Review: Common

Common

By Rachel Esson | Fri, 26 February, 2010

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Common
Northern Quarter
February 2010

Overall: 4/5

Unlike the stylishly cool venues that have sprung up around it in recent times, Common stakes its claim to cool through scruffy simplicity, a casual approach from its staff and customers, and artistic influences.

It’s a cornerstone of the Northern Quarter’s independent bar scene, championing alternative music, unfussy food and a wide selection of beers.

Together with an ever-evolving exhibition of new and established artists (currently Rob Bailey’s You showcase), these are the reasons it has become a haven for vintage-clad students, espresso-drinking creative professionals and aspiring artists.

Often rammed at the weekends, the café-come-bar reopened in January, having extended into the adjacent building, nearly doubling its size.

Reached via an opening next to the new toilets, the room can function as an overspill seating space or a separate bar and is available for private events.

There are no new surprises from the extension, instead remaining faithful to Common’s overall design; stripped back, simple, with a variety of cushioned seats and a mirror-image glass frontage.

For a small bar there are lots of beers to choose from: Staropramen, Stella, Becks Vier, Boddingtons, Flowers IPA, Guinness, Hoegaarden and Leffe on draught, or Vedett, Cusqueña, Becks, Budvar, Duvel, Liefmans Fruit Beer and Rekorderlig Pear Cider come bottled. Bottles of wine are £8 before 7pm, and all day on a Thursday.

The daytime food menu is soon to be expanded.

Wednesday’s quiz and Pull Yourself Together session are definitely worth a visit.

Common, 39-41 Edge Street, Manchester, M4 1HW, (0161 8329245).

CityLife Rating:

Currently 4.0000/5

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Comments (2)

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John Welsh wrote on the 06/03/10 at 13:22…

This traditional pub venue, has just been given a new lease of life, recently taken over by John & Frank, they have tried to stay true to the pubs history,and character, a good mix of 25yr olds upwards and very gay friendly too.

New traditional ales are planned very soon, main one b…

Alexandra Rucki wrote on the 07/06/09 at 21:27…

TUCKED away on Edge Street in the midst of the ever expanding Northern Quarter, it would be easy for punters to walk past The Common without realising it’s existence.

However, this has cleverly been avoided by turning The Common literally into an artist’s canvas, clearly setting it apar…

TUCKED away on Edge Street in the midst of the ever expanding Northern Quarter, it would be easy for punters to walk past The Common without realising it’s existence. However, this has cleverly been avoided by turning The Common literally into an artist’s canvas, clearly setting it apart from other neighbouring bars and clubs. Graffiti style artwork depicting three Vikings rising from the dead spans the outside wall, whilst the interior showcases exhibit A Wave Called Panic by artist Chris Gray. At a first glance, the bar appears to be quite tiny but there are plenty of booths and cushioned poufs to fit in a large group of people, making The Common a suitable venue for after work drinks. Sumptuous selection A selection of reasonably priced wines are available at the bar, starting from around £3.30 for a moderately sized glass. A sumptuous selection of ciders, beers and rum are also available with strawberry beer Fruli proving to be popular with customers. For those with more money in their pockets £6.00 can buy one of the delicious cocktails on offer, such as a Vanilla Mojito or a rather sickly Maple Syrup Manhattan. In addition, The Common serves up a selection of lunchtime snacks, such as toasties, soup and nachos, the smell of which wafts all over the bar. Regular nights at The Common include fortnightly pub quiz on a Wednesday, featuring questions like "How much does the quiz master weigh?" and prizes even for those who came sixth place. Entrance fee The Common prides itself on playing decent music, with electro night Freitags on Fridays and regular DJs on at most weekends. Nevertheless, this comes at a price with an entrance fee policy at the weekends, but it is worth it with names such as Montreal based CFCF who is playing at The Common on Saturday, June 12. The best thing about The Common is the unfussy and anti-corporate vibe that makes up the bar’s appearance, staff and people it attracts. It remains cool without being too try hard, causing the bar to be far more classy and uncommon in comparison to competing bars of the Northern Quarter.