Spice Kitchens

Pakistani/North Indian style - Wilmslow Road, Rusholme.

30/03/10 - latest visit
The seekh and bread were pretty good this time. The meat was not overcooked, and the bread was as good as you can expect without a tandoor (we had chapatti and naan). The £2 'offer' for a small seekh is still on, so perhaps this is just the standard price.


Spice kitchens is on the site formerly occupied by Kashmiri Spice – however there’s been a major refurbishment and there is now a semi-open kitchen. It is very light and modern, with large glass walls, which make the place rather cold in November.  A result of the refurb is the attraction to youngsters form the local college, a few groups of whom were the other diners.  The menu is standard North Indian/Pakistani kebab house – (ie including curries and pizzas).  The staff were nice and helpful, however there was a certain amount of confusion about a few things. The starters (a shami and a samosa) were excellent. The kebabs were tasty but not faultless – the bread was excellent but the meat overcooked. It is often the case with lamb kebabs – it was on far too long and cut too many times to speed up cooking. Perhaps a chicken kebab on another day would be better, though the overcooked seekh didn’t do anything to strengthen that case. However, £2 for a small seekh is good by any standards – that was, possibly, an ‘introductory’ type offer. Unless you really like the décor there’s no particular reason to go here rather than any other half decent place nearby – Saajan, Al Madina, Lal Quila Express etc. It’s not a terrible place but dry, overcooked meat is a pretty basic error - luckily one that's easily fixed.

Scores out of 10
Meat 6.0
Bread 9.0
Salad/Sauces 7.0
Service/Setting 7.0
Average 7.25

Spice Kitchens

The Crescent

As many know, the Crescent is a cracking pub with many years in the good beer guide under its belt. In recent years it has gone off the boil a bit with various changes of management. However they've still got a wide variety of great beer. One of, if not the, best around. Our trip was a Friday lunchtime so the place was pretty busy, mostly with University staff. The beer was good, as ever. The only negatives were that the fire wasn't on and that the place is looking rather austere now rather than homely. The blank walls and no carpet may look cleaner, but they're not warmer and have unfortunate acoustic effects. The wall mounted widescreen tele?... well, say no more. But it was, thankfully, switched off. Great pub, that is hopefully re-finding its feet.

....May 2010
The back room has got carpet and the TV's usually off - much less austere, good news.

Chappati Corner

Cheetham Hill Rd
Chappati Corner is another Cheetham Hill  curry Café. The place is exactly what you want: low key but pretty efficient, jugs of water on the tables, limited daily changing menu etc.  The staff were polite and helpful if not chatty – again, perfect.  Our one problem is that we were on a kebab trip and this is really a Curry Café – the more kebab orientated places were not open.  We will return for curries – which looked good but can not really comment just yet, other than they’re pretty pricey – rice and 3 £5.80.

Kebabs
As is often the case in curry cafes there was a very limited range – just seekhs and chicken.  The chicken was well marinaded and the bread was good.  The salad was pretty bland and pointless and the sauces similar, although they were served separately so as not to soak the kebab. The meat samosas were nice too. They were decent if not amazing kebabs – however the point of this place is the curry.

…Minor issue: One kebab had two hairs in it and one of the chunks of chicken wasn’t cooked in the middle.  There’s no reason to suspect that it happens often – just a side note.

Scores out of 10
Meat 8.5
Bread 7.5
Salad/Sauces 6.0
Service/Setting 7.5
Average 7.4

Curry
As stated this place has all the right vibes however I left slightly dissatisfied, which was basically due to the price. It's interesting how expectations change when handing over more cash than you want to. Lamb on the bone, chicken masalla and daal were all pretty good if not exceptional. The lamb had too many chilli flakes and was a wee bit too hot for a 'standard' dish.  The other two dishes were a little bland but fine - again if paying very little you're happy to receive anything tasty and hot. That's the brilliance of curry cafes and where Chapatti Corner falls down.  A meal for 2 with bread, some pakora/samosa and one can of pop was £18. There was nothing wrong with the food here - slightly non-descript (hence the lack of detailed description!) however that's often the case - but you don't mind when it's around £5, it is a great alternative to £3.95 panini or whatever. Top Quality is very near Chappati Corner and costs £5 for Rice & 3. In all honestly I don't see any reason to pay more to come here.

Key Ingredients 16 (out of 20)
Other Food 8.0 (out of 10)
Service Setting 7.5 (out of 10)
Value for Money 2.0 (out of 5)
Range 3.5 (out of 5)
Average Rating 7.4 (out of 10)

Derby Brewery Arms

This large Victorian pub on Cheetham Hill Road is adjacent to the famous Holts brewery, and it is the brewey tap. The real ales served are, inevitably, made by Holts. However, it is disappointing that none of the seasonal beers (or special one off brews) are available. The public bar (or what is often called the vault) is an impressive space, with leather bench seating, a tiled floor and a pool table. The main lounge area is split into two, and is pretty huge - perhaps being too large. This is far from being a great pub, despite some of the interesting original features, but it does retain a grand air.

Kabana (Cheetham Hill)

Cheetham Hill Rd

Trip 1 - Rice & 3

This establishment is related to the Kabana in the Northern  Quarter – it looks similar, with similar layout, food and way of doing things. This place seems to have everything you’d want in a curry café, daily changing curries and a good looking grill selection - £3 chicken kebabs looking good value.  However the curries are some of the most expensive we’ve come across - £5.80 with rice, plus another 60p for a chapatti, which is pushing it for a lunchtime venue. Perhaps that’s why everyone else was having kebabs. But the curries were definitely up to scratch and good portions were given. The chapattis were good and it was heartening to see the little extras there too – chillies, ginger, coriander etc to be added as we saw fit.  The whole place has a different feel to the more vibrant and bustling Northern Quarter area, but no surprise there. Not quite as much fun as town and pretty pricey, but the food was good.  And there’s an added bonus of how close you can park (for free) - if things like that matter to you. Midday Monday is hardly the best time to visit anywhere, perhaps the atmosphere is better at other times – unfortunately the prices won't be. It might seem churlish to complain about such low prices but we have to compare like with like. This & That charges £5 for 'Rice and Three' with a chapatti which makes Kabana a bit dear by comparison.
Key Ingredients 16.5 (out of 20)
Other Food 7.0 (out of 10)
Service Setting 7.0 (out of 10)
Value for Money 3.0 (out of 5)
Range 4.0 (out of 5)
Average Rating 7.5 (out of 10)

Most recent trip 22/03/10 - Kebab

This establishment seems to qualify as both a kebab house and a curry cafe. Many of the people eating here on this visit were having kebabs, much more than is normally the case at curry cafes. It is related to the Kabana in the Northern Quarter. The guys in charge at both places look rather alike - and are in fact brothers. The kebabs initially looked reasonable at £3.70 - however this advertised price was without bread - so £4.50 with naan was pretty expensive. The kebabs were alright, but not up to the high standard of some of the places in Rusholme - or Lahore Karahi across the street. The salad and sauces were fine but not remarkable. The chicken was tasty with a nice marinade and the chapatti was good. However, the naan was pretty poor - not very warm, doughy and a bit lifeless. This is a pretty lively place, but the expense and the kebab quality mean that it is not up there with the best - it's certainly the busiest on this stretch so they're clearly doing something right.  One final point is that they seem to cook chicken kebabs on spec - so there's a good chance of very fast service, however it's only two at a time, there were three of us on this trip. The third diner got pre-cooked meat from a foil tray in the warmer. It wasn't bad and had probably been cooked not long before, but even so, this isn't ideal. On the other hand - the two who ordered first got fresh kebabs in double quick time.
Scores out of 10
Meat 8.0
Bread 6.0
Salad/Sauces 7.0
Service/Setting 7.0
Average 7.0

Top Quality

Derby Road, off Cheetham Hill Road

14 & 18/06/10
....We go pretty regularly - it's good! - though Fridays have to be the standout day - for 2 reasons.
1. There's no rice, but the Chicken Biryiani is excellent.
2. The Friday guy only charges £4.50 for biryani + 3 curries, where as the normal guy charges £5 for plain old rice & 3. A better thing for less money - ??? We just won't question it. 

09/03/10
Great food today - (pictured) chicken on the bone with green peppers, urid daal and lamb. £5.

02/03/10
During the few months since our first visit we’ve been back half a dozen times or so. The standard of food has remained high – some days better than others but never bad and always worth the trip. The pricing has wavered between £4.50 and £5 for ‘Rice & 3’ and we’ve had different reasons as to why this from different members of staff – it's a bit frustrating but that’s the nature of it in curry cafes. The other slight issue is that the 'lamb' has become rather beefy in flavour and texture - if we didn't know better.... Anyway, we still recommend this place very highly. £2 for 2 seekh kebabs, chapatti, salad and sauces seems a bit of a bargain.

Dec '09
About as inauspicious a place as you could imagine and with one of those names that makes you assume the opposite Top Quality is not the most alluring of propositions. But, as we know, a shiny front and high street location doesn't guarantee good food either.  Top Quality has been open about 10 years and is at the really paired down, no frills end of the Curry Café market and we loved it.  The food was excellent and well priced – chicken, lamb, Kabbli channa and rice for £4.50 – chapatti an extra 40p.  All three dishes were superb and distinct, the lamb and chicken were excellently cooked and tender – the chickpeas were fresh, not tinned.  One minor negative was the lack of coriander, chillies etc to add – however they weren’t really necessary as the food was so flavoursome - and rather spicy, possibly the hottest around, but not uncomfortably.  The range was small but well judged, 6 curries, rice, chicken tikka, seekh kebabs and samosas – that was about it. Just what you want.  The curries are made fresh and change daily and when they are gone the place closes. So a great venue, although quiet – but no complaints at all, one of the best.  A quick pint down the Derby Brewery Arms afterward rounded off an excellent hour or so. Top Quality is a bit out of the way but well worth the trip.
...Quick note - future trips have been really good, one inparticular in which an excellent chicken biryani was served as the rice contingent of the meal, at no extra cost. Best £4.50 spent in England that day.

Key Ingredients 18 (out of 20)
Other Food 8.5 (out of 10)
Service Setting 8.5 (out of 10)
Value for Money 4.5 (out of 5)
Range 3.5 (out of 5)
Average Rating 8.6 (out of 10)