Bill's Spinningfields Restaurant — Restaurant in Manchester

New Year’s Eve dinner for two . The food was ok , nothing to write home about but had its own stamp on it so no complaints really , it was pleasant . The staff were friendly enough but distracted each other at the reception and when they came to the table for orders or drinks etc you had to scream at them to be heard . That music !! Oh my word HELO PEOPLE !! It’s a restaurant where you dine , preferably without a racket and in peace . It is not a pub a bar or a night club get with the programme . Now don’t get me wrong if the drum and base boom that rattled my ribs was playing to one demographic of say teens to thirties then so be it , but there were all age groups in there from students to senior citizens and all of them funnily enough had the same colour of money . Turn down the boom turn down the racket turn down the noise and stop your customers having to repeat to your staff “what” “sorry” “pardon” because the music is too loud and getting sore throats from having to shouting at the staff for everything they need . We dine out at least twice a week everywhere from spinnningfields to castlefield to northern quarter to rusholme to China town picadilly etc. , they all have music IN THE BACKGROUND . People eat and talk ! Not about and scream in between swallows . Please don’t defend this with “we are sorry but…..” or “our regular diners prefer….” Just recognise you have an issue accept it , own it and think about EVERY DEMOGRAPHIC of your diners not just your pre club goers . Would have refused to pay the service charge as is my right based on my experience but it was New Year’s Eve and I simply just wanted to leave asap , without worsening the headache I had gained soon after entering . Would i recommend it , no , but truthfully there is nothing wrong other than a restaurant is for socialising over dinner/drinks that usually involves “talking” which because of the ridiculously loud music simply wasn’t easy . If I ever get back here my staying for dinner will be decided on if on entry I do not feel it’s a nightclub , if it still is I shall explain to my party I’m not in the mood for roaring for 2 hours and invite them to stay if they wish but go elsewhere myself and wait for them , ironically probably to a bar where loud music is warranted...

An evening with Bill at Bill’s Spinningfield

We were invited to Bill’s restaurant to try out the Christmas menu at the newly opened restaurant in Spinningfields. The decor gave off a vibrant, community-like feel and it’s a venue that allows people to pop in, have a drink, a few snacks and just chill. The freshness of the restaurant comes across and when you find out that Bill was previously a greengrocer, you totally get it. Bill was such a lovely gentleman and definitely our kind of man when he mentioned that his first thought when he wakes up is ‘What’s for dinner?’ :)

They brought out some sharing starters and we helped ourselves to; \Crispy Fried Vegetables (vg) [£6.50] - Nice, tangy and not too heavy. It had a nice chilli sauce drizzled on top and there was such a variety of vegetables. Kind of like crunchy, vegetable crisps \Rosemary and Butternut Squash Hummus on Toasted Sourdough (vg) [£6.25] - This was a subtle, filling starter that gets you satisfied before your mains \Fried Halloumi Sticks (v) [£6.50] - Tomato dip was yummy and the halloumi was nice and soft.

Our mains were; \Halloumi Burger (v) [£10.95] - We weren’t expecting this to be as good as it was. It was a tower and packed with halloumi, hummus and a sweet chilli dip. Thoroughly enjoyed this one \Pan-Fried Sea Bass [£15.95] - Proper flaky, melt in your mouth sea bass on top of a rosti \Fries (v) [£3.50] - Loved the tangy dip that came aside these fries

The sharing desserts consisted of; \Warm Triple Chocolate Brownie (v) [£6.50] - OMG! The most squidgy, gooey chocolate brownies ever and absolutely delightful \Warm Apple and Salted Caramel Doughnuts (v) [£6.50] - The warm apple was a little weird but the doughnuts in the salted caramel sauce were on point \Spiced Pear and Raspberry Eton Mess (v) [£6.75] - Always expect a meringue to be super sweet but this was nice and subtle with the raspberry sauce adding that extra something

All in all, the food was lovely and that brownie will definitely call us back!

Recommended for: Fresh, Eclectic, Brownie Service: High Price:...

I've been about 4 or 5 times now and each time has been enjoyable. Bill's has a great breakfast and I cannot recommend the eggs Royal enough. So good. I'm not big on full English breakfasts but my girlfriend is and she said it's great. Being able to add on items to your dish is nice too, like if you wanted to add an egg, smoked salmon, etc.

The staff are usually very warm and friendly. But the reason this is 4 stars is there has been an occasion where the staff serving us (not naming them) were quite cold. I understand everyone has off days, and having worked in the service industry myself before I understand that sometimes you really just would rather be somewhere else, but the customer shouldn't be feeling that sort of energy. I worked in McDonald's before but I always smiled at the customer because that was part of the job - no matter how much I wished it wasn't at the time.

That's not to say that all the staff are like this. They're not. I've had the nicest people serve us before who I was able to briefly chat with because they were so bubbly and friendly.

The menu itself I do feel is a bit limited. There's not a lot of choice unless you're someone who's a fan of classic English dishes. If you are then you're fine. But I like variety and I find I'm always ordering the same things whenever I go to Bill's.

Overall its a really nice atmosphere with really interesting decor and good food, but the menu could do with some expansion or switching out some dishes for...