Damson

Becka H and I have been walking past Damson for quite a while and frequently commenting that we should pay them a visit. As it was my birthday recently, this seemed like a good time to check them out.
As soon as you walk in, you’re immediately struck with the quality of the interior here. It’s one of those places where I genuinely thought to myself «I’m not quite classy enough to be in here» but once I spotted other people wearing jeans I felt a bit more at ease. It’s the kind of place which would equally suit a couple out for dinner as it would a business lunch.
Once we were seated, the waitress took our coats which was a nice touch and returned with the menus for us to look over.
We both opted for items from the set price menu, which Damson offer daily as well as the larger a la carte menu. I believe they offer a separate set menu on Sunday’s which focusses on roasts for the main courses.
To start I had the seaweed cured salmon, which came with a wasabi yoghurt, pickled cucumber and little florets of cauliflower with horseradish. I wouldn’t want to be the person responsible for preparing those florets, as they were tiny, but the entire dish was delicious. So delicious, in fact, that I completely forgot to take a photo of it. The salmon itself was beautifully cooked, and pleasantly salty from the seaweed cure. The yoghurt didn’t taste overly of wasabi, but was good anyway, and the mustard-​like flavour of the horseradish with the cauliflower was great.
The salmon was followed by the 30-​day aged bavette steak, with «bourguignon» smoked creamed potato and a red wine and parsley jus. Oh. My. God. The steak was divine; brilliantly cooked, an excellent chargrilled «crust» whilst remaining on the right side of medium, it practically melted. The potato was good, though I couldn’t really taste the smoked element, but the «bourguignon» was immense and rounded out the meal incredibly.
Finally, having decided to be a thorough glutton and have a dessert as well, I ordered the Pedro Ximenez cheesecake, which was garnished with a blackcurrant sorbet and macerated grapes. I love a good cheesecake — hell, I love a good dessert in general so long as it’s not chocolate — but one thing I don’t overly enjoy are desserts where the predominant flavour is a non-​specific sweetness which doesn’t come from any particular component.
Thankfully, this cheesecake did not suffer from this problem. The cheesecake was sweet, but the blackcurrant sorbet retained the inherent sharpness of the fruit which cut through the sweetness excellently. The grapes were delicious, but for me didn’t really add a great deal to the dish — I’d have been happy just with the cheesecake and the sorbet.
The staff here were welcoming and friendly, and kept the pitcher of water on our table filled up throughout the evening. As well as the water, we shared a bottle of wine from their extensive list opting for the Garganega — Pinot Grigio blend which was very drinkable.
The only way I can really summarise the food at Damson is as one of the best meals of my life. It was absolutely superb. Great food, brilliant staff, an excellent atmosphere — not the cheapest venue for a meal but most definitely worth it.
Now I just need an excuse to go back!

Popped in for lunch and was not disappointed. Chose options from the set menu, cracking value. Very tasty starter and main (wish I’d have gone for the desert if the previous two courses were anything to go by). I’ll be taking the missus back for a date night (and desert…)

We had a really nice meal at Damson last night, mainly because it was our wedding anniversary but also because we were both knackered and couldn’t be bothered travelling too far to go out for a decent dinner.
A great neighbourhood restaurant with a decent amount of flair and finery, the grand setting in the hub of super suburb Heaton Moor was perfect for a relaxed night with my favourite person!
The staff throughout were really friendly, efficient and organised while the maitre d’ was really on the ball all evening.
We went for their set menu which was excellent value at £15, £20 and £25 for 1, 2 and 3 courses — plus on top of that we splashed out on a couple of glasses of champagne.
The duck terrine was lovely to start, as was my wife’s — while I enjoyed the pork and mash for mains with my wife enjoying a lovely seabass. Dessert was us 2 trying to share/​cram the pear tart down our necks when really we didn’t need any more food, but what are you gonna do!
The only thing letting this place down is the appalling beer selection — Peroni, Corona, Lancaster Bomber and some other rubbish ale. This is a selection more on the level with nipping to the Spar at 2am when there’s nowhere else open and this is all you can get. Owners of Damson (who I believe own Dockyard and have some good beers) — get down to Heaton Hops and learn about all the great Manchester breweries you should be featuring alongside your lovely food. This isn’t the 1990’s!

My Husband brought me to Damson for a date night, and I was very impressed with his choice. The décor that greets you is very classy and clean, and you can tell instantly that this is an upmarket place. We were seated in a nice quiet and intimate area, with a beautiful view of the Lowry and Media City. The food selection was quite limited for me, being a vegetarian, and I didn’t care to venture trying the vegetarian starters they had on offer. I settled with a gnocchi main and a side of creamed potatoes. It was delicious. The waiter who took care of us was friendly, accommodating and knowledgeable. I wanted a cocktail but they didn’t have much on their drinks menu, so I asked for the bar man to make me something with the one ingredient i desired to be in there, and my wish was their command! We also each tried a dessert, and they were also divine. If you can afford it, Damson is a lovely place if you’d like to treat $omeone extra $pecial on a very $pecial occasion. And if you can afford it more regularly, and smaller, more specialised menus are to your liking, go for it! It seems like a place that would also be ideal for business meetings, considering it’s ambience and location (Media City, Salford Quays). When we went, there was also a large group having a christmas party, and another large group celebrating a birthday, and as we were leaving, another large group was just arriving, so needless to say, they can certainly cater to larger groups!
I hope to come back here again and see what new exciting thing they will have on their menu for me to try! Happy Eating! :)

Decided to treat the little lady again, as I obviously had nothing to gain. Damson has been on my radar for a while and their 3 course set menu for £19.95 is a bargain.
The taster menu was far too big of an allure so we went for that plus the wine flight (£45 + 25 respectively).
Without a shadow of a doubt the food here is excellent, and for a taster menu generous on portions. As a big lad this is always a bonus!
4 out of the 5 dishes we wonderful, especially the lamb which I would go back for solely. The one dish I enjoyed but not as much as the others was the home-​cured duck ham. I just found it rather too acidic but still ate it all, but when comparing to the mackerel cheviche, soup, lamb and pudding, someone has to lose out.
The wine flight was lovely, complimented the food well, especially the Gamey with the lamb… yum!
The restaurant is lovely and pleasing to the eye. Trendy but not imposing and felt very comfortable and at home. The staff were very friendly and very attentive.
This place is very close to being a 5 star but just needs a couple of little tweaks, mostly around service, and I am being hypercritical now. When you order a wine flight you expect a description of the wine and how it compliments the food you are eating. This didn’t happen and its a shame because it adds a touch of class even if you make it up. At one point I was given a glass of wine followed by «Here’s your wine». Nice person but missing that polished touch. Also the wine should be served prior to the course and I received one glass halfway through my course.
Like I said previously these are constructive criticisms that I mean to take the establishment further.
Would definitely recommend to anyone, especially for the lamb. Keep up the good work!

Be sure to take advantage of the early bird menu.

We dined at Damson last Sunday after exploring Heaton Moor following a house viewing.
What strikes you first is the chic interior of the restaurant — great lighting and warm soft furnishings.
The staff were very friendly and provided an efficient service from start to finish.
Onto the important matter of food — well, where do I start. Piping hot and tasty, cooked to perfection and decent sized portions. I had the roast beef — pink, but not too pink as it should be and the roasties were probably the best I’ve ever had!
My partner had stroganoff and that was the best she’s tasted as well. We even asked for the recipe as there was something different about Damson’s version. But as ever with quality restaurants, it was a secret recipe. Oh well, it just means we’ll have to go back again for more!
So with our mains well consumed and more than satisfied stomachs, the dessert menu was introduced. This course saw me have a fantastic vanilla cheesecake with fresh rhubarb and caramelized hazelnut biscuit.
My partner went for a medley of summer fruits tart. Both were excellent and crafted expertly from simple but effective ingredients.
In summary, I would visit Damson again and if we buy the house we liked it will no doubt become our regular dining establishment. What may look a little pretentious on the outside definitely isn’t with its food as Damson serves up common favourites but with a twist. Not an unusual twist even, just a mark of quality and perfection.

UPDATE: the review below was before I found out about this:
I’ve been twice now and both times impressed by the quality of the food in this smallish neighbourhood restaurant.
Shortly after opening a bunch of us visited and enjoyed a long boozy dinner (and especially some slack DIY when one of the large pictures fell off the wall). The food was very enjoyable, although the service was rather hapless. I’ve put this down to teething troubles any new place goes through.
More recently, me and the family visited for the set lunch on a Saturday (17 quid for 3 course really is great value). The place was quiet, possibly due to the miserable weather, and we had a very leisurely lunch (I think we spent nearly 4 hours there; in fact one of the staff mentioned they don’t like to hurry people).
Beware: as of this writing, the set menu is completely different from that listed on the website.
The chicken main was tender and delicately cooked. The salmon was also reportedly excellent. They’ve improved and honed the food considerably since my first visit.
Service was, sadly, a little disappointing. A family member with a medical issue currently needs to avoid fats. Obviously this is a huge problem for eating out in a modern British place like this, but it’s a shame that the waitress refused to even ask the kitchen if there was an alternative pudding they could do. (Also, did she really need to ask the kitchen if the risotto main was a fatty dish?!)
I’m not naïve enough to think the kitchen wouldn’t be swearing like navvies at such a request, but even a fruit salad (as we got in another place, where they were really happy to accommodate us) would have been great.

Damson is a very stylish new restaurant in Heaton Moor, opened by the same people who are famed for making Sam’s and Mr Thomas’s Chop Houses very popular pub/​resturants in central Manchester, so it came as no surprise on my visit when the waiter proudly told me had Damson won best Newcomer in the 2009 Manchester Food and Drink Awards! The décor inside is visually pleasing with purple hues and extremely comfortable soft seating that is upholstered in beautiful fabrics! You can tell that this place has been set up with to work as a professional venue… the lighting is perfectly Serene and the layout has had alot of thought put into it, most tables are set out to give diners an intimate and serviceable experience!
The menu is nothing less than an expert attempt at giving the customer a choice of the best seasonal and local produce cleverly contrived into original dishes, and it succeeds in doing so! You can choose from a set or a la carte menu, I had the 21 day aged rib eye steak with snails, parsley and garlic, parmentier potatoes, green beans and bordelaise sauce £18.95… and while some may think that is expensive, others will know that in this calibre of restaurant, you get what you pay for! The wine list has a staggering 70 different bottles to choose from, and most of these are pretty reasonably priced. This is one of those special little places that you remember to share with people you love on special occasions, not your every day of the week venture… but I would recommend going if you are looking for an exemplary dining experience.

Stylish new restaurant in Heaton Moor from the people who previously brought you Sam’s and Mr Thomas’s Chop Houses in central Manchester.
I was there recently for a family occasion and was immediately struck by the politeness of the staff and the warm décor of the restaurant.
For starter I had wood pigeon with candied beetroot, walnut and watercress, it was small but beautifully presented and was very light and tasty introduction to the meal.
I had hake for the main course with deep fried squid and plenty of sauteed bok choi, the fish was flaky and soft and worked well with the flavour of the bok choi. Other members of my family tried the rack of lamb and the steak and were also very impressed by their meals.
I finished with a lemon crème brûlée — it’s something I almost always have when it’s on the menu in any restaurant and this one did not disappoint, it had a very subtle lemon flavour, not too sweet.
One little gripe is that the lighting is a little dim in places (though nothing like that of the Gaucho Grill), my gran struggled to read the menu, but this is a minor criticism as we were all very impressed the food and service.
Damson won best Newcomer in the 2009 Manchester Food and Drink Awards and is certainly well worth a look, highly recommended…