The Bar

The Bar — or often referred to as ‘bar’ is a popular beer place & eaterie in Chorlton.
Pretty handy meeting spot, right outside the tram stop, and a stalwart of any Wilbraham Road based Chorlton night out.
For me, it has a great selection of ale, and a reliably high standard of food. I’d recommend booking if you’re heading their for food, as it can be pretty busy. Especially if you turn up at peak time on a Sunday, for your Sunday roast, as I did. With 10 people. And their kids. A bit of table rearranging and we were all sorted, but yep. Probably best to book ahead. (Sorry for not).
It was busy and most of ordered the traditional roast dinner. I went for roast beef, which had a large amount of quality beef, and a good amount of veg — though not too many roast potatoes. We were a large group so was a bit of waiting for cutlery, but this was minor when you consider we’d turned up with a large group … unannounced. (Sorry again). Also minor when you consider that the food was of a good standard.
Not having kids myself I hadn’t thought about changing facilities, but perhaps that’s something they’ll improve in future.
Harvest Pale was my beer, which was a ok price, and of a good quality. Will have to try the Chorlton Pale next time!
So, the venue has long been a place to pop into for a beer when on a Chorlton night out, and it was good to return for some food once again. Would return for sure.

Its a nice looking place they’ve got the look right certainly.
Beer wise you’ve got the all rounder brands along with 6 draught ales along with various bottles behind the bar. (though the fan seeking out Brewdog and drawn by the big BrewDog shield at the door, its just some of the high ABV one)
Nice beers not too bad price wise bout 2.80 a pint, and a little thing that I love at good bars I wasn’t sure which beer to have so they let me taste a bit of 2 of them to decide, I like that this is becoming a more common practice in beer places (or should that be a practice coming back it died for a while)
music ok and not obtrusive, looked to be a jukebox if you had something particular you wanted to hear.
Alot of seating good use of the space they’ve got. Can’t comment on it getting busy I was there mid week about 4.30 so just before anyone could rush in after work.

It’s alright is The Bar. It’s managed to become one of the most popular places in Chorlton, if not THE most popular place, and the problem is as Kirsten says, if you like it, eleventy billion people do too. I’ve been here a couple of times, both in summer, but I can understand why it’d be quite cosy in winter too. Great outdoor seating for both seasons if you want a bit of fresh air with your pint!
If it’s the most popular bar, it makes sense that it’s called The Bar. THE Bar. Goodness me. That’s very, er… assertive. Anyway I haven’t tried the coffee but I’ve enjoyed the atmosphere and watching the Wilbraham world go by — however it can feel a little dark for me at times, and the one time I ordered a Marble Ginger it was pretty warm. Thank goodness I only got a half pint! Tepid doesn’t quite equal fiery, more’s the pity. The free wifi means you might even get some work done, although it wasn’t too functional last time I was there. It attracts locals, creative types, professionals and academics; the clientele and inhabitants that give Chorlton its distinctive edge.
If you can get a table during the day be sure to enjoy the peaceful side of The Bar with its resident beard-​scratchers and pontificators. It’s certainly got a lot of competition from neighbourhood bars and it’s a good place to meet folks for a chin-​wag.

I like The Bar. I like it a lot. Unfortunately, so do a lot of other Chorltonites, which makes it almost impossible to secure a wooden stool at one of the outdoor wooden barrel tables during summer time.
The Bar attracts a slightly older and possibly more intellectual crowd than Dulcimer, but serves a similar range of British and continental drinks at similar prices. They also serve a selection of Marble beers including Ginger, a personal favourite of mine. I can’t comment on the food, but my foody housemates used to eat there fairly often, and the menu looks pretty appetising. There is usually artwork or photography on display — at the moment there are black and white portraits by a local artist.
Unfortunately my last early evening visit was ruined by an unruly child who kept on bashing into my chair, picking up the fliers for club nights and yoga classes that were on offer down the narrow corridor towards the toilets and launching them in the air, leaving them scattered all over the floor next to my table.
This place gets quite busy and noisy at the weekends, with more people outside than in (it seems that all of these creative types and beard-​scratching intellectuals smoke).

What’s happened to the food?
When I lived in Chorlton, I would regularly go to The Bar to sit in front of the cracking fire and nurse a whisky or two. When I went back with friends this afternoon however, we had to wait forty-​five minutes for okay drinks and bad pub food. The fish was okay but the chips and tartare sauce were so inedible they were left untouched.
Admittedly, there was a bit of lunchtime rush on but you would think Chorlton’s oldest running bar would be able to cope with a busy Saturday by now. The fact the usually cracking jukebox was out of order and we were stuck next to a large table of loud, inebriated actors probably didn’t help. Neither did the décor — magnolia and dark pink walls — looks too dark and dreary now. But still, disappointing.

How lazy, how confusing, how cocksure, how unimaginative to call yourself the Bar?! How many people have been stood up because the Bar made them look like they were being smug and sarcastic?
«Where shall I meet you?»
«The Bar.»
No show…
Luckily for the people behind the Bar (no, not the barman. although he could also be the owner… see how confusing this is getting already!?), this is actually a really fantastic place to waste your afternoons should you ever find yourself in Chorlton.
I suppose it had to be really, Chorlton has become something of a hotbed of trendy drinking dens over recent years so to become established you really have to have something special.
Typically for the area, the bar has gone for the shabby chic feel and it has paid off handsomely, with the summer months especially seeing lots custom due to the large patio area out front.
Despite some stiff competition, I’d rank the Bar amongst the very finest that the area has to offer.