This is a Michelin Star burger.
We've come down to Mana in Ancoats,
Manchester's first Michelin-starred restaurant in 40 years,
but now, because of COVID,
they've had to adapt and they've turned it
into a place where you can get your burger fix.
Just look at this.
We're going to sit down with the chef patron, Simon,
and find out exactly what goes into this burger,
and what makes it so special.
Simon, thanks so much for having us down here today.
So tell me, what makes this so special?
I think it's just a really great burger
that's sort of prepared with the same sort of ethos
that we normally have at the restaurant.
Which is just great quality ingredients,
and just treated with some love and care,
and some respect.
So talk me through it then.
What have we got?
At the top, there's obviously the bun.
So that's made in collaboration with Pollen Bakery.
So they're great, they're made from potato and milk,
and then we just brush it with some brown butter
before we toast it.
Nice.
And then we've got the cheese that we make,
it's American-style cheese,
but made by us with Cloudwater Beer.
The patty is made from four different cuts.
So we've got brisket, shin, rump cap,
and also some calves' liver in there.
- Calves' liver? - Hmm.
Amazing.
And we glaze it with a brown butter,
and egg yolks and beef garum.
Underneath that, we've just got
a nice wedge of organic iceberg.
And we dress that with a paste
made from green onions and dill.
I've got to say, the one thing that surprises me about this
is the fact that you've used iceberg.
I would have thought like, reindeer moss or something like that,
but iceberg seems to be quite,
almost primitive, it's like a standard, isn't it?
First of all, it's a burger,
and we're not trying to make it anything more than that.
Obviously we have to adapt to, sort of, this offering,
which is a takeout burger.
And anything else would have just deteriorated.
So how long did this process take
of you coming up with it?
Because, knowing you,
you'd have spent a lot of time over every last little detail,
meat ratios, and--
Absolutely, yeah, I mean, it took us
a good couple of weeks to really get to a point
where we were happy with it.
But even now, you know, even this past week,
we've been doing this for four days now,
we're still making changes to it.
Ever evolving.
Absolutely, yeah, I mean, that's the ethos of this restaurant,
is to continue to evolve,
and never sort of rest on our laurels, so.
COVID obviously has struck businesses
up and down the country.
How was it for you when it first happened,
when lockdown first happened?
We didn't really do so much.
I mean, it was difficult for us, obviously,
especially considering the point that we were at,
before the lockdown happened.
You know, we just got the star, we were really at our peak,
and we had a clear vision,
where to go towards the future,
and then obviously we couldn't do that.
So it's got to the point now where,
you know, we really need and want to do something,
and do something for the community as well,
was the most important.
Yeah, nice.
I'm very interested to know, why burgers?
'Cause there could have been many other paths
that you went down.
Well, it's one of my favourite foods, for sure.
And it's also approachable and accessible, as well.
It's something that not many people don't like.
And it's comfort food.
I think now more than ever,
people need food that's going to make them feel good,
and comfort them.
What's the feedback been like, so far?
Amazing.
Absolutely amazing, I can't believe it.
It's incredible.
I felt for you a little bit, because you've spent so long,
like over a decade, building up the ethos of Mana
and getting your star.
But now all everyone wants to talk about are the burgers.
I mean, I think if it wasn't for all that work,
this wouldn't be so popular.
What's the future, do you think, short-term,
are you going to carry on doing the burgers?
Are you going to go out to different avenues?
So these are available until the 6th February.
I think, with this being in such high demand,
it makes sense for us
to try and do as many of these as possible
and get it out to as many people as possible.
And we are also thinking about doing tacos, maybe.
Tacos?
Yes.
Yeah, Simon, do tacos.
Do tacos.
Where are your best places to go in Manchester for burgers?
'Cause I know you are a big fan of burgers.
I am a big fan of burgers.
Obviously, you can't forget places like Almost Famous.
Yeah.
I think they're in the top 20,
on the world's best burgers list.
Are they?
- Yeah. - Nice.
Yeah, yeah, super high.
The burger scene in Manchester, it's incredible actually.
And there's also a place called Burgerism, in Salford.
And Honest Burger as well.
Honest Burgers are great.
Knowing how driven you are,
would you like to see that getting in the top 20
best burgers in the country?
I don't think, we have any plans to commit to this,
in that sort of sense,
but it's honestly been one of the most rewarding things
that we've ever done.
So, who knows?
It must be really nice seeing customers coming in as well,
and actually seeing people for a change.
That is one of the best parts about it.
Just, even if it's only for a short while,
we can say hello,
you know, we can sit people down, we can talk to them.
And we've had so many messages from people,
saying how great that part was.
Which is amazing for us,
just for us to be able to work together again.
On Wednesday, we've got our entire team
coming back from furlough.
That busy?
'Cause we had about 3,000 people on a waiting list
for a burger.
So-
It's incredible, isn't it?
Yeah.
I'm going to go try one of these in a minute,
but is there anything I should be looking out for
while I'm eating this?
Um, beef.
Listen, if I can't taste beef,
there's a problem.
Beef, brown butter and green onion
are the most prominent flavours.
Can I ask you a favour though?
That's been sat there for quite a while now,
any chance I can have a fresh one?
Absolutely.
Thank you Simon.
Right, I've got it.
This is like opening the suitcase in Pulp Fiction
where the light shines at you.
Let's have a look at this.
Ooh, baby.
Look at this as well, you get a nice little napkin.
Okay.
Let's pop this down there.
Oh my God.
Just look at that, are you getting involved?
Okay, look, I'm just going to,
there's no easy way of doing this, is there.
You've just got to go in.
I'm not going to be professional.
Okay.
So first of all, this is worthy of that.
Absolutely incredible.
Look how gooey that cheese is.
American cheese, it's made with St. Andrew's cheddar.
And it just is so melty, so delicious.
Nice and tangy.
We got to talk about the bun.
The bun is an unsung hero of a burger.
Without a good bun, it's just going to go to pieces.
This is nice.
It's baked using potato as well,
so it gives this a bit of substance.
Really holds it together, keeps those burger juices in.
Keeps the cheese in there.
And do you know what?
I was a bit dismissive about the fact that
they use iceberg,
but it just adds that nice little crisp,
that nice little crunch.
There's a slight bit of acidity,
sharp taste in with the dressing.
The meat itself.
This is from farmers in the Lake District, so fairly local.
It's belted Galloway beef,
just in case you wanted to know.
And I can't get enough of it.
I'm going to absolutely smash this in really fast,
just on a street corner.
And by the way, if you work for the NHS,
everyone that works in the NHS is entitled to a free burger,
on a Wednesday.
You just have to prove that you work for the NHS.
Look at this.
This is a unreal.
17 quid, this is gonna cost you.
It's a lot of money for a burger,
but I'm saying it's worth it.
And if this is how good the burger tastes,
I cannot wait to try the tacos.
Cheers.