Generations have been coming to Mr Man’s for the best part of four decades
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14:00, 25 JUL 2026
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There’s not many Nottingham restaurants that can say they’ve existed for nearly 40 years.
One of the few is Mr Man’s, a name synonymous with Cantonese food. Richard Man opened his first restaurant in Bramcote Lane, Wollaton, in 1987, but soon outgrew the small premises.
Mr Man’s relocated to a new restaurant a few years later, which was not only larger but in a more picturesque location on the edge of Wollaton Park.
What had previously been Pizza in the Park was transformed with traditional Chinese decor, starting with the two foo dogs, aka lion guardian statues, symbols of protection at the door.
Inside are more statues, carved wooden ones this time depicting buddhas, and a decorative wall of water lilies and fish. Not just one of Nottingham’s oldest restaurants, it’s also one of the biggest with space for 250 diners plus a further 90 seats in a separate function room.
The founder now spends most of his time in Hong Kong while for the last 15 years the restaurant has been run by Marvin Chung and his business partners.
Mr Chung, who takes charge of front of house, said despite the takeover there was no desire to change the identity of the Nottingham institution that was popular with everyone from families to the business community.
“When we took over we didn’t want to change the name. Generations of people have been coming here and we try and maintain that,” he said.
On a Thursday evening the diners included groups of diners in their 60s, a couple with teenage children, and families with children in highchairs.
“We have a lot of highchairs,” said Mr Chung. “The venue caters very much for families. It’s very different from a town business. People feel safe over the weekend, bringing their young family and grandma and grandpa here. They feel comfortable.
“It’s important people come here and feel at home, with a warm welcome.”
As well as being a magnet for families, Mr Man’s has long been a haunt for business lunches. The economic climate has changed in recent years meaning they’re not so frequent.
However, the restaurant remains a regular meeting place for medical professionals.
“Every month we have two or three meetings of doctors. They have been doing that for many, many years. Most of the doctors know this place and they like the car parking here,” said Mr Chung.
Due to the proximity of Wollaton Park, the restaurant has attracted a few famous faces from the now defunct Splendour Festival, amongst them Blondie’s lead singer, Debbie Harry. The crew who filmed Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, at Wollaton in 2011, also ate there.
As is the style of Chinese restaurants, Mr Man’s has an extensive menu. with more than 140 dishes. Starting with appetisers, the mixed d’oeuvres with spare ribs, satay chicken skewers, spring rolls and seaweed are as popular as they were decades ago.
Food lovers are taken on a Cantonese flavour adventure through a gamut of shellfish and seafood. Lobster, crab, king prawns, squid, scallops, oysters, monkfish, salmon and sea bass feature.
Carnivorous Cantonese fans have a plethora of chicken, lamb, beef, pork and duck to choose from Vegetarian options centre around bean sprouts, bean curd, aubergine and mixed vegetables. Sauces capture the flavours of sweet and sour, umami, hot and spicy.
A gluten-free menu was introduced a few years ago following a customer’s request and it’s become very popular. And rather than small symbols next to dishes containing nuts, the restaurant has a special nut allergy menu, outlining the dishes which are safe to eat.
For true authenticity, there’s a further menu with classics such as king prawns with salted eggs, deep-fried duck with taro puree and various hot pots.
Customers usually follow prawn crackers and mixed d’oeuvres by aromatic crispy duck. When it comes to mains, sweet and sour and sizzling dishes, emanating a cloudy plume of steam, are ordered the most.
Set menus, from £32 per person right up to £66.50 for the most lavish seafood feast, are an easy option for those who can’t decide.
The bigger tables have lazy Susans to rotate the food so everyone gets a turn at the chicken with green peppers in chilli black bean sauce or beef chow mein.
The size of the venue makes it a popular choice for wedding celebrations, and not just Chinese couples, but those who love Asian food.
Before taking over Mr Man’s, Mr Chung worked in financial services for more than 35 years. He said: “I knew a lot of people in Nottingham because of my job, so I became front of house here looking after the customers.
“Someone said to me you guys must have something because a lot of restaurants closed down after Covid. I think it’s the venue, the service and the quality of the food.”
Mr Man’s in Wollaton 1 of 10ShareComments
Mr Man’s in Wollaton
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Mixed d’oeuvres, the most popular starter 2 of 10ShareComments
Mixed d’oeuvres, the most popular starter
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Aromatic duck 3 of 10ShareComments
Aromatic duck
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Stir fried king prawns in Szechuan sauce4 of 10ShareComments
Stir fried king prawns in Szechuan sauce
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Sizzling fillet steak Cantonse style 5 of 10ShareComments
Sizzling fillet steak Cantonse style
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Prawn crackers first of all 6 of 10ShareComments
Prawn crackers first of all
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Traditional Chinese decor 7 of 10ShareComments
Traditional Chinese decor
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The bigger tables have a lazy Susan for spinning round the food 8 of 10ShareComments
The bigger tables have a lazy Susan for spinning round the food
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Mei Yee Cheung, who still works at the restaurant today, and Richard Man, the founder of Mr Man’s, pictured in 2008 9 of 10ShareComments
Mei Yee Cheung, who still works at the restaurant today, and Richard Man, the founder of Mr Man’s, pictured in 2008
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Mr Man’s was always a popular restaurant for business meetings 10 of 10ShareComments
Mr Man’s was always a popular restaurant for business meetings
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