Akbars
Restaurant Castlefield Manchester - reader comments
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"I would give this restaurant a mark of 5 out of 5
although, when you order a chicken curry, it is not all breast meat,
it seems to have a lot of jelly pieces in it and, even though i enjoy
it, there is also not a lot of sauce served in the curry.
Other than that I go all the time (once a week) and I love it, and
would recommend it. We used to go to a certain restaurant on the curry
mile every week for years, which we thought we would never leave,
but we have and we love Akbars now." -
emma tabner, manchester 14/6/08 (visited on a sunday evening) |
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"overall a great experience. We had to wait about
30 minutes but this did not seem long as we grabbed a drink and sat
in the lounge at the front of the restaurant. All very efficient
and the waiter asked if everything was ok halfway through the meal
- doesn't happen often."
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Jim Chadwick, Manchester 2/6/08 (visited on a thursday evening) |
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"Akbar's plush restaurant in Castlefield,
opposite the Science & Industry Museum, is deservedly one of
the busiest establishments in town. From the day their doors opened,
2 years ago, it has been packed every night - largely with very
smartly dressed Asian families probably already aware of the brand's
legendary status in Bradford. Unfortunately, they don't take reservations
so expect to wait around the comfortable bar area before being escorted
to your table in the huge yet lavish dining room.
The service is extremely
friendly with a designated waiter taking time to get to know you
and help you through the menu. Prices are fantastically cheap (curries
ranging from £4.95 to £11.95) whilst the food, delivered
to your table by one of the chefs, is amazing with a good choice
of Baltis, Desi-apna style dishes, Lahori style dishes, specialties
and old school classics. Having spoken to many other Indian restaurateurs
in town, they all talk about Akbar's with jealous admiration. The
Naan Breads are so huge they hide anybody sat opposite you and are
served on the metal stands that Gordon Ramsay hates with a passion.
Maybe he should pay Akbar's a visit to see how people are not turned
off by such servings.
We receive more reviews
for Akbar's than any other restaurant in town and there's a common
theme that we agree wholeheartedly with - this is certainly one
of the best restaurants in Manchester and if you love a curry, you
can't get much better in the UK!" -
Restaurants Of Manchester 20/5/08 (visited on a Monday evening)
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| "Baring
in mind how many curry houses there are in Manchester, this one is
far and away the best - as with their other branches
the food is fantastic and very well priced
- quality!" -
chris, leeds 23/4/08 (visited on a wednesday evening) |
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| "Very
busy but we were not rushed. Fantastic food, great price.
We will revisit as soon as possible. Disappointed that we could not
book. You can only book for more than 10 people so go early!"
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julie scott, manchester 23/3/08 (visited on a saturday evening) |
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| "Had
an excellent meal. I ordered the Chicken Liver Tikka
to start which was very nice followed by the Lamb Handi which was
excellent. Naan Bread comes on one of those spike things that
Gordon Ramsey hates, 'makes it look like a big nappy swinging
in your face'. I thought this was OK as I'd never seen it before,
the only trouble is with it hanging there it cools down a lot quicker
than it does on a warm plate. Other than that I cannot fault
the food or the place. I've recommended it already to 4 other
people and will be going myself again. It is busy but we did not have
to wait long for a table even when there was a few large parties in
as well. Possibly the best restaurant in Manchester,
although i have not been to them all. Excellent." -
pete, bury 19/1/08 (visited on a thurs evening) |
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| "Utterly
fantastic! Can't wait to go back, food was amazing,
service was just incredible, I would quite happily
eat there everyday and I have already recommended it to a few people
who have since been." -
alex knight, manchester 20/12/07 (visited on a friday evening) |
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| "I've
visited this restaurant twice now on two separate business trips.
The food is absolutely fantastic, it's worth going
just for the "Naan Bread Experience"!! Will definitely go
back if I ever have the chance. Thank you for the great food."
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alexa, germany 11/12/07 (visited on a thursday evening) |
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| "I
went to Akbars for my birthday and I thought it was great,
especially the service. I also got a sparkler on
my cake which I thought was fab. The portions were very big
though and we also had a bit of problem with parking but otherwise
I am glad I choose Akbars for my birthday and didn't regret it one
bit" -
henna, rochdale 4/12/07 (visited on a monday evening) |
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| "I
have been to a lot of curry restauraunts in England and this one is
far the best in the quality of the food and friendliest
staff to the bill which was quite cheap for the amount
of food you got... I would come most definitely again on
my visit to Manchester. Excellent." -
joanne, northern ireland 25/11/07 (visited on a friday evening) |
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| "The
atmosphere was excellent, excellent menu
and huge choice for veggies. Great for a special
occasion, feel like you've had a good night out! Will be taking friends
next Sat night." -
louise, flixton 11/11/07 (visited on a friday evening) |
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| "Perfect
place for a date. Busy but well worth the wait!" -
liz, manchester 9/11/07 (visited on a saturday evening) |
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| "On
a Friday or Saturday make sure you get there with plenty of
time. Booking is only available for table of over 10 people
so it's likely that you'll end up waiting for around 30mins.
Although it's usually never as bad as they tell you" -
tanya wade, manchester 12/10/07 (visited on a friday evening) |
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| "Food
was great. Service could not fault! No room for dessert but
could have made room for the lovely beautiful greeter named Celina!"
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fareed, manchester 4/10/07 (visited on a Thursday evening) |
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| "Best
Indian restaurant in Manchester!" -
rosy parr, manchester 16/9/07 (visited on a Friday evening) |
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| "Only
down side was you couldn't book, on the night we booked in
with the host at the door who showed us the bar area, which was lively
and vibrant with other customers, ordered drinks and waited about
45 minutes to be escorted to our table. This was totally acceptable
as it was 8.15pm on a very busy Saturday night. We were served really
well and quickly, all four of us ordering 2 courses each with Champers
and a bottle of red wine. We were extremely surprised at the bill,
really good value for money. So much so we will be
visiting again for our anniversary, birthdays etc. Well done Akbar"
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Eileen Symms, Whitefield 16/8/07 (visited on a Sat evening) |
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| "2nd
visit to this restaurant and it has to be my favourite in Manchester
at the moment - it shakes the stigma of a normal curry house
in a modern trendy way - they have an excellent
set up and the staff have to work very hard - but it works
- food is fantastic and very fairly priced - try
it you wont be disappointed" -
Scott Kavanagh, Manchester 6/8/07 (visited on a Sat evening) |
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| "Having
visited 3 times I have found the food and service to be excellent
with each visit. Each person I have been with has also returned shortly
after our visit. The nan breads are the best I've had, if I had to
complain then the only thing I could find would be there is quite
often not enough sauce on the curries, I know this
varies with the dish but everybody is going to order a nan and it's
nice to have sauce to dip it in" -
Sarah Taylor, Manchester 17/7/07 |
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| "Big
fan of Indian food and Akbars had very good reviews from friends and
decided to try for my husband birthday. Very impressive and
clean restaurant, service was outstanding
always on hand to take order etc. Meal on arrival was delivered by
a chief but food was not what I had ordered. When
it was sent back, the chief returned two seconds later with the same
dish but had renamed the meal to suit my order. The chicken
was extremely dry so I ask for a sauce. My meal was taken
away and returned as chicken in a watery soup and I am not exaggerating!
but had to sieve my chicken to add to the rice. I did inform the waiter,
he replied that the chief was new but wasn't as good as the previous
one. As a sweet, I ordered hot chocolate fudge cake with ice cream
- my favourite! The ice cream was full of ice due to being left open
in the freezer causing ice to form in the container. The cake was
really dry and barely warm and no chocolate sauce. By this time, I
was embarrassed continually complaining about the food that I decided
to put it down to a disappointing experience" -
Gina Sadler, Bolton 14/7/07 (visited on a Tuesday evening) |
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| "Not
usually a fan of Indian Restaurants, but this one shakes the image
of somewhere you go after a skinful of beer - very modern
and different - lively and busy with a great
atmosphere - you can't book so get there early - there is
a nice bar/seating area for people waiting for tables. All the staff
seem to know exactly what to do as it it such a busy place - the chefs
bring the food fresh to your table and I can honestly say
its the nicest freshest indian food I have ever had
- I cannot recommend this place enough to anyone and the price
is very fair too - get the family size naan to share its
like a horses saddle.. we got there around 6ish and it was quite busy.
I think it gets very busy later on so better to go early to avoid
wait.. what can I say? try it - you wont be disappointed!" -
Scott Kavanagh, Manchester 5/7/07 (visited on a Saturday evening)
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"quality service and food at an unbelievable
price, can't recommend it enough!" -
Tony Burke, Warrington 27/5/07 (visited on a Saturday evening) |
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"I don't normally like Indian food, but Akbars is just fantastic
food and the price is so cheap!! The difference
to this restaurant and most others is that they don't take
bookings and customers have to sit in the bar area (which
is a big area, with comfortable chairs) waiting for a table to come
available. It's not necessarily a bad thing as you can enjoy a drink,
but can be a bit of a pain if you're in a rush. And compliments to
Jay - the waiter - he really knows how to make the customers feel
good. I've been here twice now and both times the food has been superb.
I will be returning." -
Amy, Manchester 8/5/07 (visited on Friday evening) |
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"I'm a regular in Akbar's for both meals and takeaways.
It's without doubt the best Indian in Manchester
for both food and price. There are however a few problems - it's a
real victim of it's own success. Even on a midweek night
you can expect to wait 45mins to be seated as they don't take
reservations (we waited for almost an hour last night). If
all the seats in the comfy waiting lounge are taken, as is usually
the case, this means standing by the bar - which serves draught beer
poured straight from the can(!!!) and is well stocked with liquor,
if not knowledgeable bar staff. Once inside the restaurant it's incredibly
noisy - as you'd expect for a busy restaurant this size -
and you can hardly hear each other speak. The waiters are very
friendly but prone to forgetting orders as they don't write
everything down. The food is amazing - and the huge
naan breads are great for photo opportunities. The prices
are ridiculously cheap - especially for food this
quality - and you're thankful the owner's haven't adopted the Malcolm
Glazer theory of supply and demand pricing. As alternatives, Shimla
Pinks and Lights of India offer better alternatives for business meetings
and audible conversation, EastZEast is more intimate
- if a little bit too cramped - however none are a patch on
Akbar's for the quality of the food." -
Matthew, Manchester 5/5/07 (visited on Friday evening) |
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| "VERY
BUSY!!! even for a week day, but top notch!!!"
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Lee Forsyth, Manchester 26/4/07 (visited on a Thu evening) |
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