The Knowhere Guide

Eating and Drinking in Wigan, Greater Manchester*

Wigan, Greater Manchester Pubs, Cafes, Coffee Shops and Restaurants

Food

• the little buttie shop, only place to escape from meat n potato pies
• Pies are available on every corner
• Good food in Wigan; Pies;pies;pies;pies;pies;pies the resson the pies have a hole in the top is that ya can pick 4 up at once with one hand[what ya call a Wigan 4pack]
• ANY CHIPPY, MACCYD'S, NUMEROUS PIE,KEBAB,PIZZA SHOPS
• Chip Shops are always cheap... also SubWay sells decent food
• serrento's also owned by fat tony the gangster
• Pacific Ocean special dinner and sweaty betty's curry house
• peters takeaway on poolstock lane. world class. ready in ten minutes
• peters takeaway on poolstock lane. world class
• Maccy D's
• pea web or wet whatever/ pie barms/ lobbys see what i mean who the hell uses these words only wiganers no one else at all in the country
• pies
• Hmm......Sofra in Standish is 'ok' if your trashed first
• Do you really want to look like a neanderthal, walking along, going down on a kebab? of course you don't! Real gentlemen don't eat standing up, real gentlemen (and ladies) have a real hotdog in the Tudor. And they're none of your hotdog-type hotdogs, oh no, these are like proper Cumberland sausages on a French bread.
• La Orient in Standish is a new chinese and its one of the best ive been to in ages.
• AL CAPONES!!! in hindley for pizza and kebas an shit
• the pizza and kebab shops are not bad but cum on im from wigan i prefer a pie or chippie
• The walkabout for a bit of crocodile or springbok and kangaroo if you want something a bit different
• pooles pie shop make the best pies and there great to take to the game
• SHALIMAR!!!!!! ormskirk road pem
• mc carpet (mc donalds)
• I go to the Bel Air hotel and restaurant quite frequently. Its a small French restaurant with a French owner and the food is FANTASTIC!! The service is always excellent and prices are quite reasonable. Its about 1 minute from the centre of town.
• McDONALDS in the centre of wigan is terrible. I advise everyone to go against it. they won't even put a sign to tell you if they have run out of anything. me and my friend queued for 20 minutes there only to be told "well we don't have any milkshakes!" and the woman continued to insult me about my hair (it's red as in bright red not ginger) i mean i was fuming not only did we not get an apology of being made wait that long but then she insults me and the manager was just laughin with her. i advise people to steer clear. they're badly organised and don't care about customers.
• Gaskells Chippy near Running Horse's Billinge By-good they do good fish'n'chips
• LOADS OF PIE SHOPS- GREGGS, GREENAULGH'S, HAMPSONS, GALLOWAYS, RATHBONES, WATERFEILDS ETC ETC
• chinese delight in standish, le frog, burriges, rigaletos at the jjb & the italian in orrell
• you havent lived until youve had a kebab from shalimar at pemberton(ormskirk rd)
• Shalama's £4 special kebab in Pemberton Brian's Infamous fish'n'chip shop in Ince Green Lane, best chippy in Wigan.
• The wheatlea Park is just the place to go for tea it's quick, easy and cheap for what you get. The staff are always friendly and are willing to help. But if you're in wigan during the day and want a good cheap meal the town hall is the place to go. The staff are a laugh too!
• Forget the Pie Shops there all shit and the best one is a Bolton one anyway,try LeFrog for a bit of class.
• Ummm, Crostons sandwich bar - best butties in town
• In centre Le Frog takes some beating, Tuesday 2 course for a tenner
• mcdonalds, kebab king(wigan lane), picasso(pizza), alisons butty box
• Plenty for those who are too busy sending text messages to bother actually preparing their own food.
• For those who like a few chips with their grease is CHIPPORAMA. Best chippy is down the side of Edisons pub. Greenhalgh's and Poole's do good pies etc
• PIES! Greenalghs, Pooles, Galloways up Pem, Rathbones, etc. All scrummy.
• Laces pie shop near C & A....best steak pies in town.......sadly no more
• DON'T EAT AT KFC, BUGGER KING OR RONIE MACS PLEASE, OR ELSE WITHIN 2 YEARS THE NATIVE 'WIGAN MUTT' WILL GO EXTINCT. Hampsons Sausage and Baked Bean paties are tremendous. Can pooles pies really be called food? I heard that former owner Davey Whelan used to like to add his own special cream for that extra buttery taste.
• Pegasus Pizza!!!!! The ONLY place I ever buy pizza from!! Absolutely the best in the North West!
• Le Frog next to gems (French & cheap) Burridges on Wigan Lane for that romantic meal for 2! Chip & Fish shop on Frog lane take your own dish!!
• That Mecca of English fish, chips and many other delicious types of chippy food, Welli Chip Shop. Best in Lancashire!!!!!!!!!!!!
• Maccy D's and K.F.C in the town centre and pizza hut and Burger King at Robin Park!
• The Golden Phoenix in Pemberton & The Jade Palace in Billinge are brilliant! Both Chinese takeaways
• It's the end of ane era! The infamous Pooles Pies have gone out of business after over a hundred years of feeding the faces of Pie Eaters. It'll never be the same again.
• DARLY STREET CHINESSE,
• chippie on ormskirk rd pemberton facing esso petrol,scrummy!!!
• Bargains at Moon Under The Water - or Moonundertwater if you come from Wigan.
• Shame on you all! How can people contribute information about Wigan and *not* mention Uncle Joe's Mint Balls in the Food section? Next to pies, mint balls are a Wiganer's favourite eat. (A mint ball pie cannot be far off!) Check them out at http://freespace.virgin.net/neil.worthington/unclejoe.htm
• Gregs pie shop and Pooles pie shop are the best places to get some decent Wigan grub,PIES.
• If it's the family atmosphere you're looking for try The Red Robin on Robin Park Road, Newtown. It's located on the new Robin Park complex, across from the new multi-screen cinema, and offers affordable, good quality food.
• For something more traditional and more up-market try The Beeches in Standish for good quality "cuisine" and nice surroundings!
• Or Winston's in Upholland (near the Golf Club) for great pizza.
• Try the Ajmeer Manzil on Market Street (next to the Bus Station) for a good curry (especially the Chicken Rogan Josh). Lively atmosphere at the weekend after "chucking-out" time!
• Pooles pies.
• Tons of pie shops of course, nothing veggie.

Pubs

• again little fifteen is a shithot pub not to be missed
• Anvil
• The Tudor House Hotel (The Tudor) next to the bus station in Wigan town centre is the coolest pub in town. Decent range of beers incldung large bottles of 3 horses - friendly atmosphere and good music if you prefer rock or metal.
• The stag at orrell. The fantastic place to start your night off and put urself in the mood for wigan. Gr8 music, live bands, kareoke. Great staff!
• Wigan pier
• The Tudor is full off 'fresh-faced' skater/gothic people! Then again, some look about 40 due to the strange make up haha
• BEE'S KNEE'S, TUDOR HOUSE, ALL LIKE A BIT OF YOUNG BLOOD
• the best way 2 start of your night in wiagn is to go into bar bar for your £1 shots.
• Horseshoe opposite where Wigan Baths are on the bend
• leigh arms
• The Collective/Tavern, Tudor House Hotel if you like rock music.
• FEVER, where you cannot fail to pull
• The Tudor House hotel is the finest pub this side of Manchester (where only Nite and Day Cafe and Fringe challenge its brilliance, and Cord on a good day). Good beer, nice food (Real Hotdogs...) Gorgeous barmaids... fantastic jukebox...what more do you want?
• The Tudor House Hotel is not only the finest pub in the Wigan burrough but also ranks very admirably alongside the likes of Manchester's Nite and Day, Fringe, Cord and Matt & Phreds. Try Hoegaarden , Guinness and Leffe, bang a bit of Buckley of the jukebox enjoy a Real Hotdog (tm) and marvel at the sheer gorgeousness of the barmaids past and present. A seven out of seven foxiness rating - can't be beat. Landlady, landlord senior and landlord junior are very nice people as well. Oh and John Bull, Hartleys and if you must venture to King Street - Cheers bar.
• John Bull. Anvil. Rare oases of calm in a sea of overpriced glitzy tat.
• THE MOON UNDER THE WATER IS GOOD NICE N CHEAP N A GOOD ATMOSPHERE STAY AWAY FROM HARRYS BAR< LOADS OF DIRTY OLD MEN THAT PISS ON THE SEATS!!!
• The tudor for all winstanley students(mainly) that have a tendancy to like rock music and wear rather large pants. sounds good to me!
• Just go to nearly any pub up Pem and you will be guaranteed either a slap or a slapper plus cheap booze
• Just let u know,it's all true about Gill being a great cook ect but the wiganer now has new owner called mike and louise and they also have a football team now (not such a rugby pub anymore)
• POACHER!!!!! winstanly
• Wetherspoons are killing all the others with their cheap drinks.
• The Bowling Green, (near the hospital) worth a stroll out of town if your bored with king street and tanked up Wigan lager louts. A fairly quiet pub that gets busy at weekends. Does live music on occasion as well.
• Everyone will tell you the tudor house is the place to go drinking. I have to say that to go there would be a very bad decision. It's not exactly the most entertaining of places. There used to be a realy good atmosphere in there up until about the last 5 years when it's really gone downhill. Plus most of the clientelle would make the average 21 year old look 90!!!!!!!!!!!! but if you do have to go in there make sure you only drink bottled ales since the dish washer is renowned for either not working or just never being used! Oh and avoid talking to the proprietors since they're lacking a little upstairs and will only serve to confuse or irritate you.
• Let me in the TUDOR Russ you Bastard
• Neva far from a pub round wigan plenty in Ashton town centre
• the poacher in winstanley, or any of the towny pubs on a sturday night not a friday night though it's far too young, stay out of the springbok too full of young scals
• station, robin hood, rose and crown, and abby lakes at orrell (top nite out) try the poacher at winstanly and the railway at pem.
• Bricklayers Hallgate Wigan, best on Tuesday when doleites get their money. Unicorn Billinge open all hours with turnstile door Squirrel at Ince Bar, guaranteed a fight
• Best is Foresters Arms, Shevington Moor. Worst are all others. Especially Harrys Bar in the town centre. You are only allowed in if you have a maximum of three teeth and you are married to your brother.
• The Tudor - rockers pub The John Bull - OLD Rockers pub, but they got a pool table and it's VERY private up there so you and a loved one can spend "quality" time potting your balls..!
• King Street full of big company outlets, Chicago Rock, Walkabout, coming soon Jumpin Jaks, Berkeley square, Club Med... busy but overpriced, better bets are Bentleys and stagedoor, owned by locals and RIKs, cheapest beer and only live music in town centre... All age groups in here, HIGHLY RECOMMEDED
• tudor house, rileys
• Fuck the Tudor. I go there often and it's a shit hole. the owner is a twat and so is his son. In fact his wife is a slut too who sucks dicks out back! The ale is flat, the staff are rude and the glasses are dirty. However it's a good place to abuse bar staff as their all soft as fuck. Rudd is particularly soft and I hope he gets raped one day!
• Well, for pubs, most definitely take a trip down King Street (and fall into the first doorway you see). Home of Chicago's, Walkabout, Springbok, Bar Med (notice a theme here). Probably best to avoid The Victoria.
• When I went out with a Wigan lass we used to drink in The Boar's Head, which was ideal as it was within staggering distance of her bed and had a bonny beer garden for summer evening bevvying. Too many wasps though. This pub was also the scene of a bloke singing 'Delilah' absolutly pitch-perfect without any music whatsoever.
• BERKLEY SQUARE is good, VICTORIA is always busy and the MOON UNDER THE WATER is cheap. EMBARGO's okay but prepare for a walk if you need the bogs.
• The John Bull and Steppes...sorry...'the Tavern' are the best pubs in Wigan for rockers and Bikers. Great music and a great atmosphere, well worth a try!
• The Tudor House in Wigan is THE best pub in Wigan, and I should know cos I've drank there over twelve years. Rus the landlord is an absolute gem, and is not a hard bastard at all! Good ale, friendly clientele and decent food. The staff are alright too. The other good pub is the John Bull, Harold and Margeret are the the most decent people you'll ever want to meet. If you see 'em, say hello to them from me (Frank).
• The tudor's my haunt on a friday night - good old russ always has a smile on his face and a song in his heart (honest!)
• When my daughter hit 14 five years ago, the Turnkey and The Pier gave me some serious earache!!!
• O'neils, Walkabout, the Vic, Berkley Square. Go to the lot. You will be welcome!!!!!!
• The Tudor does occasionally have its moments but its still the best pub in Wigan. Bring back the Topless barmaids to the Travellers Rest (Pemberton), Sunday nights haven't been the same since.
• The Tudor House- full of students but much flesh on display on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Russell the landlord is one hard bas**rd, though, so don't f**k with him!
• Tudor, Hartleys, Steps, Em-Bar-Go, Chicago Rock, Walkabout, Berkley Square and the Bees Knees but NEVER EVER go in SHAPIROS!!!!!!
• The best pub is the Rose & Crown in Orrell
• Someone said em-bar-go is good if your pissed, but I have to dissagree. You have to go down some very steep stairs, and it's a bit dodgy when warring high heels and you are pissed. Go there before you are pissed!
• CHICARGO, VIC, HARRY'S,WALKABOUT, CROFTERS, BRICK, O'NEILS, BERKLEY, MOON, YATES, FIFTEEN, HARTLEYS, WHITESMITHS, GRIFFIN, JOHN BULL, STEPPES,THE RAVEN, BEES KNEES, RAILWAY, RILEYS, TUDOR HOUSE, RICKS,
• moon under water Cheap beer
• O'Niels in Wigan is a fine place with Hughie as the manager it stands its ground especially for the Guinness extra cold and the barstaff wont take no shit either.... fare enough, the odd fight breaks out but hey! thats an Irish bar for ya. Fine meals are served during the day and the atmosphere kicks off into the night with dancing on the bars and barrels its a fine old watering hole.
• The Orwell, The Swan & Railway, The Vic, No15, Harry's Bar, The Beez Knees, Berkley Square, The Raven, Moon Under The Water, Yates's Wine Bar, Steppes, Em-bar-go, Chicago Rock Cafe, Walkabout bar, The Officers Club, Tudor House, The Bricklayers, O'Neill's, The Crofters, WhiteSmiths, The Royal Oak, The Griffin, The Bowling Green, Fox & Goose, The Touchline Pub, The Cherry Gardens, The Brockett, Hartley's. (all pubs in a 1 1/2 mile radius of the town centre)
• Em-Bar-Go is good (especially if your bladdered),
• OLD HALL IS IT STILL THERE
• The Tudor- thats it!
• KIRKLESS HALL AT ASPULL. Best pub in the whole of Wigan. SATURDAY NIGHT: Kareoke, artist. THURSDAY NIGHT: Pub Quiz, supper. COME AND JOIN THE LOCALS!! WHAT A PLACE. YOU AIN'T BEEN TO WIGAN WITHOUT GOING TO THE KIRKLESS IN TOP LOCK ASPULL.
• A Standish pub crawl has to be the best - From the Globe to the Lychgate to the Dog and Partridge and finally to the Charnley Arms - by taxi of course - if you're still standing by the time you've done the first three and are capable of walking to the Charnley I RESPECT YOU!!!!!
• For a decent priced drink and a bit of a dance it has to be Em-Bar-Go in the town centre. If that's not your thing try the Charnley Arms in Standish - a nice meal, a few lovely cocktails and you'll be dancing the night away at Mirage across the road before you know it!
• Go to the Tudor House Hotel on new market street. My name is written on the third booth on left half way up the wall.
• Berkeley Square (the big screen is tops) plus the best atmosphere you'll find
• The Wiganer in Hindley is a really cool pub.The land lady Gill, is a really good cook and you can get food from noon till about 2:30pm. The Wiganer is also the home of Hindley A.R.L.F.C and is known as the rugby league pub of Hindley. A lot of Wigan Warriors stars also go in there too.
• Last time I was in that bloody big Weatherspoons pub (Moon Under Water), it seemed that the bloody local UVF were having a meeting. Very unpleasant.
• O'Niels or Berkley Square (Top night in a top environment).

Cafes and Coffee Shops

• mr chips, the corinthian but u will die of lung cancer
• little fifteen is shithot
• Scruffy eileens cafe on Wallgate does a nice full english breakfast with a free pie thrown in
• TESCO, AND MANY OTHERS
• Cafe Santos is purple and sells not very good coffee. Its always cold as soon as you leave the shop and the condescending assistants always ask "you do know what espresso is don't you?"
• piccolo bar, owned by fat tony, mafia ganster dude
• Gorners in the little arcade
• CAFE NIRVANA! it aint really a cafe but its in the name so its close enough. the place to be.
• the gallaries its like an american throw back of the mall but it doesnt quite have the same ring to it!!
• Get on a train and check out Nero's in Manchester
• e-comcafe.net in Pemberton, good food nice people funky enviroment.
• Well you could always go to Brucianni's but one of the waitresses got really arsey with me once and wouldn't let me upstairs even though my friends were up there because it was one minute past four or something and they wanted to wipe the tables. So from now on it's Tudor coffee all the way.
• wigan pier cafe is shit, i should know i worked there 4 a while dont go!!!
• that one near the ethnic emporium is ok. I also heard it sells legal weed alternatives which is decent
• well theres a really nice cafe called frenchies it used to be pooles, its a pie shop and its f***ing well nice
• go to krumbs cafe at the bottom of king street realy cheap food and its delicious home made food and very friendly staff susan sharon and michelle who are always smiling the best little cafe in wigan
• Whatever happened to Freesport that place was fantastic!!! Come back Mark.
• stick to the nicer ones in the town centre
• found santos,the best coffee i have ever tasted,and a funky internet lounge upstairs,thought i was in brazil!
• Krumbs cafe is the best in wigan
• Santos and Bruccianies make the best hot chocolate in the world!
• Coffee Shop in Pem is good for a chill out on Sunday morn
• Freesport Café - Jaxons Court - Surfin Cafe with net access to patrons! Santos - damned good coffee Brucciani's - My mate ed works there and they do a stunnin hot chocolate Bus Station Cafe - Can't find what anyone else would see there, but my friends work there. I like it. LOL
• mcdonalds, alisons
• Wow! We are getting coffe shops here at last!
• Country Larder for the 'Seen me coming' feel. Get a jacket potatoe and eat it in. You'll be slapped twice as much than eating it out!
• The Copper Kettle on Library Street used to do a grand steak and kidney pie with peas and gravy. There's also a cafe on Rodney Street where they do a decent fry-up.
• Gorner's cafe (over the long-gone Legs O man pub) and the UCP cafe's superb chicken and veg pies........food to die for!!
• Cassinellis cafe. Mesnes Park. The only place to get a never ending bowl of soup!!!!
• The Coffee Bean in the Galleries. Excellent and cheap, good for people watching and next to a strange seafood stall, which does a remarkably brisk trade among teenage girls! I have often wondered what's in those prawns?
• Bruccianis is pretty cool...er..thats it I think!
• GREENHALGHS ,POOLES' HAMPSONS WATERFEILDS ,AND WHOEVER SAID THAT WIGANERS WERE PIE EATERS?
• whistle stop cafe,king st full cooked breakfast,tea&toast for 3 quid,superb!
• ASHTON USED TO HAVE SOME GOOD ONES
• bruccianis is nice

The Knowhere Guide started out as a list of places to skateboard in the UK. It is a compilation of (unedited) information and views supplied by users like yourself. It is not a conventional tourist guide!

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Last updated: 2008-04-03