a move that AM Alpha manager Paul Hodgkiss hailed as 'a clear vote of confidence in the quality and ambition of our vision'.
The Rylands is slated to swing its doors open again in late 2026, with Market Place pencilling in a spring 2027 opening on their website.
A food hall reminiscent of Manchester city centre's Mackie Mayor is on the cards for Prestwich centre as part of a £100m revamp.
The ambitious redevelopment plan includes a new food and market hall and a village square, inspired by feedback from a public consultation conducted by Muse, the council's development partners.
The latest concept images reveal a Mackie Mayor-style development, with Muse planning a 'food hall for local food operators and communal seating that spills out onto the village square'.
Muse also highlighted the flexible design of the village square, which will provide space for pop-up events such as markets, food festivals, art exhibitions and live performances.
Meanwhile, Denton is set to welcome a new food hall, as developers aim to transform the town into a hub where people can 'live, work and play'.
The green light has been given for 'Hatters Square', a project that will replace four retail units on Jubilee Square with a sprawling food hall. Hatters Square Limited has outlined its mission to 'revive the town centre high street'.
The food hall will feature a performance stage, a mezzanine floor, private event space and a feature staircase. A 'greenhouse' on the first floor will provide a unique dining experience with views over Victoria Park.
The building's extensions include a first-floor glasshouse at the rear and a second-floor 'saw-toothed' extension.
Stalybridge's old Rififi nightclub, once a major hub for party-goers during the 'Staly Vegas' era, is set to be transformed into a new food hall called 'The Palace'.
Rififi, which shut its doors over a decade ago, was part of Stalybridge's vibrant nightlife scene that earned it comparisons to Las Vegas. The new food hall, located at the junction of Market Street and Waterloo Road, will house a 1940s themed 'secret bar' and a jazz bar/restaurant.
The venue's name, 'The Palace', pays homage to the building's history as the Palace Cinema before its nightclub days.
Plans for a new food hall beneath 21 proposed flats in Hyde town centre are also moving closer to fruition.
Copperleaf Group Ltd, the applicants, have put forward a preliminary proposal for a food hall at the former Woolworths location. The proposed venue would span 710 sqm, with a large mezzanine created by reducing the first floor, providing dining space across two levels.
The hall would accommodate an array of small, medium and large stalls, all centred around a communal seating area within the Market Place building.