Manchester’s most Instagrammable restaurants – including The Ivy and Australasia

Impress your followers with a visit to these Insta-worthy restaurants in Manchester.
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For many people these days, food does not just have to taste good, it also has to look good. And when it comes to good-looking food and well-decorated restaurants – Manchester is the place to be.

The word ‘instagrammable’ did not exist a few years ago, but today it is used to describe the places and things that are aesthetically pleasing enough to share with the world on the popular social media platform.

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A new study by business experts Bionic concluded that Manchester is the most Instagrammable city in the UK for foodies, based on the number of monthly Instagram searches for “Manchester restaurants” over the past year, searches for #manchesterrestaurants and the number of posts that include #manchesterrestaurants.

In particular, they highlighted The Laundrette in Chorlton as an example of “Instagrammable” restaurants, with its 12.3K followers, 13.5K location tags  and 285 #thelaundrettechorlton posts.

What makes a restaurant Insta-worthy?

This is not a precise science, but there are likely several factors that make this restaurant a social media hit. Firstly, the location. You will find the Laundrette on the leafy Beech Road in Chorlton – a South Manchester foodie hotspot, home to the Lead Station restaurant and bar, tapas restaurant Bar San Juan, and cocktail bar 97.

Next is the decor. There are several design features you’re going to see a lot in this list: plant walls (or other kinds of foliage-based decoration), neon signs and disco balls. Large mirrors are also a plus.

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Finally, food presentation. Decoration is not enough, the food also has to be up to standard – take what happened with the ill-fated Boujee restaurant last year. Forget glassware and plates, the Laundrette serves up cocktails for two in miniature baths, Lucky Charm lattes that look like bowls of cereal and burgers served on wooden boards.

With that in mind, here are some of the other Manchester restaurants that you’re likely to see when scrolling through Instagram.

The Ivy Spinningfields

If you look at the Opentable top 10 most booked restaurants in Manchester, The Ivy appears three times: The Ivy Brasserie, The Ivy Roof Terrace and The Ivy Asia. They are definitely leading the way when it comes to plant walls. It’s also located in Spinningfields, one of Instagram’s favourite areas of Manchester.

The Ivy Spinningfields. Photo: Johnny Stephens PhotographyThe Ivy Spinningfields. Photo: Johnny Stephens Photography
The Ivy Spinningfields. Photo: Johnny Stephens Photography

Australasia

You don’t have to step foot inside Australasia to appreciate its aesthetic appeal. The entrance appears to have taken inspiration from the Louvre, and the inside does not disappoint either.

20 Stories

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The view speaks for itself at 20 Stories, located on the rooftop of No.1 Spinningfields. This rooftop is great for a spot of afternoon tea, a celebratory cocktail or two and fine dining.

Menagerie

This restaurant definitely has the holy trinity of Insta-ready interior design features: plants, neon and disco balls. They describe their menu as “experimental dining” and that is certainly reflected in the food presentation – there are pink burger buns, candy floss topped cocktails and afternoon tea served in a tiny ferris wheel.

Tattu

This contemporary Chinese restaurant has a bold interior design that includes low lighting and black furniture, accentuating the colourfully lit trees dotted throughout the restaurant.

Gaucho

This Argentinian steakhouse has more of a monochrome design, including bold cowhide details.

Rosso

If you scroll through the tagged photos on the Rosso Instagram page, you’ll see that the mirrored walls are a particularly popular spot for Instagram photos.