got to be the best place in south manchester for food, if you calling down for your daily loaf or treating yourself to lovely olives and pate. This place is great…tad expensive but well worth it.Just wish i could afford to shop there for the full week!!!

The best deli in Chorlton, family business- they know their stuff! Yummy bagels, cakes, deli produce and more! Easily reached by the 86 bus from piccadilly and opposite unicorn

Excellent bread/cheese/meat selections. Very good deli in Chorlton. I also like their sausage and potato lunches on Saturdays.

Harking back to that continental holiday? Fed up with your usual loaf from Tesco’s? Looking for some cheese you haven’t tried before?

Well, if you live in (South) Manchester, why not try Barbakan Delicatessen? Bread from their own bakery, cheeses from all over Europe and sausages and cold meats that are the real McCoy. And if you can’t wait until you’re back home, they’ll make a sandwich or filled roll for you right away

Another visit to this superb deli was long overdue by the time I entered Barbakan in Chorlton this weekend.
Having family up and in the area, I thought it wise to grab some deli supplies for a planned evening meal at home.
According to the history bumf, Barbakan derives it’s name from a market place in Krakow, Poland and appears to have landed in Chorlton over 40 years ago.

As I drew near the place I could already sniff out some fine food business going on: lo and behold they have an outdoor cooking situation on Saturdays! Freshly cooked, lovely sausages in a roll and fried potatoes. The second coming for anyone servicing a cheeky hangover I’m quite sure.
Once inside you’re presented with a mighty range of ‘interesting’ food. It’s a bit like the Selfridges food hall but marginally cheaper: I say marginally because, to be honest, many of the items are quite pricey. A lot of the Italian range I saw in Italy recently for a fraction of the cost. If you’re sensible about it and not get too wide eyed over the continental fare then you’ll ultimately think better of the place.
However it’s the breads in this deli which set it aside. It won an award (one of many actually) a year or so back for Best Deli in Britain which tells you this is a well respected place.
Offering over fifty different kinds of breads (freshly baked, made with no animal fats therefore vegetarian friendly), a large majority of which I had never heard of, I find it a struggle to choose and often end up in a yeast like state of panic.
Fortunately the staff (mostly Polish themselves) are on hand to help you pick out a bread.
I picked up French sour bread and Marathon bread (partly made with apricots) both of which lived up to expectations. I missed out on the Belgian chocolate bread – one for next time.
They make breads for most of the top restaurants and the likes of the aforementioned Selfridges.
I couldn’t pass the cold cut counter without grabbing something different to add to the table later on. Come on down ‘chicken with aspic’ slices. Resembling a facial prosthetic from a George A Romero flick it turned out to be rather tasty: an eloquent slither of textured, free range gherkin I’d describe it as.

Wonderful place….a shrine to god of bread.