186 Deansgate

Last Friday, Paolo (my guitar tutor) mentioned that he was playing at a place called 186, this evening. He had a few reservations about the place but I said we'd go along if we were in Salford that evening.

Well, as it happened, we were. Today was my last chance to see Izzy before she goes off to her mum's, then to London, and thence back to Kyiv, so the Minx and I took her for lunch at Jane Eyre's in Chorlton, and then Iz and I went over to Beermoth for the rest of the afternoon. 

After that, I went to meet Hannah and the Minx at Mews for a bite to eat before we went across to see Paolo play. By this stage we had developed our own doubts about 186 after Hannah rang to book us a table and it cost £36 (3 x £12). That's not a deposit, by the way; it's an 'entertainment fee', i.e. the price of admission. 

The initial 'speakeasy' conceit of 186, whereby you went through a genuine working barbers' shop to a concealed door at the back in order to access the bar, appears to be long gone. Now there's a red carpet and roped off area outside, and the trip through the remnants of the barbers' shop is rather desultory. 

And for £36, one might have expected some peanuts or olives on the table, but no. However, the waiting staff that we dealt with were charming, though, and the bar itself is nicely laid out and well furnished. 

An average bottle Prosecco came in at a by now unsurprising £45, and subsequent bottle of white wine (also of average quality) was £34. On the upside, the sound engineer clearly took his job seriously and when Paolo and his band started playing, it sounded very good indeed. 

After ninety minutes at our table, a gentlemen came over to mention that we had half an hour left. This is because your booking only lasts for two hours, although this can be extended by agreement of a 'minimum spend'.

All that said, the venue is clearly popular. At the end of the day, it's just not my kind of place. 

PS And yes, I was really irritated by the way they used Roman numerals.