A fight involving ‘at least’ six men broke out inside Manahatta cocktail bar in Manchester city centre, with glasses thrown ‘indiscriminately’ and chairs ‘used as weapons’
A violent brawl at a Deansgate bar saw glasses hurled ‘indiscriminately’ and chairs used ‘as weapons’. An ‘innocent bystander’, a woman, was struck on the head with a bottle, resulting in an ‘open skull fracture’, brain bleed, and a laceration that required stitches, according to police.
At a Manchester town hall meeting, councillors were informed that ‘at least’ six men participated in the fight on the raised ground floor of Manahatta cocktail bar in Manchester city centre. The incident was discussed at a Manchester City Council licensing sub-committee meeting held on Friday.
Greater Manchester Police confirmed that while the venue’s licence wasn’t suspended, conditions were added. Now, all drinks must be served in plastic glasses on Fridays and Saturdays, the force stated.
Chief Superintendent David Meeney, district commander of the city of Manchester division, told the committee that the fight involved ‘numerous customers’ and erupted at 1.30am on November 1. “Numerous males were involved in the fighting that lasted for around five minutes,” he said.
“During this time, at least half a dozen males were involved in the fighting, glasses were thrown indiscriminately and chairs were picked up as weapons.”, reports the Manchester Evening News.
He noted that there was ‘very limited security involvement in halting the disorder’.
“The fight was eventually broken up and all of the persons involved left the scene,” the application continued. “A crime for affray has been recorded and enquiries are ongoing.
“GMP have subsequently been contacted by a female customer from the premises who was an innocent bystander to this disorder but has been struck with a bottle.
“This has caused her to attend hospital for treatment to her injuries which are an open skull fracture, a bleed on the brain and an inch long cut to her head that has required stitches. A crime for wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm has been recorded and enquiries are also ongoing.”
Councillors were informed that the brawl was caught on CCTV, with the footage emphasising the ‘grave danger that customers nearby were placed in’.
The meeting heard that GMP have had ‘serious concerns about safety at Manahatta for a number of months’. This follows four ‘serious incidents’ between May and August 2025, where glasses were reportedly used as weapons in three of them.
In September, the council imposed additional licence conditions on Manahatta, including the use of plastic glasses at ‘peak times’, limiting the capacity of the raised area involved in the latest incident, additional door staff and increased CCTV coverage.
However, Manahatta appealed against the council’s decision, with a court hearing said to be pending.
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