Saajan Halal Café

Pakistani/North Indian style - Wilmslow Road, Rusholme

Saajan Halal Café is two doors down from Saajan Halal but not affiliated.  This place is OK – it meets the basic needs of providing a decent kebab but no more.  The service wasn’t great, pretty slow and naan being given instead of the ordered chapatti.  The meat and bread were decent and the rare treat of chicken seekh or ‘reshmi’ kebabs were available – and tasty. It’s fine here, but with the Superior Saajan so close the only reason for a return has been when the other is full.

Scores out of 10
Meat 8.0
Bread 8.0
Salad/Sauces 7.5
Service/Setting 7.0
Average 7.6

Saajan Original (Fallowfield)

Pakistani/North Indian style - Wilmslow Road, Fallowfield
Most recent visit 30/04/10
Good guys, good food, good place. We much prefer this to Abduls a few doors down.

Original blurb
Of the four Saajan restaurants reviewed in Manchester this is the only one officially connected with Saajan Halal in Rusholme, which is no bad thing. The menu and set up are almost identical and the kebabs were of a similarly high standard, with the bread possibly better. It is a matter of opinion as to whether the other minor details were preferred over the other establishment's offerings, but everything was of a high standard. The marinade on the meat was slightly inferior and less interesting, and the yoghurt based chilli sauce didn’t provide enough contrast with the yoghurt and mint sauce, but this is not a universal view. The place is light with a large window, and the service is excellent and friendly - with free popadoms and drinks given on a first outing. A very enjoyable visit, in a good location.

Scores out of 10
Meat 8.5
Bread 9.0
Salad/Sauces 8.0
Service/Setting 9.5
Average 8.8

Saajan Halal

Pakistani/North Indian style - Wilmslow Road, Rusholme

Pictured: Chicken Tikka on Chapatti and Chicken Doner on Naan

12/07/10
Good, as ever. 

07/06/10 - Great trip, which we won't bother going into - how different can it be from the numerous others or one last week we didn't record?!? - not much.  However a bit of information came to light - the opening hours of 11AM to 6AM. If you're stuck you know where to go.   

19/05/10 - very good, like a few other regulars places we won't keep re-reviewing unless something momentus occurs. It's good - go!  

March ‘10 - see below for previous review
Saajan has a good reputation with the regular kebab goer as it’s so infrequently off its game.  And predictable as it may sound it was, yet again, just what the doctor ordered.  You might complain about a few things – maybe the salad won’t be to your taste (there’s a fair bit of cabbage and carrot in there – it’s finely shredded and personally I like the fresh crunch). The lack of tandoor bread isn’t ideal, though the chapattis are top drawer and the naan fine. You might not agree that the chicken tikka’s the best around  - but time after time we’ve left thinking it’s pretty much as good as it gets – certainly if consistency is to be taken into account. In short £3.30 for a really good kebab, in a decent place, with friendly service can not be complained about – well, not by us anyway.

First things first – which of the four ‘Saajan’s do we mean? Well, even though their signs may not make it obvious Saajan Halal is in Rusholme on the corner of Wilmslow Road and Thurloe Street, Saajan Halal Café is a couple of doors down and no relation. Saajan Original is in Fallowfield and is part of the same company, with a very similar set-up and finally Saajan Express is in Chorlton – again being a separate business.
Saajan Halal is one of the busiest lunchtime venues in Rusholme – and for good reason, they’re reliable, well priced and always ready to go. The food is usually very good with the chicken tikka and seekh kebabs being some of the best around due to interesting spice blends and excellent cooking. Other items can be more variable depending on who’s cooking them – often in kebab places lamb tikka is over cooked and this has happened here but is not a regular occurrence. There are a good range of salad and sauces and the bread is of a pretty high standard - though the large iranian/persian tandoor naan is not an option. There are plenty of other dishes offer – chops, starters (pakora, samosa etc), fish, chicken and lamb doner and a full range of curries. There are a few minor negative points: the lack of a tandoor means that great naan is impossible, but their excellent chapattis make a good substitute – on occasion inexperienced staff members have made a few mistakes, particularly if they are really busy, but these errors are rare. The service is generally excellent and friendly and the large glass windows and corner location add to the bustling atmosphere. The high turnover means that the food is not left hanging around too long before cooking, which can be a problem in less successful places. Saajan Halal has been well visited for good reason – there’s very little to complain about and it sets the standard for kebab houses of its type - i.e. Pakistani/North Indian.

Scores out of 10
Meat 9.0
Bread 8.5
Salad/Sauces 9.0
Service/Setting 9.5
Average 9.0