El Gato lines up two more restaurants
THE team behind award-winning Manchester restaurant El Gato Negro are lining up two new restaurants in Manchester.
The expansion includes a site in Ancoats, next to Rudy’s Neapolitan Pizza, which was previously set to house another restaurant, Wild Goose Fat and Garlic.
The King Street tapas restaurant has won Manchester Food and Drink Festival and CityLife Awards since relocating from Ripponden, West Yorkshire, in 2015, as well as bagging a Bib Gourmand in the Michelin guide for two years running.
The M.E.N. understands the planned Ancoats restaurant will be a different concept to El Gato Negro and the expansion will include another Manchester site in an undisclosed location.
Founder and chef patron Simon Shaw told us: “It’s no secret we’ve been actively looking for a strong second Manchester site. “I can confirm we’re in conversation with a couple of locations, one of which is in Ancoats. “It’s an incredibly young and vibrant space and an area in which I’d love to open. “As conversations are still very much active it is however too early to say more.” El Gato Negro has already expanded its dining capacity to cope with the huge demand, adding more covers in its top floor Black Cat cocktail bar. It is now also catering to walk-in diners in the downstairs bar. Simon has previously revealed plans to expand the brand to other cities. He also has an idea for a new concept, Pico Pico, blending Spanish, North African and Middle Eastern influences in another small plates style of service. El Gato Negro founder and chef patron Simon Shaw