Grand Central

Metal pub, just serving Hobgoblin. But I like both and they go so well together.

Decent looking place boasting a lot of live rock in the evenings.

Loud and proud sort of pub on the way up Oxford Road very close to Oxford Road station and Portland Street. Very noisy interior with a good number of tables but normally filled with some interesting characters ranging from heavy rockers to your grumpy old smoking man. However at night it is usually heaving and a good place to enjoy a pint at times. Not my cup of tea but definitely has its perks.

Ive spent many a night in GC.
Full of friendly people & bar staff with a great atmosphere plus its a rock/metal pub so win win win

Manager threatened to take me to his office for a "quiet chat" when I asked for a glass of free tap water with my round of beers.

Grand Central is not a pub to pay a visit to if you have hearing problems. Or if you have an aversion to heavy metal music or huge sweaty men with dreadlocks moshing. However, if you're looking for a no nonsense pub full of friendly punters and cheap beer, then it really is the place for you.

Despite not being a woman of the metal persuasion, I've been in the Grand Central numerous times and have never had a bad night there. Then again, the cider and blacks I was drinking might have had a few things to do with that (blimmin' Goths). I was also once there when they had a 'karaoke night' which was....a bit of an experience (and certainly not one for the faint hearted either).

One of the things I really love about this place is how welcoming and accepting it is. No one here gives two hoots what you look like, and I've been here on numerous occasions where I've wondered just how many tattoos one man's arm can hold.

The floor may be a bit sticky with spit and sawdust, and the toilets may need a bit of a defumigating to rid them of all the centuries of filth and poorly spelt graffiti which has accumulated there. However, this is a pub with real character, friendly punters and a hell of a lot of heart. And, best of all, if you buy a round here, you'll almost certainly get change from a tenner too.

I called in the Grand Central once before catching a train from Oxford Road one afternoon. It was pretty quiet, but the staff were friendly and the drinks cheap.

RAAAAAAAAARGGGGHH!

Grand Central is a pub that defines itself on how metal it is. Big massive humans congregate around foaming booze bottles, grunting along to ear-vaporising industrial strength metal that strips your skin off the bone as it tears out of the speakers.

The floor is sticky with sweat and guitar riffs and the bar men are all gigantic with faces filled with bits of metal and ears with great big bloody holes in them.

Of course, with all this aggression in the air, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the minute you walk in, you're going to get battered for not being metal enough or on the wrong end of an impromptu wrecking ring.

Not so.

Some of Manchester's friendliest people congregate in this spit 'n' sawdust joint and they're all more than happy to shoot the breeze about whatever inane topic you muster up.

Cheap beer and nice people. It don't sound so bad after all, eh?

This is a proper metal pub! It used to be one of my favourite pre-Rockworld watering holes. But I haven’t been in for quite a while. Still, whenever I do go, I always have a brilliant time!

It’s a down-to-earth, authentic place where the floors are sticky and the metal blares noisily all day long. In fact, if you pop in during the evening, you might even catch a live band or two.

The sheer noisiness of Grand Central means it’s not so good if you’re out for a quiet drink with friends, but it’s perfect if you’re looking for a place for a pre-party pint or two! As far as I remember, the beers are nothing special here. However, the atmosphere and friendly bar staff more than make up for them!

Grand Central is a rock/metal club located on Oxford Road right next to the train station. Its a great place to go before heading off to Jilly’s. The prices aren’t too bad for a place so close to the city centre and there’s a fair range of beers and spirits. The music is always on super loud and is a good mix of metal and rock. It is a fairly rough looking place but what else is to be expected from a rocker pub? Toilets can be a bit grim too

My opinion of this place has been up and down throughout my time on the town in Manchester. If your a regular on a night out on Friday and Saturday in town, you will been across this place at least once.

It’s loud, with decent music, usually rock/metal, and the drinks are pretty good value. They have a good choice of crisps as well, if you like them.

A rarity in the pub, we managed to find a table and from then on I can say I enjoyed it thoroughly. It’s a different experience if your stood around in the middle of the room full of crowded people, though.

It’s worth a try if your into the music and don’t mind a bit of overcrowding!

A mad rockers gaff. Loud but fun, although it’s a shame there’s no food. Make sure you pop the Ace of Spades on when you’re in!

Great rock and metal pub located just next to Oxford Road train station. The pub is large but gets packed on Friday and Saturday nights and is the main choice for a pre Jilly’s drink. The drinks are cheap too.

The crowd is a good mix of different ages and genres and it has a great jukebox which has everything from old classics like Led Zeppelin to heavier stuff like Slayer and Slipknot.

A lot has been said about the toilets but the ladies are about what you would expect for a rock pub. Make sure you have some tissues in your bag though!

Being a 'metaller’ (grebo?) in my past I have a but of a sweet spot for this place. One of a very few number (2…3?) of out and out rock pubs in the city, this pub straddles one of the busiest intersections of the city…so you can always expect this place to have good healthy dose of punters on any given day.
Perhaps not one for the real ale brigade (of which I find myself increasingly warming too) but it’s cheap enough in these days of expensive bars and 'pubs’ which so permeate the city.
Unlikely to run into any trouble in this place, it’s really a haven for the …the sportos, the motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, waistoids, dweebies, dickheads--they all adore this place - they think he’s a righteous boozer.
Good pool table too boot.

Grand Central IS the metal pub in Manchester, the jukebox plays slayer and pantera mixed in with faith no more, incubus and other rock tracks. Drinks are reasonably priced. It’s not too busy mon-wed but it picks up and thur/fri/sat is crammed. Old men with long hair, people wearing leather, girls in corsets, black band t-shirts as far as the eye can see! It does have a smoking area at the back of the pub down the fire escape and a pool table. Good to go to pre-club! one of the 3 pubs in my personal rock pub golden triangle (gc/scholar/salisbury)

Tatty, noisy, gothic and wild. And brilliant for it! An unusual but fun alternative for an after-work pint.

Given a much needed refurbishment about three years ago, Grand Central is still the bar of choice for those about to rock (we salute you). It’s generally used as the pre-Rockworld/Jillys drinking venue but can be a good night out in itself, it’s a gig venue for rock acts on certain nights and retains one of the best jukeboxes in Manchester, you choose what you want to hear in there!

The old Grand Central used to be infamous for the state of its toilets, which leaked profusely and made one half of the bar virtually uninhabitable, but they fixed the plumbing during the re-fit and you probably shouldn’t get wet feet in there any more (unless you’re really careless)

They sell your standard lagers and spirits (with Jagermeister particularly well advertised) at pretty average prices, no ales but it’s not really a venue for real ale drinkers anyway.

Not a place you’d take your folks to (unless they’re Iron Maiden fans) but if you like your music turned up to 11, this bar’s for you. Well recommended…

I often pop in here on my own before mooching off to meet friends at Green Room/Satans/Jillys/Academy/whatever, if I happen to be the first one in town. The booze selection isn't great but it is pretty cheap, but you won't get any hassle whatever you look like or if you're on your own. There is a pool table that's always being used, and the place only tends to be rammed at about 8-11pm on Friday/Saturday nights.