An evening at Ziya Asian Grill...

As Hannibal in the A Team used to say ‘I love it when a plan comes together’ and that is exactly what happened for me this week when I was lucky enough to sample the delights of the delicious Ziya Asian Grill in the heart of the renowned ‘Curry Mile’ in Manchester. 

I spent the journey from my home near Liverpool looking forward to the food, it was a long time since I had enjoyed a really good curry and I could not wait to see what everybody had been talking about. I am planning to review more Manchester restaurants, and what a great place to begin! I had heard whispers that none other than the famous boxer Amir Khan had eaten at Ziya recently. Well, if it was good enough for him I thought....!

As soon as we pulled up outside the restaurant I could tell we were in for a treat. Ziya stands out by a mile in comparison to its neighbours, with its elegant and contemporary design creating a brilliant impression before you even walk through the door. We were warmly welcomed by Olivia, the restaurant manager and Adam on the bar, who settled us in with an excellent chilled Pinot Grigio. Before long, Jane, the lovely co-owner of Ziya arrived and we had a good chat about the new menu and their planned expansion into take away and home delivery. I was given a tour of the restaurant which is split over three floors, the third floor is a large private dining room with a separate bar which can be hired for events. The restaurant is lavishly furnished, with a well-stocked marble bar, candlelit lanterns and an eye-catching chandelier. The bathrooms are modern and immaculately clean, which is definitely one of the marks of a quality restaurant. I was lucky enough to go behind the scenes once again, meeting the chefs, exploring the kitchens and seeing the amazing Tandoor oven in operation which was a first for me. I was soon getting under Chef Ali’s feet and I managed to capture some great shots of him at work!

 The chic bar area.

We sat with Jane for dinner and drinks, and it was so lovely to chat about a million different subjects and especially about how useful social media is for business these days! All that interesting chat meant we had worked  up an appetite for dinner and what a meal it was. After amazing mixed starters of Tandoori Chicken and Peshwari Lamb Chop, we were also treated to the Corn Cheese Tikki, delicious pan fried patties made from sweetcorn, potato, cheese and herbs. I had never tried these before and they were so moreish and delicious. We were spoiled with wonderfully sweet and doughy Peshwari Naan, Garlic Naan and Plain Naan bread. For the main course we had Pilau rice, Chicken Korma, Makhni Chicken, Lamb Dopiaza and a Channa Masala which was a wonderful vegetarian curry with tangy cream sauce. Indeed, there are many delightful dishes on offer at Ziya to cater for vegetarian diners such as Shani Paneer, a North Indian curry with cheese and cashew nuts, Gobi Masala with Cauliflower and Jeera Aloo, a potato curry with cumin and onions. 

The bar of the private dining room.

 The stunning chandelier.

 The elegant frontage of the restaurant.

Chef Ali at work! 

The Tandoor oven in action! 

The excellent mixed starter. 

 The wonderful array of main courses.

 Corn Cheese Tikki 

Dal Makhini

Tandoori Chicken and Lamb starter

 Lamb Dopiaza

Delicious Naan bread.

Mango Phirni and Jamon o Gull.

Jamon O Gull.

 The mouthwatering desserts. 

Thank you to Jane and the team for making us so welcome!

After the wonderful main courses, which were delicately spiced and deliciously moreish, we were quick to protest at the idea of dessert until Jane told us about the delights of Mango Phirni, a cardamom infused rice pudding topped with mango. There was also the tempting sounding Jamon o Gull to consider, milk dumplings soaked in saffron syrup and served with ice cream. We opted to get these two desserts to share between us and we were absolutely delighted by the wonderful flavours of both. The Mango Phirni was a light and delicious dessert with exotic flavours perfect for a hot evening in Mumbai! The Jamon o Gull were sinfully delicious, with the rich syrupy dumplings providing a perfectly sweet note upon which to conclude the wonderful meal! I would recommend Ziya to anybody who loves excellent Indian food, as they offer an amazing array of wonderful dishes in a chic and sophisticated setting. There is a great selection of cocktails on offer too, even non-alcoholic ones. We had a wonderful night meeting Jane and the team and we set off back towards Liverpool with the feeling of amazing contentment which follows a perfect meal. Thank you so much to Jane and all at Ziya, see you again soon!

Ziya

65-67 Wilmslow Road

Manchester

M14 5TB

0161 257 2010

www.ziyarestaurant.co.uk

What do you all think lovely readers, do you have a favourite Indian restaurant and would you like to eat at Ziya? I can't wait to hear your thoughts and I love reading your sweet comments!

 Thank you for reading this post.

Until next time, 

Camille xo

*Disclosure: 

I was kindly invited to this meal as a guest of Ziya, therefore the meal was complimentary for review purposes. All opinions expressed are my own and honest.