Historic pub the Black Friar opening new outdoor bar and kitchen

The Black Friar pub in Salford has built a brand new outdoor bar and ‘wood fired’ kitchen in its sprawling beer garden, just in time for the summer. The newly refurbed garden opened last weekend exclusively for local residents, but is now open to all.

The fully kitted-out bar will feature a new gin menu, featuring Didsbury Gin, as well as cocktails and draft beer. The kitchen, meanwhile, boasts a new outdoor oven which will be used to cook dishes from a new menu too.

These include British topped flatbreads, a ploughman’s platter, and whole honey glazed British ham hock with beetroot slaw, and fresh bread. The new menu has been devised by chef Ben Chaplin, who previously worked at 20 Stories.

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“We have arguably the best beer garden in Manchester,” said owner Neil Burke. “A beautiful green space, it’s ideal for kicking back and enjoying being outside. This new bar and more casual food offering is an exciting addition to the garden, and means we can welcome even more people to join us at the Black Friar.”

The historic pub on Blackfriars Road reopened last summer, after an extensive renovation costing £1.4 million. The pub had laid derelict for 15 years, after being damaged by a fire, but was then saved, with the rear and side sections being extended to form the large outside space.

The pub was the only building in the immediate area to survive the slum clearances in Salford in the 1960s, and is now surrounded on each side by large apartment blocks. It’s since gained recognition after national critic reviews, including Jay Rayner, who heaped praise on the pub following a visit last December.

“I’d be rather chuffed if the Black Friar was my local,” the Observer critic wrote.

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