Manchester

Boutique
18-22 Lloyd Street
Deansgate
A swanky new lap dancing bar in an underground venue off Deansgate, and close to Albert Square. Pretty high end inside, the club is decked out tastefully and entrance is pretty well controlled so there's no idiots. Clearly the nicest in Manchester, but we've got a long way to go before our venues are comparable to London.
Lap dancing bar

Long Legs
Basement 46 George St
City Centre
Review updated: A full strip is now offered by Long Legs (hurrah) and the Fantasy Bar is rumoured to be re-opening. Manchester gained a third strip club with the opening of the classy Boutique bar on Lloyd Street. Located in the heart of China Town, slightly off the beaten track, Long Legs charge between five and ten pounds to get in, depending on the season but this includes a free dance. Walk down the stairs and there's a bar to your left, with a dancefloor-cum-standing area and two seating areas around it. Stringfellows this ain't, as the carpet/wallpaper/furnishings will tell you, but you’re here for the titties right? The girls are strictly boobs only - no amount of money will result in you seeing a front-bum. The long legs girls are decent looking girls with at least 10 working each night, and sometimes more. Some are friendly, some aren't. Doesn't really matter does it? The girls dance for £5 for approximately five minutes, whilst £10-£15 will get you a two girl dance and maybe some nipple licking. Some people consider this a waste of money, but unless your some sort of alcoholic regular who's spending the rent money (and child support) on titties then it's not really a big deal. Long Legs is a great place, don't get me wrong, but Manchester deserves at more than one strip club. It almost looked like we were going to get one, but sadly the actress who plays Rita Sulivan on Coronation Street took great offence to Peter Stringfellows plans - due to the fact that it would take place very close to her front door - and kicked up a huge fuss. With hundreds of solicitors in that same area, you'd make a mint from it, but equally you'd have to be insane to go up against so many legal eagles.
Lap dancing bar

The Deaf Institute
135 Grosvenor Street
Oxford Road
Right in the heart of the University district, Trof 3 (now named the 'Deaf Institute'....seriously) is the third incarnation of the Trof brand in Manchester. The first - and most loved - Trof is the original in Fallowfield. Food by day, music and drinks by night, a former terraced house was converted in to a chic little cafe bar for the well appointed students nearby. The second Trof was predictably in the Northern Quarter, and this third bar is in the make-believe area called the Southern Quarter, close to Oxford Road and the nearby studentsville. The Deaf Institute opens on the 29th February.
Indie and Underground bar

Walrus
High Street
Northern Quarter
Stunning new bar from the designer that gave us the Sugar Lounge and Panacea (and more) with an interior that is as far from understated as you can get. A great cocktail menu, and - so far - a great addition to the Manchester bar scene.
Indie and Underground bar

Sugar Lounge
Deansgate Locks
Deansgate
The Sugar Lounge has had an interesting history, but there's no doubting that the tiny venue at the end of Deansgate Locks is an equally interesting place to hang out. Attractive, and with attentive service, there's a bling bling vibe in this bar and a 'take it or leave it' attitude. If that's your cup of tea then get your glad rags on and prepare to brave the oft-strict door staff. As the saying goes, if you deserve to be in this bar then they'll let you in.
Style Conscious bar

Lounge 31
31 Withy Grove
Printworks
Lounge 31 is a new late night bar within the Printworks featuring seven days of entertainment, and opening hours till 7am on weekends. The venue opened in October 2007, and has been pretty busy thanks to it's swanky interior and late night opening - a godsend in Manchester which, despite it's '24hour Party People' tag, tends to close down after 2am! Lounge 31 has a mixed music policy, concerntrating on the softer side of urban and R&B, but as a self described 'style bar' - with luminaries such as The Living Room, Sugar Lounge and of course Cloud 23 as it's rivals - the venue was going to have to pull out all the stops to succeed. Inside you'll find a stunning venue that's certainly up there with the best of them in Manchester, in fact a large proportion of their staff have been 'borrowed' from these venues so you may recognise some faces. Private booths are available for hire, each with their own LCD TV, and a VIP area that's seperate from the rest of the bar by curtains.
Modern bar

Label
78 Deansgate
Deansgate
Label was the cooler younger brother of the Living Room - in fact it's situated right next door (the two are actually owned by different people, but appear somewhat similar). Whereas the Living Room caters for those who prefer a sophisticated drink, Label is much more in your face with a dance floor and the necessary DJs to go with it. Designed in a sensitive fashion it's an uber chic hangout that's aimed at the 'up for it' crowd: pumpin house music, groovy disco - it all goes on down here. Label's location at the base of Deansgate, close to Prohibition, The Cocoa Rooms and Club V, has set this area alight. It's the trendy place to come out and party, and a few more steps in either direction will take you to the Circle Club (lovely), Panacea (good, but troublesome) and a whole load of traditional pubs.
Modern bar

Chicago Rock Cafe
23 Peter Street
Peter Street
Formerly Life Cafe, this is now the Chicago Rock Cafe. Located on Peter Street, which is regarded as the hard-drinking alcopop-fuelled area of Manchester city centre, the venue holds around 400 and provides a nightly selection of mainstream music and drinks offers. During the day the venue offers light meals and coffee.
Cheap and Cheerful bar

Odder
14 Oxford Road
Oxford Road
Much loved bar on Oxford Road that offers quality beers in an eclectic environement. Don't be put off by the tiny bar downstairs, as the main action is up the wooden stairs at the back and in to an aladdins cave of clocks and vases. Regular events offer music and DJs, whilst the recently updated menu offers delicious, low priced grub.
Indie and Underground bar

Bluu
Smithfield Market
Northern Quarter
As one of the first bars in the second phase of the Northern Quarter revival, Bluu is one of the busiest venues on the block with big-ass queues outside on a Friday and Saturday. Inside the venue consists of two floors - the welcoming upstairs bar, with plenty of seating and bar space, and the lower floor which is a bit more intimate - some might say sleazy. Although many argue that Bluu's popularity is waning, the selective door policy keeps this place a well behaved haven and you can't beat the restaurant during quieter times. Actually owned by the same people as Fat Cat's Cafe Bar on Deansgate Locks, Bluu still remains highly individual and is a great place to hangout - although it's mighty tempting to head over to the excellent Socio Rehab or Odd Bar (across the road)
Modern bar

Mojo
19 Back Bridge Street
Deansgate
"Music for the people" is Mojo's mantra, with the music policy strictly 'non-house' - expect old skool and new skool rock and roll. Despite this rough and ready image, the bar is an awesome pre-club hangout, or somewhere to chill out on and sink into the sofas. Check out their excellent website.
Indie and Underground bar

Common
39 - 41 Edge Street
Northern Quarter
Tiny little boozer hidden away down a back street, there's barely room to swing a cat so this bar's always packed out with arty folks. A mish mash of events take place (check their excellent website) and the bar is regularly repainted by a chosen, lucky artist or collective. Nothing special on the drinks, but worth a visit for the clientelle (if you're not meant to be in this bar then the door staff will make sure that you don't get in)
Indie and Underground bar

The Circle Club
Barton Arcade
City Centre
Members only club that has undergone quite a transformation over the years. Still popular with the gliteratti, but not quite as used by the local media as this bar would like. Recent rennovation, and lunch time menu, suggest that there is still life in this venue but it's credentials as the home of media in Manchester have long gone.
Members Bar bar

Direktors
109 Princess Street
City Centre
A new lapdancing bar on Princess Street that plans to open it's doors in May 2008.
Lap dancing bar

Ithaca
36 John Dalton Street
Deansgate
A four storey venue that - by it's own admission - is more of a restaurant than a bar. The ambitious members club at the top, and the bar area, suggest that this could well be winning awards for it's drinkgin as well as dining. Dress up and act the part, as this £3million dream girl won't be letting just anyone inside.
Style Conscious bar

Trof Northern Quarter
5/8 Thomas Street
Northern Quarter
Trof is a Fallowfield institution, and this is their first (but not last) forray in to the city centre. As far as location goes there was only one place that a bar as cool as Trof could go, and that's the ever-popular Northern Quarter. Inside this downbeat bar you'll find good food, music and drinks, a combination that has proven popular with the NQ crowd....which is why Trof is about about to roll out their third venue in the Manchester.
Indie and Underground bar

TriBeCa and BED
50 Sackville Street
Gay Village
Situated on the edge of the Gay Village, Tribeca is a New York themed cocktail bar that has proven to be a huge hit with both gay and straight revellers. Named after an area of Manhattan (Tribeca stands for TRIangle Below Canal) the bar is decorated in leather and wood, with a double vaulted ceiling in the main bar area. At the back is a raised seating area that can be hired out for private parties and above the main entranceway is the Purple Lounge, which is a 25 capacity area that can be reserved as well. The drinks prices can be a little on the expensive side, but you can grab a good-sized cocktail pitcher for £12. BED is located downstairs, and unsurprisingly it has very few seats and lots of comfy beds to lounge around on. Despite a positive launch it hasn't captured the imagination of the Manchester public despite being a decent enough 150 capacity bar. The décor is well executed and its well worth a visit, although if it's busy it can be annoying waiting for a bed to become clear - or just jump on a bed with some strangers!
Modern bar