Highly rated Manchester pasta specialist Sud is relaunching its four restaurants as Rigatoni’s – less than a year after their last name change.

Brothers Alex and Mike de Martiis (pictured above) founded the group as Sugo in 2015 with a single site in Altrincham, adding further branches in Ancoats, Sale and most recently the city centre’s Exhibition building. All four have earned consistently good reviews, with the new 2024 Harden’s guide praising “seriously the best pasta… you can’t fault the food at any of their branches.”

They changed the name to Sud in February last year following a legal clash with a business of a similar name in Glasgow, and in December announced they were to close all four branches at the end of the month before relaunching with a new concept.

Alex says: “Change is a regular thing for us recently. This stops with Rigatoni’s. We want to build a sustainable business which allows us to serve the customers in our communities for years to come.

“The next chapter in our journey is all about creating an accessible, uncomplicated menu which makes Rigatoni’s somewhere for people come to time and time again. Whether it’s a quick lunch on a Tuesday or a Saturday night with mates, pasta shouldn’t just be for occasions.”

The new concept will be focused on serving “hearty bowls of house-made rigatoni from just £7.50”, with the Ancoats and Exhibition branches opening tomorrow followed by Altrincham and Sale next week.