The French at The Midland

Restaurant Overview

Having been the home of Manchester fine dining for more than a century and the first Michelin star restaurant in the UK, the 2AA Rosette French Restaurant is, once sampled, and experienced, long remembered. Over the years The French has been host to famous faces from royalty and presidents to sporting and showbiz legends. Not only is it part of the 2008-2009 AA hotel group of the year, but the restaurant and its staff have amassed numerous other accolades for which it is very proud, including gaining and maintaining 2 AA Rosettes.

The French Kitchen brigade is headed up by renowned Head Chef Paul Beckley, who uses the finest quality ingredients to provide fine French cuisine with a British twist. Connoisseurs of wine will discover that the cellar at the French holds one of the finest collections of French wines Manchester has to offer, including sought – after classics from vineyards such as Chateau Pichon – Longuevile Baron and Rayne- Vigneau.

The French is not only suitable for personal celebrations but is also a fine dining destination for business dinners and entertaining clients, whether dining a la carte, or taking advantage of the competitively priced menu gastronomique.

Truly Good Food Strengths

The French is very committed to local sourcing and attempt to get everything from within 40 miles.
Committed to high quality, traceable meat. They use British fish, mainly sustainably fished / farmed.

Health is a consideration on the menu too, for example, dressings are by request only.

The restaurant have a good willingness to meet customer requests in this respect (smaller portions of main dishes on request, flexible approach to kids dining including a dedicated menu and option to create bespoke smaller portions).
They’re aware pf the need to serve balanced dishes, including carb / protein / veg / fat.
No use of trans fats or saturated fats.
Water is produced and bottled in house and is free.

Their chef will visit dining room as a matter of routine to get feedback, and mystery shoppers regularly test the knowledge of the servers who receive good training.

They attempt to limited food waste via sensible usage and use across whole hotel rather than just restaurant.

An iconic, high end dining establishment that hasn’t overlooked issues of health and sustainability as part of its quest for excellence.