Atlas Bar — Restaurant in Manchester

Our group attempted to visit Atlas Bar yesterday. We were a group of 10, all family. 8 members of the group entered, myself & my sister in law (we are in our 40's/50's) were denied entrance by the doorman as he claimed we were 'too drunk' and he had witnessed us 'stumble across the road'. This was a shock and hugely insulting as it was 6pm and we had only been out since 4pm! Yes we were linking each other as we had just come from Dukes 92, over the cobbles street in heels where we'd had a lovely meal I honestly thought the doorman was joking but he would not allow us entry. Thankfully the other members of the group hadn't bought drinks as they came out to see why their mums and wives were standing outside still! I caught the doorman name as Marcus, to which I said 'So your name is Marcus?' to which he said yes and made comments the owners will back his decision. I do honestly understand that establishments may want to maintain a certain reputation and absolutely don't want drunk people causing issues but all we can surmise is being ladies in 40/50's we didn't match the demographic as it was not because we 'were drunk'. Please check your CCTV for proof. It put a huge dampener over the rest of the evening as it upset myself and my sister in-law massively but we took our group of 10 with our money elsewhere. Very disappointing as I've never been to Atlas Bar before and safe to say we won't attempt to darken...

Edit to add: Atlas Bar's unprofessional and unaccountable response to my genuine review has cemented that I'll never go back. Very unfortunate. How are they supposed to see tone of voice and facial smirks from CCTV? They are family run, they know the person I'm complaining about so they instinctively take an opposition to me - and blame me for not raising issue with management. It shouldn't be on the customer to keep management appraised of problems. Had I wanted to raise an issue I could have done so directly with the individual I'm complaining about but I wasn't there to manage their bar. Instead of seeing this review as "damaging", to them, tunnel vision on their own ego, I wish they'd seen the negative experience being reported and made any attempt to put it right.

Original review:

Used to always love coming in here for a drink. Went in last night (Sunday 23/2/25) about 8pm and the blonde behind the bar was absolutely seething with rage. Either at me or at her own life and her own journey through this world who knows. Did my best British politeness with minimal interactions but she didn't warm up one ioata. Whiskey was good, food was great, just the atmosphere was brought down from the usual Atlas Bar experience and service would have been better from a robot. Overall just...

I’ve lived just around the corner from Atlas for the past five years, but it wasn’t until a couple of months ago that I realised what I’d been missing.

Every time I step inside, I’m greeted by such a warm and positive atmosphere from the staff — even the friendly man at the door on weekends. A special shoutout to the manager, who calls everyone “Darl” (I’m so sorry I’ve forgotten your name, but you know who you are — cool Christmas earrings). It’s rare to find a place where someone remembers your name after just your second takeaway, but you not only remembered mine, you even noticed I forgot my coffee last time. That level of personal service feels like a lost art, especially in such a busy spot like Atlas.

Despite how hard the staff are working, they always find the time to greet you with a kind, genuine smile. The team does an incredible job, and that’s even before we talk about the food.

I usually order takeaway, and it’s consistently on time, perfectly hot, and absolutely delicious every time.

If you haven’t tried Atlas yet, I can’t recommend it enough. You’ll be supporting a fantastic local business with amazing people who put their heart into what they do every single day. Give it a try — you...