Duttons Manchester in Manchester

Great place , nice food, good choice of drinks. Friendly staff.

Great selections of beers and a good atmosphere for a drink with friends.

We've just had a meal each, the pastry on the pies are rock hard. One of the worst meals we've had in a long long time. Don't think we'll be going again.

3pm on a weekday good food. It's a JW LEES Pub, so the origin Lager may not be to every bodys taste. The brewery is less than 6 miles away, So good and local.

Great spot in town. Food, live music and great atmosphere!

Very good restaurant. Good food and even better beers. If you're in Manchester you should definitely stop by if you appreciate good beers.

Great choice of drinks and food!

First time at Founders, just had drinks, the atmosphere was wonderful and I could have stayed there all day, will definitely be going back.

I previous left a 5* review (summarised below) but reposting a review following our second visit here, and giving a very generous 4* because a) I like local breweries which prioritise good beer and b) I'm hoping they'll take this feedback on board and improve. My first review said: - The beer selection is impressive (see photo for an idea), with various strength lagers, a whole host of regular casks and a few interesting kegs - The food was okay (we had pies). Unremarkable, but fine. - Friendly service and staff I finished by saying we'd come back for Sunday roast, which we did last week. And it's probably the worst roast dinner we've had, certainly in Manchester. First of all, it wasn't a roast. We had the 'roast' beef and 'roast' chicken. The beef was braised. It wasn't a joint of beef. It was falling apart, and not in a melt-in-the-mouth way. It was tough, bland and not a fantastic few slices of perfectly cooked roast beef. The chicken was just a couple of breasts which seemed to be chargrilled. No thigh, no leg. I don't know how they prepare their Sunday lunches, but I'd be surprised if it's anything other than pre-prepared bagged meat which is then cooked in some way. It was not a roast dinner. The veg was fine. Standard mixed veg. Overcooked, a bit watery. The potatoes were bigged up as roasted in duck fat. They were just average. The yorkshires were big and not the worst we've had, but pretty close to certain that they weren't actually made in the kitchen. We got the shared roast platter for two, and it was just a pretty messy big plate of food. Not very generous portions for two people, and really really underwhelming. And not cheap! The prices are comparable to other half decent indy Sunday lunch places: Home is 5 minutes away, tons better and they charge the same price. The Marble Arch is way better and is pretty much the same price. 10 Tib Lane is only a couple of quid more and miles better. All of them serve a genuine roast dinner, prepared *from scratch* and roasted on site. A real shame, as this pub has been done out to be a half-decent gastropub. The beer selection and quality matches that description, and I genuinely hope it does well as good cask in city centre isn't very common. But the food is not up to scratch and I hope they quickly rectify it, get a proper head chef in and give them the resources and control to put on a proper independent menu that's actually prepared and cooked on site.

Great place to meet family and friends

Truly a great beer selection. Enjoyed a large flight with really interesting beers. The staff were great! So friendly and helpful. However, the food was at max a 3.5/10. We ordered the steak pie and the burger. Both dishes should be solid slam dunks for a pub, but both were flavorless and poor quality. The pie was made with a rather sweet pastry and was essentially just stewed meat in a shop bought gravy. Not at all as lovely as advertised. The burger sounded amazing but was actually so flavorless I couldn’t understand it. The chips and fries were perfect though.

Nice place with a nice relaxed atmosphere.

One of the top 3 burgers I've ever tasted. Friendly staff, reasonable prices, great location. Good choice of beers on offer, (sadly was a driving day for me). Only downside was nipped in for a quick and quiet bite to eat but inadvertently chose quiz night so volume levels high. That said it certainly added to the atmosphere.

£50 for this. The food was really good tbh but I am not the target audience, this place is for people who make bank. Servers were great

Decent spot with variety of beer.

Love this place, beers are great and change often and the food is brilliant eaten here a few times and its always been very good plenty of it and very tasty, the staff are very friendly too

Very nice pub, very pretty, with a terrace. There is a lively atmosphere during the week, much calmer on Sunday and Monday.

This place is wonderful. We sat outside as it was a beautiful day. There's a really lovely vibe here, with the music creating a nice back drop. Shame about the works going on in front of the bar. Staff were really friendly. Definitely be back.

After being in town watching a show, we needed somewhere for food , found this place by walking past, by how good it looked outside we went inside for food and drinks. We are glad we did. Everything was good, food tasty, and not bad prices either. Staff were super friendly to! It's defo on my do list the next time I'm in town again :)

Lovely food and easy to get served

Clare, Alex and the team couldn’t do enough to accommodate our large group booking. We changed the booking several times at short notice but they were so helpful every time, even sending us a seating layout so we could arrange a seating chart. We provided a food pre-order and there wasn’t a single mistake, the food was served quickly and it was delicious. The restaurant is very well managed, the staff are friendly and the atmosphere is great, we didn’t want to leave! Thank you for having us, we’re looking forward to coming again!

Had a few beers in here, nice bar, good beer.

What a great place, lovely lovely staff.

Good choice of beer and they do beer flights so you can try a few different ones without getting too tipsy. Great atmosphere inside and plenty of seating outside. Didn't try the food so can't comment on that.

Really nice place. Recently renovated I believe. Pairs the industrial vibe of Manchester with the modern bar. My wife and I ate here with our 3 month old baby. I had the pie and chips and she had the burger. The selection of beers was excellent. The food was very nice. The staff were brilliant from the greeting from the bouncers on the way in to the bar staff and attentive wait staff. I don’t understand why it wasn’t busier.

Nice selection of drinks and lovely to sit outside

Decent bar, will be really good when all the work on the Town Hall is complete.

I was only there for couple of hours to meet friends who I hadn't seen for a long time. Was there from midday so it was quiet. Staff were brilliant. I say that because when I explained my son's requirements from the menu (which is really nice for a pub, and reasonably priced), they were more than happy to adapt for what he wanted. No problem. With a smile. And more suggestions. Also, the food was very good . Would very happily go back next time I'm in Manchester. Thank you to the staff 👍

Really big place with plenty of beers on tap 😁

It's a nice spot this with reasonably priced drinks!!! Good food selection also

All round great experience. The food was really nice and the staff were very helpful and friendly. Will definitely be returning!

Had a cracking Early evening friendly staff

Great craft beers and a good price food reasonable priced and great service

Not been here before as we tend to stick to traditional style pubs. Quite spacious inside, and quick polite service. We sat outside as it was sunny. Pavement seating was plentiful, and good to see that smokers and bakers were politely shuffled outside the drinking area. It's quite noisy both inside and out,which doesn't always suit for conversation amongst older folk with diminishing hearing. However, it'll be added to our itinerary for future crawls nevertheless. Reccomended.

The beers that we have was spot on and the service was good what not to like 👍

only sampled a couple of drinks so can't judge the food, seemed a decent place, service was good

Nice place with outside space for the odd sunny day in MCR 😉

Very busy, but staff kept a smile on their face. Love the place and will return

Not overly keen on the refurbishment, seems to be like you are sitting at kitchen tables now. And the music was awful

Friendly staff and good food. The pies are very good.

The food took 40 to 50 minutes to arrive. The Lancashire hot pot was 80 per cent potato.

Excellent beer and great company

Nice new JW Lees pub in the centre of Manchester. Good good options and a nice selection of their cask and keg beers with some different seasonal variety.

Great place for some traditional English food and some craft beers.

Lovely place very helpful staff who offer assistance for beer choices should you require. Lovely day sat outside

Nice pub, nice food, staff were friendly. View slightly let down by the construction work opposite. Could be easily missed due to that construction,

Since the upgrade from Duttons to Founder's Hall as it is now, they have really stepped up in terms of the atmosphere and design of the pub. Great location, loads of seating inside and outside. It all feels very modern with a great range of food and drinks. Love coming here!

Decent drinks, cheap for the city centre

What a disappointment! We had booked a table of 5 for food based on photos of the interior, we were ignored 3 times by different members of staff before having to get their attention to order food. One waitress spilt half of my mates cider on him, didn't apologise and he had to ask for blue roll to wipe it up. The food portions were small and unimaginative, no real value for money and overheard other table bookings complaining about problems they encountered. One saving grace, a huge selection of cask beers available. May be back but only for drinks.

We had great starters, and a lovely Sunday roast , with unlimited yorkshire puddings, and gravy . Then we shared sticky toffee pudding , and shared a bottle of red - nice atmosphere and great service .

Fantastic place in town to visit. Love the offer for the three third pints for £5.70. Greate place in town to visit. Ground are always welcome

Could do with a bit more salad selection or lighter snacks

Fabulous evening -food was amazing, served hot and on time. Everything was presented well and all our group really enjoyed the evening. We were a group of 30+. All the small plates were really tasty.

Really enjoyed the newly refurbished JW Lees flagship bar. (Used to be Duttons) Lots more choice of their own ales available and great decor with pictures showing JW Lees from many years ago.

Didn't eat here but it's a nice place to stop for a drink

New venue, further visit needed !!

Outstanding JWL bitter. Didn't eat but definitely an option next time we go.

Great pub, lovely choice of Manchester beers, good food and great service

Lovely place, delicious food and wonderful staff. Thank you

Excellent food, Excellent service would definitely recommend going

Group of 4 of visited. First time here since it opened as Founders Hall. Didn't have to wait too long after ordering food I ordered the chicken, leek & tarragon creamy pie with chips & mushy peas - wasn't overly impressed - hardly any leek, certainly not creamy quite dry. Everybody else enjoyed theirs - will try something else next time. Music was abit loud tho for while we were trying to chat & catch up. Would go back and give it another go...

Nice new bar, plenty of space and a great selection of beers at reasonable prices.

Great new venture from local Lees brewery, showcasing their core and seasonal products in a modern industrial bar/restaurant. A big improvement on Duttons as the focus on beer has increased with the food complementing this. 7 in total on cask - the Black Rose milk stout is a gorgeous drink, like a dessert beer. Worth a look.

Dog friendly, pretty good Sunday roast. Good cask beer. Music could have been a bit quieter but we were sat quite close to a speaker so might not have been as loud elsewhere.

Great food and drinks .....you must give it a try if you can. 😉

Great range of JW Lee's and Boilerhouse beers, very good looking, will revisit review after a month due to works still being done.

Margin driven outlet to the expense of food experience

Food excellent and great value. Kids portions very big. We had the Sunday roast and is very very good.

I generally much prefer the older traditional pubs of Manchester but Founder's Hall is a very impressive new addition. Top range of ales and - very unusually for a Manchester real ale pub - an excellent place to eat too.

Fantastic new bar great service brilliant atmosphere 👏

Decent beer well kept. But the flights are a total con. More than the price of 3 thirds of almost any of the beers.

Nice pub. A " brewdog " for older guys.

Founders Bar opened on 21 February 2024 replacing Duttons - same brewery JW Lees. Large cask selection all brewed by Lees - I’m on the Fallen Again Golden Beer described brilliantly by Untappd as watery and smooth - by far the worst pint of the day. Will probably do well with tourists but there are too many better alternatives all close by for locals to drink in. Can’t comment on the food.

New place recently open. Really nice vibe, nice team and not ridiculously expensive for central Manchester. I didn’t try the food, just went for after work drinks

Great selection of beers, really friendly and hospitable team and superb pies!!

Nice for an early Sunday afternoon. Atmosphere just right. Able to get food that is not over facing.

Absolutely fantastic!! This was the honestly the BEST lasagne we have ever had. You could tell that it was definitely homemade and it was only £13.45!!!! We are from Sheffield and travelled to Manchester for the Christmas markets, so was surprised we managed to book a table! The service was great and the personalised welcome plaque was as a nice touch. We are already planning on going back to Manchester just to come back here for the lasagne!

Nice pub. Good selection of alcohol.

Always enjoy eating at Duttons. Good food. Good wine. Good atmosphere. Good location. What’s no to like.

First time visit to Duttons with the main draw being the beer as it’s a JW Lees house. The beer was on form and we stayed for food which was good. Pub was busy as it was pre Christmas and the Christmas markets were on and the pub atmosphere was vibrant and relaxed at the same time. I would recommend giving this pub a visit when in the city centre

Had Christmas dinner with work colleagues today and the lady who served us smiled throughout the service which was so nice. All the staff who served us were really pleasant again which was great customer service. I think it was the landlord who also checked everything was running smoothly. The room was great and atmosphere Christmassy with Christmas crackers with fab bad jokes! Oh and the plates were warmed … attention to detail … nice!!!!

We were trying to find a fairly quiet place to have a drink and a chat - a difficult enough task to find on a Saturday night leading up to Christmas - but this was good m.

Nice bar in central Manchester. Only stopped for a drink which was reasonably priced and great service. Nice atmosphere with plenty of seating.

Nice place, good service and central to everything going on in Manchester

Nice place, and warm! Nice to go to after the Christmas Markets and the chips were perfect! Oh and their take on the Baby Guinness was devine!

The staff at this restaurant were welcoming and friendly. They were attentive, feeding our group of 6 effortlessly. Thank you!

Shocking ! Ordered 4 meals got 3 ! Forgot the mixed grill, wonderful finish to an evening out, kebab on the way home I feel

Great atmosphere, really friendly staff!

Clean good value nice selection of drinks and menu was good

Just went for drinks and was a cosy place to chill and have a couple of drinks without all the noise.

Been here a few times always enjoy it, staff always friendly service good really nice place to visit

Tasty food for reasonable price

Friendly staff & fantastic food.

It's a 'spoons, nothing out of the ordinary run of the mill place.

Lovely pub with great drinks and lovely staff! Food wasn't good (chicken curry) - tasted like a microwave meal. But the drinks and staff are lovely!

Great pub,enjoyed a drink in there

Been twice for food and drinks recently both times food has been lovely, the staff are welcoming and friendly the place has a great atmosphere

It's a bar in Manchester city centre, like so many others, staff are good and prices are average. Nothing here to make you go back again, I will say I have not eaten here, so this review is about drinks. If I'm passing and fancy a drink, I'll go back again. That's about it.

A bit more pub than restaurant, but great choice!

This is always are 1st stop off in Manchester. Been coming here for the last 8 years. Love the place