This article is proudly inspired by and credited to OnlyScrans, whose 2025 Top 10 celebrates not just incredible food, but the people, communities and stories behind it.
Every year, there are meals you enjoy… and then there are meals you remember. The kind that stay with you long after the plate is cleared. The OnlyScrans Top 10 of 2025 isn’t about trends or hype, it’s about places that genuinely mattered this year.
From neighbourhood curry houses to smoke‑filled cafés, this list takes into account flavour, atmosphere, price, friendliness, and that all‑important sense of connection. As OnlyScrans puts it: “Food is only part of the story, the vibe matters.”
Here’s the full countdown, lovingly expanded for Yorkshire Pudd readers.
🔟 Rabbie’s Thai, Wythenshawe (Manchester)
📍 Address: Civic Centre, Wythenshawe, Manchester M22 5RQ
🌐 Website: rabbiesthai.co.uk
Rabbie’s Thai is proof that brilliant food doesn’t need a postcode full of artisan bakeries. Set on a large council estate near Manchester Airport, this small Thai shack feels like a love letter to community.
Founded by Rabbie and Mike, the aim was simple: bring flavours to Wythenshawe that people wouldn’t normally have access to. Step inside and suddenly you’re transported, Bangkok vibes, incredible hospitality, and food that punches well above its weight.
The menu is deliberately simple: grilled chicken with rotating marinades, vibrant pad thai, soups and ramen. It’s bold, fresh, and joyful, an explosion of flavour that OnlyScrans describes as “a quick jab” straight to the senses.
Top tip: Flying from Manchester Airport? Skip the terminal food and come here first.
9️⃣ Malax Butchers (Malik Butchers), Wolverhampton
📍 Address: 64 Dunstall Rd, Wolverhampton WV6 0NJ
🌐 Website: malikbutchers.com
This is exactly the kind of place the OnlyScrans channel exists for. A proper family butcher with infectious energy, huge personalities, and some of the best sandwiches in the country.
Once the team perfected their toasted sandwich menu, everything changed. Think lamb ham and cheese toasties, Korean beef, onion bhajis tucked inside bread, and then the showstopper.
The Wagyu pastrami sandwich. Compared favourably to legendary spots like Katz’s Deli in New York, it’s rich, indulgent, and executed with serious care. For OnlyScrans, it was “on another planet”.
8️⃣ Fish Shack, Ibiza
📍 Address: Punta dels Andreus, Cap Martinet, Ibiza
No menus. No frills. Just a fisherman’s hut by the sea serving whatever was caught that morning.
Fish Shack isn’t just about food, it’s about feeling. Sun on your face, waves rolling in, locals hugging the staff like old friends. Sea bream, prawns, grilled simply and perfectly.
OnlyScrans couldn’t stop smiling here, and that says everything.
7️⃣ Proper Pies
🌐 Website: propa1.com
Founded by Si King of Hairy Bikers fame, Proper Pies exists to feed people well, emotionally as much as physically.
These are hearty, generous pies with real chef‑level fillings and flawless pastry. Ingredients are sourced within 50 miles wherever possible, and the ethos is rooted in serving the local community properly.
OnlyScrans was struck by the warmth, the hospitality, and the clear sense of purpose. Comfort food done right.
6️⃣ Kabana, Manchester
📍 Address: 52 Back Turner St, Manchester M4 1FR
📞 Phone: 0161 835 2447
Kabana is a Manchester institution, a classic “rice and three” café that’s been quietly feeding the city for decades.
The concept is beautifully simple: rice, three curries of your choice, a sprinkle of coriander, garlic and chillies, done. It’s cheap, filling, and deeply satisfying.
OnlyScrans admitted he nearly ranked this number one… but held back to avoid creating queues. High praise indeed.
5️⃣ Derek’s Coffee & Sandwiches, Liverpool
📍 Address: 47A Allerton Rd, Liverpool L18 2DA
🌐 Website: dereks.co
Derek’s keeps things tight: a small menu, baked‑fresh bread every morning, meats delivered daily, and nothing carried over.
It’s a place built with its community, shaped by regulars, and powered by genuine Scouse warmth. OnlyScrans loved the energy, and the sandwiches.
If you’re hungry in the North West, this is a no‑brainer.
4️⃣ Embers Café, Ironbridge
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🌐 Website: emberscafe.co.uk
Everything at Embers is cooked over open fire. Breakfasts, lunches, steaks, small plates, and one of the best smoked roasts you’ll ever eat.
Owner Adam’s passion for fire cooking, sustainability, and local produce shines through. When OnlyScrans visited, the impact was immediate, the video led to months of sold‑out bookings.
A reminder of how powerful honest food storytelling can be.
3️⃣ Silver’s Deli, Leeds
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📍 Address: 268 Stanningley Rd, Bramley, Leeds LS13 3BS
Silver’s doesn’t cut corners. Local suppliers, exceptional bread, and fillings engineered for balance, texture and impact.
The hot honey chicken is legendary, a bite so intense and layered that OnlyScrans still thinks about it.
They even once received a three‑star review for “too much flavour”. We’ll take that.
2️⃣ Café Continental, Stalybridge
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📍 Address: 2–4 Corporation St, Stalybridge SK15 2JL
This kitchen hums with talent. Fire cooking, bold flavours, share‑style plates, and a menu designed for eating together.
Tiger prawns, beef short rib, fried chicken, flatbreads, all coming out as they’re ready. It’s social, exciting, and utterly confident.
Perfect for a romantic dinner or a lively group meal. Genuinely special.
1️⃣ Thisha Curry House (Fisher Curry House), Rhyl
🌐 Website: thishacurryhouse.com
The shock of the year. From the outside, an unassuming seaside curry house. Inside? The curry of the year.
Run by a Sri Lankan family, with one chef, the owner’s wife, every dish takes time, care, and precision.
The curry floored OnlyScrans. Easily the best he ate all year. Deep, complex, comforting, and incredibly affordable.
Proof that brilliance often hides in plain sight.
📣 About OnlyScrans
This list is adapted from the OnlyScrans Top 10 of 2025. OnlyScrans showcases the best food spots around the world, you can follow OnlyScrans at
OnlyScrans uploads every Tuesday at 10am, and if you love food with meaning, it’s well worth following.
