A New Flame in Manchester: Meet Sister Moon by Sam Grainger

With a career shaped in diverse kitchens and a deep-rooted connection to South Asia, Chef Sam Grainger brings Sister Moon to Manchester, a vibrant take on Southeast Asian BBQ.

Opening at Treehouse Hotel Manchester, Sister Moon is Chef Sam Grainger’s vibrant love letter to the bold, layered flavors of Southeast Asia. Inspired by years of travel, fire-led cooking, and an obsession with the kind of food that brings people closer together, the restaurant brings a playful, smoky take on Southeast Asian BBQ to the heart of Manchester.

Inspired by the street markets, smoke-filled kitchens, and deeply communal spirit of South Asia, Sister Moon invites guests into a sensory experience where fragrant spice, open-fire cooking, and generous sharing plates take center stage. For Sam, this isn’t about recreating tradition, but channeling the energy, warmth, and complexity of the region into something entirely its own playful, soulful, and unmistakably Manchester. 
We sat down with Sam to talk about the inspiration behind Sister Moon, the flavors that continue to shape his cooking, and what guests can expect when the fire starts burning.
 

Cooking with Fire with Sam Grainger

You’ve described Sister Moon as an ode to South Asia, your favorite continent. What draws you to the region, and how has it shaped the way you cook and think about flavor?

I spent a significant amount of time travelling across Asia when I was younger, and I fell completely in love with it - the culture, the people, the food. It turned everything I'd been taught on its head, and I knew I had to understand it on a deeper level. Over the years I've travelled extensively across South East Asia, hunting down new flavours and techniques that I could bring back and weave into what we do at Sister Moon.

You’ve had quite a journey as a chef. How have your past kitchens and experiences led you to this moment with Sister Moon?

Every single kitchen leaves its mark on you - whether it's the food you cook there, the chefs you work alongside, or the lessons you didn't even realise you were learning at the time. Each one adds another layer to who you are as a chef, and I think that's the beauty of this industry.

Southeast Asian BBQ is bold, layered, and deeply sensory.  For someone trying it for the first time at Sister Moon, what do you hope hits them first and can you give us a little preview of a dish or flavor they might not expect?

The smell should hit you first, and I mean that in the best possible way. We're cooking over fire, with some of the most fragrant ingredients in the world, so the moment you walk through the door you should know exactly where you are. It will be the best smelling restaurant in Manchester.
But beyond the drama of the fire, it's the layers that I think will surprise people. Southeast Asian cooking isn't just about heat or smoke - it's the balance. The way a dish can be simultaneously bold and delicate, fiery and fresh, rich and bright all at once. That complexity is what keeps you coming back for more, and it's what we obsess over at Sister Moon.

Food across South Asia is so often rooted in sharing and connection. How have you translated that sense of community into the experience at Sister Moon?

Sharing food is everything to me - it always has been. All of my restaurants are built around that same philosophy. Food is family time, it's connection, it's that moment where you finally put your phone down and actually talk to the people sitting across from you. It should never be a heads-down, starter-main-dessert kind of experience. It should be bold, generous, exciting - dishes that land in the middle of the table and immediately spark a conversation. That's what we set out to create at Sister Moon. Food that doesn't just feed you, but gives you something to remember.

Opening a restaurant like this in Manchester feels like a statement. What are you most excited for guests to discover when they step inside for the first time?

I'm excited for people to walk into something that feels genuinely different - because there is nothing quite like this in Manchester right now. We're not another copy-and-paste pan-Asian concept. Sister Moon is a proper restaurant, with a real point of view, real fire, and flavour by the bucket load. I want guests to walk in and immediately feel that energy - to sense that something serious is happening in that kitchen, but that they're also going to have fun. That's the balance we've worked hard to get right, and I can't wait for people to experience it.