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Ramadan 2017 – Places to go for Iftar and Suhoor

15

If you are looking for places to spend time with friends and family and not have the fuss of cooking at home then I have put together a list of places that offer a special Iftar Menu or are Iftar friendly

  • Some have prayer space onsite, some have a mosque nearby and some may not be able to offer prayer space.
  • Always best to check before you go and it’s advised to book ahead.
  • I have not been to all of these places, So I can’t comment on food
  • This list was put together with no one paying to be listed

Suhoor tip – If you are around the East Area, The East London Mosque as a food market during (including 2 burger vans) Taraweeh late till the night. There’s also a few places that are open till late as well.

Bookmark this page – It will be updated regularly
Last Update: 09th June 2017 @ 22:42
Current Number of places: 33+

Places in the order of when added to page

London

1. Boondocks

205 City Rd, London EC1V 1JT

Break your fast during Ramadan with an all-American feast at Below Boondocks (running from 26 May to 4 June 2017). Tickets are £21.50 per person and include starters at the table, a main, side, dessert and drink. All foods are Halal and separate prayer rooms are available at the venue for women and men.

Prayer Space available

Book here:https://belowboondocks.yapsody.com/event/index/92211/ramadan-below-boondocks

 

2. Band of Burgers

22 Osborn St, London E1 6TD

Band of Burgers in Brick Lane is offering a Ramadan meal for pretty decent £20 per person. Advanced booking required

Mosque nearby

 

3. Carne Cabana

142 Bethnal Green Rd, London E2 6DG

Read Review

 

4. Rustix Gourmet

252 Barking Rd, London E6 3BB

Read Review

4 different set menu options to pick from. Burgers and Steaks on offer from this popular East London venue.

 

 

5. Mamounia Lounge

136 Brompton Rd, Knightsbridge, London SW3 1HY

“During Ramadan, no one wants to wait any longer than necessary once it’s time to break your fast. That’s why we’re providing complimentary dates for anyone who requests them at our Mayfair venue and an Iftar specific menu at our Knightsbridge venue”

6. Karachi Restaurant

35 Longbridge Road, Barking, IG11 8TN

Serving authentic Pakistani and Indian cuisine in London.

More info: http://www.kolachirestaurant.co.uk/

7. InterContinental London Park Lane

One Hamilton Place, Park Ln, Mayfair, London W1J 7QY

InterContinental London Park Lane is observing Ramadan with a traditional Iftar, which will offer an elegant setting to gather and breakfast with friends and family. Beginning May 27th at 9 p.m.* in The Wellington Lounge, just after sunset, Iftar will run a nightly with a changing menu

more info: http://parklane.intercontinental.com/en/iftar/

8. Spice Village

Ilford – 266-268 High Rd, Ilford IG1 1QF

Southhall – 185-189 The Broadway, Southall UB1 1LX

Tooting –  32 Upper Tooting Rd, London SW17 7PD

3 restaurants around the capital serving up halal Indian and Pakistani food in a buffet.

http://www.spicevillage.co.uk/restaurants/ramadan-offers

9. Open Ifar by Ramadan Tent Project

Malet Street Gardens, London, WC1E 6DP

If there’s one Iftar I can recommend it this one. I have been going since its inception 4 years ago and it has grown bigger and bigger. A great sense of community and togetherness, the food is normally donated and prepared by the Muslim world league mosque. It’s an open iftar and FREE.

Prayer Space available – Maghrib jammat is performed before serving of food
Sorry for the advert, it pays for the site.




10. Meat Rack

607 Garrat Lane, Earlsfield, SW18 4SU

11. Brioche Burger

154 Hoe St, Walthamstow, London E17 4QH

They have Ramadan menu which includes a Suhoor breakfast menu.

12. Pie Republic

80 Upton Ln, London E7 9LW

Serving up simple good value pies, they are also open late during Ramadan and theres a mosque right next door.

Read Review

Masjid nearby

 13. BiRD

21-22 Chalk Farm Rd, London NW1 8BF
81 Holloway Rd, London N7 8LT
42-44 Kingsland Rd, London E2 8DA

“Featuring our halal, free range fried chicken. We’re offering a set menu for £21.50, available every day in our Camden, Islington & Shoreditch restaurants”

Read Review

More Info and Tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ramadan-bird-restaurants-tickets-34654320004

14. Dishoom

22 Kingly St, Carnaby, London W1B 5QB and Various locations

During Ramadan, Dishoom will have platters of dates and Nimbu Pani available for everyone waiting in the queue.

Read Review

15. Levant

Jason Court, 76 Wigmore Street, W1U 2SJ

Break your fast with us with our Ramadan Iftar menu Call us on 020 722 41111 or email us at reservations@levant.co.uk to book your table

16. Tabun Kitchen

77 Berwick St, Soho, London W1F 8TH

Our Ramadan Iftar menu is not to be missed – 5 sumptuous courses of deliciousness…please book a table as we’re getting busy!

Masjid Nearby / 7mins

17. Mia Lounge

135 Finchley Road, Swiss Cottage, London NW3 6JH

18. HS&Co

405 High St, London E15 4QZ

Although I am not a fan of the food here, I went as recently as a few days ago, I thought I’d still include them here.

Read Review

19. Empire Lounge

20 Woodford New Rd, Walthamstow, London E17 3PR

Iftar and Sahoor Menu. The Empire Lounge Special Ramadan Menu will be available throughout Ramadan. 

Prayer Space available

More Info and Bookings: http://mailchi.mp/empirelounge/ramadan-restaurant-menu




20. Pacana

448-450 Cranbrook Rd, Ilford IG2 6LL

Iftar menu from Pacana. They serve up pan asian noodle dishes.
Read Review

21. The Gourmet Hut

81 Cavell St, Whitechapel, London E1 2BQ

22. Thai n Pie

45 Mile End Rd, London E1 4TT

“we are taking advance booking for Iftar and we do have enough space for Salah”

Menu added, thanks to Kam vs Food
Prayer Space available

23. Selesa

18-30 Lexham Gardens, Kensington, London W8 5JE

More info

24. Safran Grill

83 New Rd, Whitechapel, London E1 1HH

Enjoy our iftar menu

A post shared by Safran (@safrangrilllondon) on

25. Route 58 Diner

35, East Shopping Centre, 232-236 Green St, London E7 8LE

26. Gourmet Republik

637 Forest Road, Walthamstow, London, E17 4NE

27. Fat Joe Sports Cafe

55 High Street, Barkingside Ilford, IG6 2AD

28. Ramadan Bazaar

behind the East London Mosque every night 10pm-2am

29. SAPNA’S CARVERY

Abbey Manor, 28 Abbey Road, London NW10 7SB
only @£22.99 including drinks!

Book here: http://www.sapna.co.uk/carvery.html




30. Sidi Bou London

44 Haven Green, London W5 2NX (closed on Monday’s)

31. Red Iron

280 High St, Uxbridge UB8 1LQ

32. Shukran

233 E India Dock Rd, Poplar, London E14 0EA

 

Thanks to Kam vs Food for the picture

33. Kilikya’s mile end

44A Palmers Rd, Mile End, London E2 0TA

Outside of London

Birmingham

Itihaas

18 FLEET STREET, BIRMINGHAM, B3 1J

There will be complimentary dates to break your daily fast. 

Menu available 26th May-24th June, 9:30pm (sundown) to 11:30pm, £19.95pp, Minimum 4 guests per booking

Manchester

Relish

Mango Tree

I went with a group of friends for a birthday dinner and all a taste of different things off the a la carte menu. Received 50% off food booking with OpenTable.

I was going to do a full review but I am not going to bother –  I found the food fairly average across the range of starters and mains we ordered. Nothing I ate here wants to encourage me to visit and recommend this place. The two curries I had, green and massaman both were missing sharpness and depth of flavour. The flavours were subdued and very underwhelming. Loads of style with no substance. 

The restaurant was very dark so not the best for photos.

I personally find that the Thai food I like comes from small restaurants or street food markets. But the restaurant has a nice enough atmosphere for a meal. 

 

Mem and Laz

 

The chicken and lamb are halal only.

Went here last night for dinner. A very old school small family style run restaurant. It’s is very small and cramped, but it has a romantic quality to it with its warmth and classic style.

Loads of options on the menu but I ended ordering something that I had no idea about. Turned out to be a great choice. The lamb was so tender and fell off the bone with ease. It could have done with more seasoning and flavour. But at only £12 for this meal I was very impressed.

There is pork in the menu and some dishes are cooked with wine. However, they can make without any wine as they saw we were Muslim. 

Chai Ki

Made a quick and first visit to Chai Ki in Canary Wharf, located in the new Crossrail place. Food wise I only ordered 2 items because I already ate lobster at the big easy which is upstairs and it didn’t fill me up and felt like trying something else.

Chicken tikka naan – is it what is sounds like, chicken tikka, mixed peppers, onions, and yogurt served on a fresh naan. It was like a pizza! It was a simple dish but light and enjoyable.

The Burnt Chilli Chicken is an Indo-Chinese dish made with Szechwan sauce cooked with mix peppers and spring onion. Both items were simple but well cooked. A nice balance of flavours and good use of texture and crunch from the deep fried chicken. The chicken is deep fried and then stir fried. A really good dish that I would eat again and even try making it myself at home.

For dessert, got a slice of chocolate cake.

Slightly overpriced, but it’s canary wharf and I did say slightly. If you visit the definitely recommended giving the 2 items above a go. The venue is modern and as a nice atmosphere. There are different menus to choose from, so make sure you plan ahead as certain menus are available at different times.

 

Fire and Stone

I found myself in covent garden after work with the urge for pizza and for something new. I decided to fire up my tastecard and found Fire and Stone, a Spacious restaurant serving creative pizzas and pasta in a casual cafe-style setting.

There are no halal meat options so it was veg for me!

The menu is inspired by flavours and dishes across the globe. View Menu

Just got one starter, RUSTIC POLENTA CHIPS £4.45, Crisp fried with fresh rosemary & tomato salsa. I loved this dish! I think i can say it was actually one of the best chips i have had, the accompanying salsa was great.

Might be the best chips I’ve had!

For my pizza i got the Mumbai pizza, Two naan pizza bases topped, red onion, chilies and spinach paneer served with poppadoms, mango chutney & tzatiki. This pizza comes with chicken, so I asked for no chicken on mine.

However, when I first got the pizza (which did take around 20mins to arrive)  I noticed one piece of chicken on it, i told the waiter who promptly apologised and said he would order me another and make sure it’s done right.

When it finally arrived, well, it’s basically some cheap pitta bread made into a pizza. It was okay.. Would i have it again? No, note to self, if you want a pizza, then get a pizza!

We also got a “ Melbourne”, Chunks of brie, roasted butternut squash, balsamic red onions, mozzarella, topped with rocket & pumpkin seeds, drizzled with a balsamic glaze, £11.50. This actually tasted like a pizza! Yay. It was a simple but nice pizza i liked the sweetness of the balsamic red onions and glaze.

For dessert, we got HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE BROWNIE, £6.25 , With chocolate sauce & Madagascan vanilla ice cream. Really soft and gooey, i liked this dessert.

Also got some CHURROS, Crispy cinnamon coated churros strips with Nutella & chocolate sauce dips. £5.25.

Because of the order mix up, my Indian pizza was taken off the bill and we also got 50% off as i used my tastecard. So the total came to very low £15, for one starter, 2 pizzas and 2 desserts!

Would i go back? Absolutely, armed with my tastecard, I’d definitely get those chips and that dessert again.

Gunpowder

You would think being an Indian restaurant that there would be halal meat on the menu but there is not. This place is highly rated, so I decided to check out what the hype was about. I don’t understand the hype about this place. Space is crowded and uncomfortable and only holds 26 covers. The food is overpriced for what it is.

menu

There are plenty of non-meat options. The food was good but definitely not worth the price. The food was nice, light and well balanced, but I’ve had better.

Heres what I ordered

Gunpowder aloo chaat £6

Warm and soft pieces of whole potatoes was a new element in a chaat. The flavours were well balanced out, but a little too much sauce and not enough filling.

Whole wild sea bass in mustard sauce – £16.50

Quite a small piece of fish, but it was deboned and the subtle flavours worked well with the way it was cooked. The sauce was mild and most of the taste came from the charred bits of crispy skin.

Saag with tandoori paneer – £12

3 bits on paneer in a mild and thick sauce. Like with most of the things I ate, the flavours were balanced but just lacked intensity and heat from spices. The food really lacked authenticity and just didn’t have enough intensity when it came to spices and overall taste.

aromatic rice in banana leaf (v) £3.50

I only ordered 4 items no drinks and it was £45.

 

The Ledbury (Closed)

The Ledbury is one of 9 Michelin starred restaurants in London that holds 2 stars. Unfortunately, they no longer provide halal meat, but they do offer seafood and vegetarian options and can ensure that no alcohol is used in dishes ordered.

I went on a Sunday and had the 4-course Sunday lunch at a fixed cost of £70 which includes water and service.

The menu changes daily so I will review what I had.

Personalised Menu

We started the lunch with canapes which act as palette cleansers between each course.

Pre course canapé

Course one White Asparagus

White Asparagus

The first course was White Asparagus Muscatel Grapes, Ricotta and Sunflower Seeds. If you are expecting flavour and depth then you are going to be disappointed. This was a very poor dish, very little taste, and flavour, dull and bland.

Roast Celeriac

Roast Celeriac Hazelnut Praline, Egg Yolk and Truffle. This was the standout item for me. I am writing this review a month later and I can still taste the delicious creamy egg yolk. The texture and flavor were unlike any egg yolk I have had, it was smooth and had such a rich deep of flavour. All of the items on the plate really worked well together.

Main / John Dory

John Dory (fish), Cauliflower and Bonito Butter. For my main course, I had fish, although the flavours were balanced, the actual fish was overcooked which meant that it was on the dry side and really didn’t taste that great. I found it dry and it was not soft nor tender. I would expect it to fall apart with ease but it didn’t.  

Dessert

Whipped Ewe’s Milk Yoghurt Poached Rhubarb, Lime Leaf, and Beignets. This is dessert was light and presentation was really nice, but the overall taste was underwhelming.

Overall, I was really expecting better from the food here. The presentation of all dishes was great but I was expecting a better level of imagination and cooking. It was all too simple and safe. However, I think eating here was more of an experience.

The service was faultless, water always topped up, staff attentive and very friendly. Little things like finding your napkin folded up when up return to the table after visiting the washroom was a nice touch. 4 courses with canapes with service and water for £70 is a great value menu for a 2-star restaurant that was ranked at the time of visiting the 24th best restaurant in the world.

 

Tukdin

I’ve been wanting to come here for a long time and was in the area on Saturday so popped in. I was actually disappointed with the food.

The chicken Satay was bad. Overcooked, dry and hard, it tasted like it as been pan fried and not grilled.

I was with a group of 10 and most ordered the beef rendang, which was just okay, I have definitely had better. It’s my favourite Malaysian dish and I think it lacked depth in flavour, maybe needed more cooking time for the flavours to infuse better. 

 

Lastly, the banana fritters were not good at all, I had one bite and couldn’t eat another bite. No sweetness and too soggy.  It’s a shame. I was looking forward to the food but was expecting better. Of course, there’s a lot more things on the menu, but I doubt I’d go back sadly.

Burgo (Closed)

5

The last time I tried a new restaurant on Ilford Lane without knowing anything about it, turned out to be one of my favourite places, I’m talking about Franzos.


So when a new Burger restaurant opened up I was hoping for good things. @burgobar is another in a line of new Muslim owned and run halal burger restaurants in the area that have recently opened up like; Fatboyz, rustic, all star, route 58 to name a few.

Menu
Main Menu
Menu
Burger

I ordered the classic beef burger and a Philly cheese steak. I’ll cut to it, this was one of the weakest burgers I’ve had. It was dead. Totally bland, no taste from the beef, there were meant to be caramelised onions but they were barely grilled. It was not an enjoyable food experience. The price was £7.95, it did come with chip but the chips were Yuk and for me it’s a burger that should cost no more than £2.50. The burger was using the wrong cut of beef, with absolutely no fat content.

The phillysteak was even worse. The slices of beef were dry, overcooked and tasteless. Again, there were meant to be caramelised onions which tend to normally provide a sweetness but there was none present. The peppers weren’t even grilled, so you get a strong taste of crunchy peppers.


I have to say really poor food and it’s food that is made by people who are totally clueless about food and in particular burgers. The understanding of using quality beef or how to construct is not present here. Oh and the sweet potato chips were not even cooked, some were raw inside.
I wouldn’t even bother. I’m angry that I parted with £22 pounds in total.


No complaints with service. I should have realised it wasn’t going to be good when I saw a lot of half eaten burgers left behind by people who just left.

Don’t waste your time going. The staff were not even interested in my feedback. So annoying when restaurants open up in highly populated Muslim areas thinking they can turn a quick buck by serving up attractive food in a themed environment. They seem to underestimate the standard of quality that the new generation of Muslim consumer demands.

I really don’t like giving a place such a bad review but if you read my blog, you know that I am always direct and to the point. I hope they improve on the quality of cooking as this place im sure has potential.



Chai Thali

1

Chai Thali is a newly opened Indian restaurant that’s keeping the trend of serving up Indian Street food and small dishes.

The location is an odd one, totally off any main road, it’s in the middle of a residential and business area. Visiting on a Tuesday I found myself and a group of 2 others to be the only people in a restaurant that can easily hold 100. So the ambiance was totally dead. I guess it made my catch up with friends easy as there was no noise from any other diners. After going over the big menu we decided to get a couple of items..

Menu – http://chaithali.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Chai_Thali_Food.pdf

 

 

Bhaaji Pao Fondue £5.50

Bhaaji Pao Fondue

Mashed vegetables with grated cheese topping, served with a brioche bun. Not much taste or interesting flavours from this dish, the accompanying brioche bun was served deliberately stale and hard. I don’t get it. I found it too salty and was left mostly uneaten. 4/10

Paapdi Chaat £5.00

Paapdi Chaat

Crispy savoury snacks topped with potatoes, chickpeas, drizzled with yoghurt, crunchy sev & a blend of chutneys. A classic small plate but made very basic and simple here. The sev was a bit too hard and crunchy and didn’t mix well with the other textures of the items. But the flavours of the chutneys were decent. 6/10

Bullet Wings £5.00

Bullet Wings

Chicken wings cooked in bullet powder. I was hoping for good things from chicken wings, but these had very little taste from spices and suffered from being overcooked that dried out the chicken and limited the chance of any mosit or tenderness.

Lamb Ki Chaampe £9.00

Lamb Ki Chaampe

Lamb chops marinated overnight in spices & cooked in the tandoor, served with kachumber. 3 chops but these were similar to the chicken wings, in the sense that the spices lacked depth and flavour. They were also cooked medium well, which didn’t make them as juicy or tender as they could have been. 6.5/10

Kurkuri Bhindi £5.00

Kurkuri Bhindi

Thinly sliced okra fried in corn flour batter, sprinkled with chilli masala. Way too much salt, but if I was lucky to find a bit with no salt it tasted good, with a good texture and crunch. 6/10

Pindi Chole Kulche £6.50

Pindi Chole Kulche

Punjabi style chickpeas cooked in a thick gravy accompanied with Amritsari kulcha. Went on the recommendation of the waitress. Big mistake. Not good at all and not to my taste. The accompanying bread was good. 4.5/10

Dhaaba Murg (On the Bone) £8.00

Dhaaba Murg (On the Bone)

A delicious chicken curry until now only at the G.T.Road side dhabas of Punjab. 

As a main curry we all decided on this. Again, like with other dishes it was too salty. Also, being on the bone I found myself picking tiny bits of bone that had been cut off, it made it really unpleasant to eat as every mouthful had a bit of chipped bone. As for flavours, im writing this only 2 days after my visit and even looking at pictures doesn’t remind me of this dish. Very forgettable and as with most items I had on the night very average.

 

Overall, I was not impressed with the food here. It was all very average and nothing i ate here would ever want me to visit again. The lack of atmosphere and people at the restaurant surely didn’t help. Food also came out at different times which didn’t flow right. Odd, as we were the only ones there! Another group of 7 showed up after an hour of our arrival.

 

Total cost was under £60 between 3, with no drinks. I definitely could have eaten more, but was really reluctant to try any more dishes with fear of being disappointed further.

Location means this place will only get people going here if they now about it.

I really was expecting better. It’s a shame really. Unfortunately, I can’t recommend this place based off my experience.




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