Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: good (24) Manchester (24) staff (18) great (13) beer (13) atmosphere (12) time (11) building (11) Wellington (10) service (10)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 James W. 2 years ago on Google
    We had a fantastic meal at the Old Wellington, loved it! We booked a table on the day but they had plenty of space for dining. Our server, Tina, was fantastic, really attentive and cared that we had a great experience (she even double checked our beers were ok as we can some from the bottom of the barrel, replaced with no hesitation). The food (Ocean fish and chips, burger, fish platter and landlords platter) were all fantastic - really good value for a fantastic time. Highly recommend!
    4 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 MADDOGLEP 2 weeks ago on Google • 1300 reviews New
    Flic and Ic decided to meet up with family and friends at this historic pub. A Nicholson's watering hole. A chain that always provides a good range of real ales, although also usually at a premium price. Flicarus and Icarus tried the Purity Mad Goose 4.2% Pale Ale and also their eponymous Pale Ale brewed by St Austell. The pub is centuries old and has moved twice. Firstly in the early 1970's when the Arndale centre was built and then in the late 1990's after the Manchester IRA bombing. It now sits by the Cathedral with 3 other pubs very close by. The outdoor seating gets rammed when the sun shines. The seating is over a couple of floors. Upstairs mainly dining. Like Trigger's broom I'm not sure how much original building remains.

  • 5/5 Alan D. 3 years ago on Google
    Absolutely superb, we had the steak meal, cooked to perfection, followed by vanilla cheesecake and sticky toffee pudding, to die for. We had a really efficient waitress called Victoria for whom nothing was too much trouble. Lovely ambience. I'd recommend the Old Wellington 💯 % for good food, good service and good atmosphere, what more could you want.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Lukasz P. 2 years ago on Google
    I have stepped by for an early lunch and was really surprised because from the outside the building looked larger. However, little room is not a biggie when you have a generously sized summer garden, right? Especially when the weather is good. I had lentil vegetarian pie with peas, carrots and gravy. Okay in taste, but the texture was too mushy for my liking. However, I need to highlight very broad choice of beer on tap, especially ales. Service was friendly and attentive. Definitely would go back for a beer.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Ivan T. 3 months ago on Google • 555 reviews New
    Dining Experience @ The Old Wellington. . The oldest building of its kind since it opened in 1552, and the birthplace of writer John Byrom in 1692, The Old Wellington was rebuilt in its present location in November 1999. This half-timbered traditional building housing the pub is known for its classic pub grub and cask ales. . Ambience is rustic, like walking into a time capsule. The wooden panels and floorboards creak slightly, and the warmly lit space is neatly lined with ye olde sturdy wooden furniture. . Service is attentive and professional. Staff demonstrate good product knowledge, check for feedback, and have good situational awareness, handling requests and cleaning up fast. . Food is classic pub grub, well-executed consistently to restaurant standards. Portions are large and hearty. Prices are reasonable, budget about GBP £26 per person. . The Beer Wychwood Hobgoblin English India Pale Ale (IPA) (GBP £5.35) tastes of the far-flung pacific, from whence its hops were gathered. Winner of the "World's Best IPA" at the World Beer Awards 2018. . The Fish Pie (GBP £14.50) features chunks of deboned salmon fish, deboned haddock fish, deshelled king prawns, diced carrots, diced celery, and rich white wine, potato, and butter sauce, topped with crisp parsley and creamy cheddar cheese infused mashed potatoes. The crust of the pie is torched till crisp and crunchy, shattering gently. . Cut in, and you get the tender creamy soft filling with bright fishy savoury vegetal earthy milky sweet cheesy salty flavour. . The traditional Apple And Blackberry Crumble (GBP £6) features a base of diced bramley apple chunks and blackberry clusters, baked till caramelised with a tender juicy soft texture and sharp sour sweet fruity flavour. . Covered with a beautiful rolled oat crumble, crisp crumbly fragile in texture with lovely earthy savoury sweet grainy flavour. . I chose a classic side of vanilla custard, beautiful with golden hue and creamy rich texture carrying floral milky earthy sweet flavour.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Giannis P. 7 months ago on Google • 453 reviews
    We were lucky to find a table upstairs, next to a window. The place was atmospheric and welcoming. The service is very kind, smiling and fast. Both dishes we tried were very tasty, carefully prepared and attractively presented. Loved the lamb pie! Everything went perfectly until we left completely satisfied and we thank them very much for the beautiful evening! We hope to have a chance to visit it one more time before we leave Manchester!
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 DnD_Beyond_Is_Bad 2 weeks ago on Google • 85 reviews New
    Nice pub in one of the oldest buildings in Manchester. It says the building has been renovated and moved a bunch, but the old-timey charm is still there. Good food and drink selection.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Christopher L. 9 months ago on Google
    A very traditional styled old pub with lots of good beers and a good menu of food. All staff are really helpful, friendly and attentive and service is good. Our food was spot on and portion sizes are great, so you'll be nice and full. The only negative was the men's toilets which were flooded when we visited, but it was horrendously busy in the area/beer garden due to the CL final.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Samuele B. 9 months ago on Google
    Old fashioned pub located next to the Manchester cathedral, in the heart of the Town. The typical english old style was reason that brought me and my friend here and we were not disappointed at all. Beers are all goods, especially the Mancunian IPA, but also the kitchen is worthy. We had big pies with meat and mashed potatoes for lunch. Burgers looked tasty, too. One of the places not miss in Manchester
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Rach H. 1 year ago on Google
    Lovely place! The bar snack was so nice! Enjoyed the tap beer 🍺 in the sun too!
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Mike N. 1 year ago on Google
    Lovely pie and mash. Had a becks blue with it. A larger choice of alcohol free beer would have been nice. Interesting building and friendly staff.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Christopher L. 1 year ago on Google
    Good pub, always busy, but enough staff to cope and you do get served relatively quickly. Prosecco by the glass, not the best! Good selection of beers. Worth a visit !
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Dee B. 1 year ago on Google
    This pub is amazing. I recently visited Manchester for the first time in 38 years, having crossed them there Pennines 😃 to meet up with a cousin from Australia who I haven't seen in 40 years and went to The Old Wellington for lunch. Wonderful atmosphere, great food and gorgeous surroundings. I liked it so much I am visiting Manchester again soon with my daughter who is coming up from London and booked a table at the Old Wellington so we can have a day out in Manchester.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Jakub D. 1 year ago on Google
    Really cool place. Wide selection of beers and good food :)
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Tiffany V. 1 year ago on Google
    Really interesting and obviously old. Very nice patio area since the street is closed off and inside was very rustic old made me feel like I was in another time in the past definitely. Drinks were good just the staff made me feel a little out of place as a tourist they kept looking at me like I was suspicious or something which wasn’t welcoming.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 angelo s. 2 weeks ago on Google • 571 reviews New
    Manchester's oldest pub. Very good food

  • 5/5 Joanna K. 3 weeks ago on Google • 98 reviews New
    Been here years ago, forgotten just how good it is. Great food, lovely staff and fab atmosphere. Fish platter for two as our starter. Then chicken with oyster mushrooms pie. Thank you, we'll definitely be back

  • 5/5 Aiden P. 2 months ago on Google • 67 reviews New
    Brilliant building the in heart of city center. The building dates back to the 1500s apparently, convenient to grab a beer to break abit of shopping up or grab some pub grub. Here and next couple are popular spots for the European away fans when playing in Manchester

  • 5/5 Facundo C. 3 months ago on Google • 55 reviews New
    This is definitely a MUST if you're visiting Manchester! The atmosphere was fantastic, the place is beautiful and very well maintained; What a place!!! We found a table upstairs, we ordered beers and asked for menu recommendations... We immediately went for a soup and the Lamb Pie as main, both plates were DELICIOUS!!! But the Pie... this was the best pie I've ever had in the UK so far!

  • 5/5 Ron S. 4 weeks ago on Google • 53 reviews New
    Today we had dinner at The old Wellington. Had pie (Beef Shin Pie) and fish and chips as a main course. Both were very well prepared. For dessert crumble with vanilla sauce, fantastic! Service was fast, friendly and caring. We had a great evening! Definitely a restaurant to recommend and come back to. And then I forget the Nicholsons Ale, delicious beer!

  • 3/5 Jesús del �. 2 weeks ago on Google • 27 reviews New
    This historic building gives you the chance to see inside a house with a typical medieval Tudor architectural style. Interesting; However, it was so crowded that, in my opinion, the experience was not very remarkable. I think it would have been a better idea to go in, see and go somewhere else to eat.

  • 5/5 Antranik Ashdjian g. 2 months ago on Google • 26 reviews New
    We had just arrived into town, and were strolling around under rain, when the Old Wellington caught our eye. It was Christmas Eve, after all, so we had no idea if they'd serve us. We tried our luck and had a perfect ''first taste'' of Manchester.

  • 5/5 Marco P. 2 weeks ago on Google • 17 reviews New
    Great place to start your visit in Manchester. Great food & beer.

  • 5/5 Ali S. 2 weeks ago on Google • 6 reviews New
    Visit with friends. The waitress who served us was very good - friendly, helpful, kept checking on us. Food quality was good but parsnips were a bit hard. The only other issue was some of the glassware needed a polish.

  • 5/5 Manuel V. 2 years ago on Google
    Really nice place, went with my wife to have something to eat and watch the Euros match. The place is beautiful, food is great, had halloumi fries as starter and a steak pale ale pie as main, both really good. Staff very friendly and great service.

  • 5/5 Dita N. 5 months ago on Google
    This is our all the time best place to relax and have a beer in the beer garden. Perfectly poured Camden Town beer, nice selection of ales.

  • 5/5 Marcus P. 5 months ago on Google
    Wow. The food here is divine. But make sure you arrive early as they sell out of some dishes. I had the shepherds pie. It was made with a lamb shank, and the meat just fell off the bone. Place looks and feels old - I took some American friends, and they were amazing and loved it.

  • 5/5 Sarah C. 4 months ago on Google
    Quaint English pub in the heart of Manchester! The pies are delicious; we both had the beef pie. Definitely worth a visit !

  • 3/5 Lucy K. 3 months ago on Google New
    The servers were lively, polite and helpful. The decor and building are lovely. The speed of the service was appalling. It took over 20 minutes to take our order. The food then took over an hour and when our daughter (1 year old) meal came it was wrong. We’d ordered vegetarian sausages and got pork ones. We had all finished our meals by the time her new meal had come out. By which point she was extremely upset. Really disappointing.

  • 5/5 John R. 2 years ago on Google
    Best pub in Manchester. Only one thing surpasses the excellent beer and food is the more than helpful staff who all go above and beyond to make everyone enjoy their time there. 🥃🍻🍷thank you all👍

  • 4/5 KloudManc 5 months ago on Google
    The Old Wellington Pub is one of the oldest and most historic pubs in Manchester. It was built in 1552 and has witnessed many events in the city's history, such as the Peterloo Massacre, the Industrial Revolution and the Manchester Blitz. The pub is located in the heart of the city centre, near the Cathedral and the Corn Exchange. If you are visiting Manchester, make sure you stop by this historic place for a pint.

  • 5/5 Nigel 2 years ago on Google
    Great pub!! Good food and beer at a reasonable price!! Manchester prices are ridiculous and we tend to not go out into big cities like these anymore! However, we were pleasantly surprised with this lovely old boozer!! 😀😀😀 I'm sure this pub was featured on my favourite programme a few years ago, Most Haunted!! Claire and Nigel

  • 3/5 John 2 years ago on Google
    Good range of beers and ciders. Great location and building. Food was just ok. We ate late so maybe that impacted on quality. My steak and kidney pudding was more like a pie - had a hard crust rather than steamed suet pastry. Veg was tepid - reheated and overcooked. Ate it all but that was more of a reflection of me being famished than an indicator of enjoyment. My wife liked her lamb hot pot .

  • 5/5 Nancy S. 11 months ago on Google
    Booked a table for 5 for a Saturday evening. My husband and I ordered the Fish Platter (£16) and Loaded Nachos (£9.50) for ourselves whilst the rest ordered a main dish each. Both the Fish Platter and the Loaded Nachos were great. Fresh and flavoursome. Not greasy. The Fish Platter portion was good for two people as suggested on the menu. Same for the Loaded Nachos. Excellent service. It was quite busy and the two staff have done their best to attend all the customers as they could. Definitely recommend here for the experience to be in the oldest architecture (built in 1552) in Manchester city centre, for the atmosphere and the food and drink.

  • 4/5 Enrico 1 year ago on Google
    Stopped here attracted by its beauty and decor while visiting the Manchester city centre and the cathedral. The pub is so well kept and really affordable. Worth a visit even just to feel in a different time in history. They offer good food British classics and offer an ample terrace with seats on the main road.

  • 3/5 TF T. 1 year ago on Google
    I came here for a friend’s birthday lunch with my heart set on the duck pie. They didn’t have any left, so I had to get the Lentil Cottage Pie. This was okay, but nowhere near as exciting as my first choice. There were one or two other items also out of stock, so our party wasn’t overly impressed.

  • 5/5 Eric de R. 1 year ago on Google
    Excellent Pub.. it’s the oldest pub I have ever known and visited.. Felt it took me back in time.. Just loved the Ambiance..

  • 4/5 Vienna P. 1 year ago on Google
    Stopped by just for a drink whilst visiting Manchester and it was fab. Nice selection of drinks from spirits to on tap. Reasonable price too. Friendly staff. Only issue was the toilets were quite wrecked in that the hand dryer didn’t work and the toilet roll dispensers were coming off the wall but it was all clean and was New Year’s Day so under. The food looked good from what I could see so I would be interested in going back to try the food some time:)

  • 4/5 Rowan F. 1 year ago on Google
    Food was delicious and well cooked, the seats were very nice and comfortable. but downstairs there are no seats up against the bar, a bit of a lack of staff as there was only one lady working on the second floor but she was very kind… overall good,comfortable and tasty restaurant.

  • 4/5 David A. 1 year ago on Google
    Good pub, nice atmosphere with reasonable food and drink. Good service.

  • 5/5 A R. 1 year ago on Google
    A very old (estd 1580), traditional pub in the heart of Manchester, next to Arndale shopping centre. Cozy place serving great ales. There's outside seating which tends to be very busy during weekends. Nice staff.

  • 5/5 Debbie S. 2 years ago on Google
    Only popped in for a festive drink while Christmas shopping, but such an impressive ambience with bright yet traditional decorations, well distributed tables in cosy nooks, & delicious aromas from the busy kitchen! 👍👍

  • 5/5 Tanya G. 1 year ago on Google
    Loved this pub, we tried the Rosie pig rhubarb cider, it was delicious. Can't recommend enough and we need more of this in our life! The staff were very helpful, we were served by a young girl with long hair who was very pleasant, polite, friendly very helpful as they have an array of pump alls etc we were able to sample. The toilets were pristine, so pretty were the flowers i even took a photo to show my other half. Loved the place. Will return. Thank you 😁

  • 4/5 Bert G. 8 months ago on Google
    We called in after completing a treasure hunt round Manchester with the old Wellington as the finish point. The food was excellent, staff were great. We sat upstairs and enjoyed the view and the atmosphere. Only 4 stars due to the fact I thought the drinks were a little on the expensive side with a lime and soda coming in at £1.30 and a large Pepsi max running at £3.45!! Can't fault the food or the staff though as both were excellent!

  • 5/5 Nina S. 8 months ago on Google
    Great gastro pub food with excellent service. A beautiful old pub. Will definitely go back.

  • 5/5 Neringa Jurgaitiene (. 1 year ago on Google
    Lovely food and atmosphere. It's the oldest house in Manchester if I got it right. Definitely worth a visit.

  • 5/5 jozef s. 10 months ago on Google
    Interesting atmosphere and very good offer of beers. Happy personal, Nice place. You can visit this place.

  • 5/5 Brian D. 2 years ago on Google
    Excellent traditional pub with a good selection of real ales, a welcome change from many of the tacky, down-market city centre bars. Also impressed with the staff who were customer friendly and knowledgeable about the range of beers on sale.

  • 5/5 Celia R. 2 years ago on Google
    Busy but fabulous fast staff! Lovely food, great selection of drinks, and great atmosphere. Dining room upstairs is old worldly, renovated to a very high standard and clean. Thank you to our waitress and other service staff, who were polite and efficient.

  • 5/5 Mark 6 months ago on Google
    Had a brilliant beef pie. The old pub has great history and atmosphere.

  • 5/5 Raymond D. 1 month ago on Google • 2 reviews New
    All I can say about this place. It’s an absolutely amazing calm setting. Great atmosphere great staff and amazing service from all of the staff including management the whole team. And the food is extremely delicious 😋 and extremely tasty beyond words. What an incredible experience for the both of us. Me and my partner absolutely loved enjoyed the whole experience of eating at this restaurant that was respectful decent devotion of the amazing professional hospitality of the chef 🧑‍🍳 who served and cooked sensational exquisite dishes.


Call +44 161 839 5179 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
    • ✓️ NFC mobile payments
  • Offerings
    • ✓️ Beer
    • ✓️ Food
    • ✓️ Wine
    • ✓️ Alcohol
    • ✓️ Dancing
    • ✓️ Spirits
    • ✓️ Cocktails
    • ✓️ Food at bar
  • Accessibility
    • ✓️ Wheelchair-accessible toilet
    • ✗ Wheelchair-accessible car park
    • ✓️ Wheelchair-accessible entrance
  • Dining options
    • ✓️ Seating
  • Service options
    • ✓️ Dine-in
    • ✗ Delivery
    • ✓️ Takeaway
    • ✓️ Outdoor seating

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