Ancoats General Store

Ancoats General Store is exactly what every neighbourhood needs. It’s a perfect mix of convenience, quality and community. The shop has an amazing selection of everyday essentials alongside local, independent and artisan products you don’t usually find in regular supermarkets. From great snacks and drinks to eco-friendly household items, everything is carefully chosen. They also have a Post Office inside, which is incredibly convenient for sending parcels, doing returns, or sorting out everyday postal services — a real time-saver in busy Ancoats. Another highlight is their in-store café. The food and drinks are genuinely delicious — fresh, well-made and perfect for a quick bite or a relaxed sit-down. It’s a lovely spot to enjoy something tasty while soaking in the friendly atmosphere. The staff are always warm, attentive and genuinely helpful, both in the store and at the Post Office counter. The whole place is clean, well-organised and has a modern, relaxed vibe. I also love their support for local makers and the small food pop-ups they host. It makes the store feel more like a community hub than just a shop. Whether you’re popping in for something quick, grabbing a bite in the café, using the Post Office, or looking for unique local products, Ancoats General Store never disappoints. Highly recommend!

Male cashier [new hire?] Became aggressive when a young woman with one available arm not attached to a walking aide asked if he could bag the £40 load of items she was buying. Insidious and disrespectful man. Usually very nice people!

A bit of something for everyone is this store. By all means the place to be should you be a vegan and happen to find yourself in Manchester. The variety is just out of this world!

Coffee shop only served coffee, no tea! Poor range of cold drinks in selector too.

i love this place - they have so much interesting stuff and a great variety

Trendy looking place. Lots of beer choice, mostly British but I saw some Belgian and American beers too. Friendly service. Reasonably priced beers.

Excellent local off license / convenience store in Ancoats. Every range of food you can imagine, plus an in house coffee shop and bar. They usually have guest pop-up food stalls and grills every week or so too. A real pillar of the Ancoats community.

Literally just went in there to get a breakfast sandwich from Egg & Co. I didn't realise it was in the tiniest little corner, right beside the door. Next to it was a coffee counter called Sipp Coffee, and I did end up buying a drink from there. It's very handy that they have a small post office counter, which I used to deposit money into my account. I guess as far as general stores go, it is pretty good.

I've recently been training for the Great Manchester 10k run. As I've been increasing the distances, I've had to change my route to include areas I normally wouldn't go. Including Ancoats. I wouldn't usually go here mainly because when I first moved to the NQ, it was a bit run down and aside from the occasional visit to the Argos, there was no particular reason to visit that area. Plus, as regular readers of my reviews will know, I tend to be a creature of habit and go to the same places again and again. Well running up and down Great Ancoats Street, and some of the side streets, has opened my eyes to the new places around here. Including Ancoats General Store, which I first noticed 10 days or so ago. When I ran past it last night I made a mental note to myself that I must remember to come here this weekend. And I'm glad I did. It isn't that much bigger than the corner shop I used to frequent as a kid but it fits in so much good stuff. There's fresh bread to greet you as you enter and then the aisles of food to the left. The decor is the kind of decor I've come to expect from hipster type places , with pipes/air conditioning exposed. But, having said that, I'm not sure I'd describe it as hipster. There's the organic ranges, plenty of dairy/gluten free choices but then there's the familiar brands/products that you'd expect in a supermarket/corner shop. They sell magazines too. They sell a good range of alcohol and alcohol accompaniments. I specify the 'alcohol accompaniments' because I noticed a good range of tonics for gin, that you'd not usually expect from a relatively small shop. I noticed a lot of local produce: the bakery providing the bread, the eggs, the milk, just a few examples. Some of the products are priced the same or lower than Tesco/Aldi (the Longley Farm yoghurts are well priced at 35p, for example) and some of the organic/dairy/gluten free stuff was a little pricier but that's the same anywhere. I was chatting to the guy who was on the till and he told me they'd been open for two and a half weeks. They are going to have a cafe and also hold meet the producer type of events, including good and wine tastings. That's the reason I've gone for 4* rather than 5* : it just seems too early to properly rate the place, especially as it seems there's so much more to come. I highly recommend a visit.

It's a coffee shop (with a bar) and a general store, florists, bakery, card shop and they are playing postmodern jukebox over the top. I never thought I'd say this about a corner shop...but it's just cool. "Very Northern Quarter" in the nicest possible way.

A corner shop where you can also get a pint? Count me in. Ancoats General Store has fast become my 'go to' for emergency items such as pizza and beer (they can be emergency items in the right situation, okay) but really it's got a lot more to offer. I don't think it's going too far to say it's become a bit of a mecca for Northern Quarter and Ancoats residents; visiting on a Friday recently there was a steady queue between 5-6pm with people stocking up on essentials for the evening and / or weekend. As already mentioned, it really is the beer selection which keeps me coming back on a regular basis. I've got the 'weekly shop' down pat elsewhere but it's always good to subsidise with a few bottles or cans at the weekend. The Ticketybrew range - especially the Rose Wheat - often finds its way to the counter, but they have such a choice you can easily mix and match. Remember to look in the fridge for cold versions of your favourites, and ask if you need a box / bottle carrier as they often have them knocking around. The coffee bar area is really what sets AGS apart from its direct competition and it's set up perfectly. Have a pint, do your shopping. Makes total sense. They even have a couple of games to keep you occupied if you so wish, with growlers also available to purchase and have filled. It's not going to do your bank balance any favours but AGS is a dependable option which caters to basically your every whim.

Love Ancoats Store. They are mega friendly. Have great beer and a fab place to play games, drink coffee and chill out. Unique!

I like to pop into Ancoats General Store when I'm in the area to stock up on coffee. They sell wholebean from Ancoats Coffee Co. and ground from Grumpy Mule. They also stock other local products and well as the usual corner shop fare.