Skof, Manchester M4: ‘Proof that fine dining can be magical’

I couldn’t get a table at Skof for ages: it was too full, too booked up and far too busy. The 36-seat restaurant opened in Manchester in May 2024 and by February last year already had a Michelin star. Tom Barnes, formerly of L’Enclume, names the place after his father, Barney, who used to tell him to “scoff” his dinner.

Kick off the meal with Skof’s ‘hugely scoffable’ trio of snacks: a cheese biscuit topped with broad bean, pike roe and shiso; a chalk stream trout and beetroot tartlet; and a Dexter beef taco with roasted yeast. Skof strikes a relaxed but ferociously fancy tone: dress code is come as you are and deodorant is a boon.

As service rolled on, Mental As Anything bled into Arctic Monkeys and Sam Fender, then the first two courses arrived — a soft Orkney scallop with barbecued kohlrabi and preserved tomato water, followed by a lightly set miso custard with hen of the woods mushrooms and dashi.

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