Almost Famous Manchester

You'll spot the queue before you see the sign – that's how you know you've found the right place. This Northern Quarter institution has been slinging ridiculously over-the-top burgers since they started the whole 'dirty food' movement in Manchester, and they're still doing it better than most of their imitators. The menu reads like a fever dream of American excess: towering creations stuffed with everything from mac and cheese to chicken wings, all dripping with sauces that'll stain your clothes and ruin your diet plans. The Triple Nom (a beast involving three patties, bacon, and enough cheese to feed a small village) is genuinely obscene, but that's entirely the point. Yes, you'll need both hands and possibly a structural engineer, but few places do indulgent junk food with this much swagger and genuine flavour behind the spectacle.