Manchester’s Spanish food scene runs from a Deansgate institution that’s been trading for 28 years under a Malaga-born former Manchester United player to a Michelin Bib Gourmand tapas restaurant occupying a once-derelict King Street townhouse, and takes in everything from a Chorlton neighbourhood favourite to an Ancoats spot serving proper Catalan tapas to a five-star Tripadvisor rating. Here are the eight best Spanish restaurants in Manchester worth seeking out in 2026.

Chef Simon Shaw opened the original El Gato Negro in Ripponden, Yorkshire in 2005, before relocating the restaurant to a three-floor King Street townhouse in Manchester in February 2016. The building was in poor condition when Shaw took it on, with visible sky through the roof and charred beams left from a previous fire.

El Gato Negro won a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2017 and has held onto it every year since, for a menu that blends modern technique with traditional Spanish flavours rather than sticking rigidly to either. The restaurant has since expanded with an al fresco dining area and a second site in Liverpool.

El Gato Negro — 52 King Street, Manchester M2 4LY | elgatonegrotapas.com

La Bandera trades from a tucked-away spot on Ridgefield, in between King Street and Deansgate, and has built a reputation as one of the best Spanish restaurants in the UK rather than just Manchester. It’s easy to walk past without noticing, which only adds to its word-of-mouth appeal.

The menu covers a broad range of Spanish tapas classics, served in a setting that prioritises the food over flashy design. Its central but discreet location has made it a favourite for both regulars in the know and diners tipped off by locals.

La Bandera — 2 Ridgefield, Manchester M2 6EQ | labandera.co.uk

El Rincón de Rafa has traded on Deansgate for 28 years, making it Manchester’s longest-serving independent Spanish restaurant. It’s owned by Rafael Cabrera-Vargas, a footballer from Malaga who played for both Manchester United and Stockport County before turning to hospitality.

The menu runs through a large range of tapas and mains, including paellas, backed by a fully stocked bar of Spanish beers and wines. Tables for two aren’t bookable in advance — it’s first come, first served, in keeping with the restaurant’s unpretentious, long-running character.

El Rincon de Rafa — 244 Deansgate, Manchester M3 4BQ

Bar San Juan sits on Beech Road in Chorlton, one of South Manchester’s most food-focused neighbourhood strips, and has built a loyal local following with a 4.8-star average across nearly 2,000 Google reviews. It’s a genuine neighbourhood spot rather than a city centre destination restaurant.

The menu covers traditional Spanish tapas with a handful of modern twists on classic dishes, striking a balance between authenticity and approachability. Its Chorlton setting gives it a more relaxed, community feel than the busier restaurants closer to the city centre.

Bar San Juan — 56 Beech Road, Chorlton, Manchester M21 9EG | barsanjuan.com

Can Petit is a small, cosy tapas restaurant in Ancoats serving proper Catalan cooking rather than a generalised Spanish menu, and has quickly become one of the most highly rated restaurants of any cuisine in the area, with a five-star average across its reviews.

The compact space leans into an intimate, neighbourhood feel, with sangria and Catalan classics forming the backbone of the menu. Its limited opening hours — closed Mondays, with a shorter Sunday service — reflect a restaurant more interested in doing a small menu well than maximising covers.

Can Petit — 7 Murray Street, Ancoats, Manchester M4 6HS | canpetit.co.uk

Porta opened its West Didsbury site on Lapwing Lane in 2023, the fourth restaurant in brothers Ben and Joe Wright’s tapas group after earlier sites in Chester, Altrincham and Salford. The Lapwing Lane building spent over 30 years as Simon Rimmer’s vegetarian restaurant Greens before Porta took it on.

The format is inspired by the traditional tapas bars of Barcelona and Madrid, and runs walk-in only rather than taking bookings, keeping the atmosphere informal and spontaneous. It’s built a strong reputation quickly, helped by the track record the Wright brothers had already established elsewhere in Greater Manchester.

Porta — 41 Lapwing Lane, West Didsbury, Manchester M20 2NT | portatapas.co.uk

Evuna’s Northern Quarter site opened in 2013 on Thomas Street, inside a former bank building with exposed brick walls and wine bottles used as decoration, as the second outpost of the original Evuna wine shop and tapas bar on Deansgate.

Alongside the tapas menu — prawns in garlic and chilli, chorizo in red wine, patatas bravas — Evuna is built around an unusually deep list of lesser-known Spanish wines, reflecting its roots as a wine merchant as much as a restaurant. It’s a strong pick for anyone as interested in what’s in the glass as what’s on the plate.

Evuna — 79 Thomas Street, Manchester M4 1LQ | evuna.com

Maricarmen opened its second site on Manchester’s High Street after building a following at its original Ancoats location, splitting the Northern Quarter building into two distinct concepts across two floors. It’s one of the more theatrical tapas experiences in the city.

The ground floor runs entirely on El Tableo, a walk-ins-only format where plates of tapas — meatballs, arroz negro, grilled scallops, croquettes — are brought out and presented to the table as they’re ready. Upstairs, Gildas offers a calmer wine and vermouth bar with its own Spanish-leaning small plates menu.

Maricarmen — 104 High Street, Manchester M4 1HQ | maricarmen.co.uk