A friend and I braved the crazy weather in Manchester this week (thanks to the passing hurricane Gonzalo!) to party at Lady GaGa's #Artrave tour. For pre-dancing nibbles I suggested a trip to the Splendid Sausage Company having spotted it on my travels during my last visit to Manchester and having looked over the menu of delicious hot dogs, burgers, fries on our train journey up to the city we were both absolutely ravished and hoping that the food lived up to our expectations. Thankfully I can tell you that it did, so much in fact, we may of stuffed ourselves silly!
Located on John Dalton Street, ideally perched between the city centre and the thriving Spinningfield district we were instantly greeted by staff as we walked through the door. The place was quiet this is true, however I put this down to the horrendous weather and that it was a Tuesday evening. Our server did even thank us for braving the weather so I don't think she was expecting many customers! We took a seat in one of the three booths located at the side of the dining area and began to warm ourselves up for the feast.
The decor is very much like that of an American diner but not in a tacky over the top kind of way which would be more akin to a fast food joint. Music was being pumped in and candles on the table were freshly lit, there was defiantly a nice vibe inside and I imagine on a nicer evening, the atmosphere would be fabulous. It's on that right side of being not too posh that you could bring a group of friends for a bite to eat but not too casual that it would still impress a special someone on a date night.
Our server presented us with the menus and told us about what was and wasn't available (I always like this touch - I hate looking at a menu, finding something I want, getting excited and then being told I can't have it!) and we began to make the difficult decision about what to order.
That's the problem with spending an hour pouring over the menu on the train. It gives you too much time to read everything and when everything sounds so delicious then it becomes difficult to make a choice on what to eat for fear of missing out on something more delicious. One thing I knew I wanted to try was the liquid bakewell. one of the many cocktails on offer (both alcoholic and virgin).You all know I love my amaretto and it didn't disappoint. Excellently balanced it was one of those danger drinks as in it went down far too easily. If I didn't have to be up early the next day I would of happily polished off several more!
I went for the "Mighty Meaty" - a traditional pork sausage served in a moist plump brioche bun and covered with breaded chicken bits, bacon and BBQ sauce. It was like all my favourite hangover food rolled into one, the ultimate comfort hot dog! I couldn't fault a thing. The sausage was juicy and chicken bits crisp and moist. The BBQ sauce and bacon bring it all together into a little bundle of hot dog amazingness. There was debate about what I was going to order but I'm so glad that I went with the mighty meaty. I can't see how it could be topped!
My buddy went for the "Chili Dog" - again a pork sausage on one those magnificent brioche buns but this time covered in pulled chili, cheese, onions and jalapenos. It looked amazing and I cheekily asked to try some. It all worked together really well, the pulled chili was particularly melty in the mouth. If I have to say one thing it would be that I didn't find it too be overly spicy. We love our chili hot though so maybe this was our personal taste. Don't despair though. You can request some hot sauce to pump in that kick of spice!
Its not all hot dogs though. They do offer burgers however I don't see why you would come to somewhere called the Splendid Sausage Company if you wanted a burger but props to them for keeping all customers happy! Fries are on offer of course. My buddy went for the pizza fries which were smothered in cheese and pizza sauce. The ultimate cheesy chips! The fries were deliciously crisp and they weren't covered in grease which could of easily of occurred with all the melted cheese.
I went for the "Splendid" fries. I often refer to things as "dirty" and this is by no means derogatory. It's for food that is just so wrong that it's so good. My dining partner thought the idea of pouring gravy over fries as revolting but I couldn't think of anything more yummy and they didn't let me down, particularly as they throw over sausage and bacon bits too. If your in my camp and the thought of this is turning you on slightly then do yourself a favour and make sure you order these!
Now at this point we should of really stopped however we had been dreaming of the billionaires waffles ever since that menu studying time on the train. I was determined that we would at least try one between us. Turned out to be a good idea. Piled on top of a crispy waffle was a mountain of cream, chocolate drops, mini marshmallows and the star of the show, cubes of shortbread biscuit that melted in the mouth. Served with a dollop of Oreo ice cream it was like being in pudding heaven and was just enough for sharing.
If that wasn't pumped with enough dairy we thought we would give one of the cocktail shakes a try and went for the raspberry ripple, Chambord, Wyborowa Vodka, raspberry syrup and marshmallow fluff. Served in a milk bottle mine went down so easily. It wasn't as sickly or sweet as you might imagine. In a nice gesture, our server gave us the extra that wouldn't fit into our bottles in a baby bottle which of course I gulped down in no time. Nice to see that the customer comes first! Snaps all round.
With bellies stuffed it was time to waddle off to the arena so with a cheery goodbye from the staff we were on our way. I've visited a couple of places in the area that have a cut down menu of just one or two items and I can say hand on heart that the Splendid Sausage Company are the best at this style of dining for hot dogs in Manchester. They are going to take some beating! I just hope that the weather was the reason that it was quiet when we visited as if it was down to the quality of the food, this place should be rammed everyday! Take a look next time your in Manchester and I promise you'll have the most "Splendid" time!
If your on a long train ride to Manchester and want to check out the menu beforehand or to contact the Splendid Sausage Company check out their website here!
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