Top 5 best under 15 pounds a head - 2012

[JFores]

Hello all,

Just jumping on the theme set by Harters and ManInTransit.

I'm going to give this a think (plus I have to write up Gurkha Cafe and Kailash Momo.)

I can say for a fact that De Namaste is on this year's list and that Restaurant Le Taliet is probably there as well. The latter is pretty much the best Francophone African cooking I've had outside of France and the Bronx.

Take care and enjoy,

Justin

[portseven]

My favorite category (coz I am a tightwad)

Not in any order but..

* 19 Numara Bos Cirrik I - Dalston, London, best of the Turkish BBQ IMHO
* JasJasJas - Cheadle, Manchester, middle eastern home style food, cheap filling, good and great family run place.
* This & That - Northern Quarter, Manchcester, stalwart 'curry cafe' in the city, fab food, fab prices.
* Maxi’s Rotisserie - Kirkgate Market, Leeds, small chinese place that only does rice with roast meats. Can't knock it for tasty, and filling.
* Rook Lane Fisheries - Bradford, family run, traditional chippy, great tasting, hard to drive past without stopping.

[Harters]

Hey, portseven. Just wondered if you'd tried the This & That 2 (or whatever it's actually called) and if it's any different from the original?

[baboon]

I also thought Mandalay on Edgware Rd was terrific the only time I went

[baboon]

All London:
Chili Cool (Sichuan food, near Kings X)
Kokeb (Ethiopian, near Caledonian Road)
Malabar Palace (Sri Lankan, Turnpike Lane)
Afghan Kitchen (Islington)
Hong Kong Diner (Soho/Chinatown)

[lacemaker]

Have you tried Marathon, another ethiopian place enar Caledonian road, Baboon? I haven't tried kokeb, and wonder which is better...

My top five, in no particular order:

Middle Kingdom in Manchester (thanks Harters)
Marathon (see above)
Antepliller ciger salonu on green lanes (thanks JFores, IIRC)
The wine bar at Maltby Street markets, the one next to Monmouth, though you have to order carefully to come in at under £15
Mamuska, Polish place upstairs at elephant and castle shopping centre. Cheap, good and, in its own way, very atmospheric.

[Harters]

I toyed with putting Middle Kingdom in my list but would have had to knock out one of the three very enjoyable "Brit" meals.

[baboon]

Lacemaker, have tried Marathon, yep, it's pretty good too (only once have I had a bad Ethiopian or Eritrean meal in London all told) - food-wise, I'm not sure it would be easy to say one was better than the other in terms of quality, but Kokeb had a fair few recipes I haven't seen on other Ethiopian menus (for eg, beef with ginger and cardamom, that was delicious). Plus it's in a bad location (a relative backstreet), so definitely deserves more customers than it gets

[brokentelephone]

Have you tried TPT in place of HK Diner? It's far superior (for the things I eat, anyhow).

[baboon]

Never tried it - always good to know of somewhere else good in Soho. I can't vouch for all the HK DIner food, but I've loved the pork belly and snow peas when I've been there

[frogprince]

My favourites for under £15 are;

1. Pearl Liang (excellent Dim Sum, reservations, great service)
2. Saravanaa Bhavan Southall (excellent South Indian)
3. Shananshah Southall (best vegetarian Punjabi)
4. Franco Manca (best pizza in town?)
5. Princi (great for grazing in Soho)

All London & suburbs...and looking forward to trying D'Namaste (Thanks for the tip, Justin).

[Harters]

Here we go again.

1) I would have included 1539 in Chester - but I've already played that card on MiT's thread. So, I'll now play the Pointing Dog - a pub just down the road from home, in Cheadle Hulme (Greater Manchester - or Cheshire if you want to be posh). £12.95, two courses

2) Inn at the Farm, Solihull. Another pub doing excellent value food - two courses, £10.95

3) Rose Garden, West Didsbury, Manchester - neighbourhood bistro - two courses, £14.95

4) Jaffa, Rusholme, Manchester - one of a growing number of Middle Eastern gaffs on the "Curry Mile". A takeaway with tables if you will. Shawama, a separate plate of mixed mezze and a Sprite - round about a tenner

5) Lotus, Northenden, Manchester. A odd place - offering two menus - one South Indian, the other Malaysian. The better is Malaysian. Around £12 for two courses.

[Paprikaboy]

All in London, no particular order.

Apollo Banana Leaf
Patogh
Tongue n cheek
Lahori Nihaari
Sarvana Bhavan (Wembley branch)