A brand-new pub from Pomona Island is coming to town next year

Now this is an exciting one. The team behind beloved Mancunian brewers, Pomona Island, are opening their own pub in the city centre next year.

Going by the name North Westward Ho — a legendary old pub ship that was moored at Pomona Docks in the 70s — the new venue will take over the former Chaophraya site on Chapel Walks and Pall Mall, just above Sam’s Chophouse.

Pomona have promised to renovate the stunning building in a way that ‘will bring something special to the area’.

Due to open early-to-mid 2023, Pomona said: “We want the space to feel like a pub, not a bar and we want all the good things that come with that. Pub spaces are for anyone, places where people come to commune, we need a bit of that right now.

“We want it to feel inclusive. This will be a, sort of, taproom for the brewery, but that on its own doesn’t really interest us. We like a venue with its own identity, where everyone’s welcome and catered for. This won’t just be a beer bar, it will have an incredible selection of drinks. It won’t just look like a bar, it will have that feel of a proper boozer. Something that will, hopefully, be around for years.”