Mr De Niro was gifted an apartment by developers Salboy
12:18, 11 Nov 2025
Robert De Niro (centre) along with chef Nobu Matsuhisa (left) and Meir Taper (right) were given an apartment each at the ceremony
Manchester’s tallest tower started construction with a star-studded welcome this morning as Hollywood A-lister Robert De Niro broke ground on the 246m skyscraper.
Mr De Niro — star of iconic films like The Godfather, Taxi Driver, and Goodfellas — is a key investor behind the Nobu hotel and restaurant chain, which will be hosted inside a 76-storey tower developed by Salboy.
The skyscraper, called Nobu Manchester, will feature a Nobu restaurant, hotel, and luxury apartments. It will become Manchester’s tallest building at 246m, eclipsing the Deansgate Square South Tower at 200m.
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When Nobu opens in Manchester in six years’ time, it will become the brand’s second UK location, 35 years after the London opening.
Although Mr De Niro admitted he ‘did not know much’ about Manchester, he said the city’s ‘real character and creative passion’ drew the company in.
“We are proud to be part of it,” the 82-year-old said at a press conference on Tuesday morning (November 11). “I look forward to coming back when it’s finished, if not before. I plan to be around I think it will take six years so I will make sure I am around.”
The actor and director was joined by Nobu co-founder, chef Nobu Matsuhisa. He said he was ‘very happy to bring Nobu to Manchester’.
Nobu Manchester (centre) will have 160 luxury rooms and apartments(Image: Copyright Unknown)
He added: “It’s a city with a great spirit and great energy. This project is about more than a hotel or the residences, it’s about community and lifestyle.
“We are proud to be here and part of it. Viva Manchester!”
The luxury 160-room hotel, to built near the G-Mex and Beetham Tower, is just the latest Mancunian accommodation to be backed by a celebrity investor, as ex-United and England football legend Gary Neville announced construction of his latest project last week.
Number 2 St Michael’s will be home to a W Hotel — and Nobu chief executive Trevor Horwell believes more and more A-listers will come to the city in time.
“Manchester is my home. So I regularly visited Manchester, and I’ve also visited many other cities, and more recently, and I know I’m talking, pre-Covid and after Covid I saw that there was the incredible, I would say it’s a resurgence, but it was something that was very special, and you could see the interest in Manchester,” Mr Howell told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
(Image: LDRS)
“And every city that I travelled to, when we were going to do deals and so forth, people who actually were expats and lived in Manchester and were ready to go back.
“I think today every generation will want to come to Manchester. Manchester has so many things to offer and I think it’s not just about celebrities. Celebrity’s great.
“But at the end of the day, you need a foundation of great people. We embrace the locals, we want the locals to come into the restaurants and the hotel, and we want the same in Manchester. We want to repeat business.
“I think with Manchester now, you’re seeing businesses are successful. They are, they’re growing, there’s an interest there.
“I think, you know, celebrities will come to Manchester, but I think foundation is there now and we need to build on that. It’s a new chapter and we’re very excited to be part of it.”
Council leader Bev Craig also appeared at the event, telling the hundreds of guests the tower was a sign of the ‘quality’ Manchester now attracts.
She added: “Until we drive up quality and have the ambition to create high quality things for people to enjoy, we will always be lacking.”
Nobu Manchester is expected to open in the early-2030s. While it would be Manchester’s tallest tower, a 273m skyscraper in Salford received planning permission last week, which would make that Greater Manchester’s tallest.
