Yadgar Café Review

ONE thing I’ve learned about Asian cuisine over the years is that often, the most mouth-wateringly authentic and satisfying food can be found in the most unassuming of places: simple, sometimes dingy hole in the walls, tucked away down a back alley, with dog-eared menus (if any), cheap furniture and plastic tablecloths. Not much to look at it, but packs a punch. Diamonds in the rough.

My Indian feast for one (which probably should have been for two) cost me £9.50. I left with a doggy bag, a slightly runny nose, and a satisfied smile. 

Places like this, though they may seem unappealing initially, draw huge crowds of locals who appreciate good-value, simple, honest cooking.

Yadgar Café is a little curry house on Thomas Street and must be one of the Northern Quarter’s oldest establishments. Its bright yellow and pink signage with chunky, bubble letters – cheerily unfashionable – seems almost gaudy and out of place amongst the more slick, sophisticated eateries that surround it; the newer, trendier Thomas’, Tusks, and Teacups.

Yadgar Cafe, Manchester

But this is one of the reasons why you have to love the Northern Quarter. Solid, reliable old handers such as Yadgar brush shoulders with well-presented, ambitious newcomers looking to make their mark with nary a sign of suspicion or antagonism. It just all adds to the mix.

Upon entering Yadgar Café, one of the first things that immediately stood out was the diversity of clientele. In one corner, a grizzly middle-aged fellow in a black leather jacket attacked his curry with gusto; a few tables down, two young men in hoodies – students, probably – chatting over their chappatis; next to them a woman in her mid-twenties. And then there was me, a fellow south Asian looking to satisfy her curry fix.

Yadgar Cafe interior“Which are your best three?” I asked.

“They’re all good,” the gentleman said, with a wry smile and noncommittal shrug. He lifted the lids of the silver containers, revealing a decent range of curries spanning meat and veg: chicken karahi; lamb karahi; lamb and saag (spinach - a special, I was told); lamb keema (minced lamb); mixed veg (potatoes, carrots and peas from the looks of it); kofta (meatballs) and egg; chana (chickpeas); dahl (lentils).

I decided on the chicken karahi, lamb saag and mixed veg plus the fried pilau rice to go with it. I also wanted to some lamb chops on the side, but to my dismay, I was told that they no longer serve them due to low demand. Instead, I ordered a portion of chicken tikka (£3) and one seekh kebab (50p).

Chicken Karahi

Next mini-dilemma: where to begin? I decided to go anti-clockwise, starting with the chicken karahi first. Although not usually a big fan of chicken breast, preferring the more tender thigh, my fork sliced easily through it.

It was a taste explosion. A burst of intense flavour, and then an immediate kick from the red and green chillies provided a rush of heat. Controlled, though, and not too overpowering.

The pilau rice, meanwhile, was okay but a little overloaded with spice, as if someone had gone a bit crazy with the old garam masala. Plain rice might have been a better match to offset the strong flavours of the curry.

Time to turn the wheel o’ curry and try curry number two. Lamb saag is not a particularly appetising-looking dish. It looks alarmingly like dark green pond scum, but don’t be perturbed by this.

Lamb Saag

A quick prod of the lamb, and it flaked under my fork, falling neatly away from the bone – amazing. The smooth spinach was melt in the mouth too. The potatoes, carrots and peas, were naturally a little underwhelming compared to the last two but nicely spiced all the same.

Mixed VegThe chicken tikka and seekh kebab finally arrived, with a cursory portion of side salad and mint yoghurt and chutney. It certainly looked promising, but was disappointingly dry. Something in the marinade threw off the balance of the flavours but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was. Clove, perhaps, or star anise.

The seekh kebab, though, was excellent. Very tender, without having to recourse to mouth-burning chillies. I could easily have eaten another.

By this point I was really slowing up, but given more space in my stomach, I would have gone for a chappati to go with the kebabs. That might have helped counter the dryness of the chicken tikka too. Next time.

All in all, my Indian feast for one (which probably should have been for two) cost me £9.50. I left with a doggy bag, a slightly runny nose, and a satisfied smile. For those on the go looking for relatively cheap, filling, homemade, you’d do well to try this long-standing hole in the wall.

Chicken Tikka And Seekh Kebab

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ALL SCORED CONFIDENTIAL REVIEWS ARE IMPARTIAL. 

Yadgar Café, 71 Thomas Street, City, M4 1ES.

Rating: 13.5/20

Food: 7/10
Service: 3.5/5 
Ambience: 3/5