Following on from three Greater Manchester dining spots being added to the Michelin Guide last month, there’s now even more of a reason to visit the region, as it’s now home to the ‘Restaurant of the Year’. Further cementing Manchester as a culinary destination is Skof, a restaurant run by Tom Barnes, which won the coveted ‘Restaurant of the Year’ at the prestigious 2025 AA Awards, held last night in London’s Mayfair.
Situated within the terracotta tiled Hanover building, built by the Co-operative Wholesale Society as a drapery warehouse in 1904, Skof is located just a stone’s throw away from New Century. After 12 years with Simon Rogan at UMBEL Restaurants, as head chef at Rogan & Co when it received a Michelin star, and executive chef at L’Enclume when it gained its coveted third star, Tom moved away from The Lakes to open Skof in Manchester, but remains closely linked to the group.
From its first Michelin star to ‘Restaurant of the Year’, Skof is collecting awards left, right, and centre
The award comes only 18 months after the opening of Tom Barnes’ first solo project, which has since received critical acclaim, including its first Michelin Star in February 2025, following earlier recognition this year as Best New Restaurant at the Good Food Guide Awards. Skof also earned a place in SquareMeal’s T100 for 2025 as the highest new entry at number 8, collected two accolades at the Manchester Food and Drink Awards — Best Newcomer for Skof and Chef of the Year for Tom — and was highlighted in Condé Nast Traveler’s Top New Restaurants 2024. In June 2025, Skof also joined the NRA T100 list at number 60.
“There’s a lot of exciting things to come in the Skof story”
Tom said of the award: “This really is such a wonderful way to be recognised for what we do at Skof. I’m so proud of what we’ve been able to achieve in such a short space of time. I’ve got an incredible team who are so dedicated, we work hard but we do it together. I’m also grateful for Manchester’s warm welcome, and for the guests who support us – we’re so lucky to now have both new diners and regulars coming through the doors.”
He added: “We will continue to push on from our amazing first year across all levels of the Skof experience, from dish development and drinks pairings, to the overall guest journey. There’s a lot of exciting things to come in the Skof story.”
Skof offers two full-length tasting menus, 12 and 16 courses, at lunch and dinner, as well as a four-course lunch menu. Book a table at Skof here.
📍Skof, 3 Federation St, Manchester, M4 4BF.