Wilmslow road of Manchester!

By Dr. Muhammad Hafizullah

Cold wind and rain welcomed us to Manchester, with darkness all over by quarter past four in the evening in early December. Direct flight of PIA from Islamabad to Manchester took eight hour and thirty minutes to reach the destination. A big blessing as compared to other airlines, where journey has to be broken and it might take fourteen to twenty four hours, to reach a destination in Europe. We were a dozen of Vice Chancellors in Manchester to participate in a leadership ten days course organised by HEC, British Council and Leadership foundation. My long time friend Raja Hanif from Glasgow, sprung a big surprise, and he was there at the airport to receive me. He insisted on taking us out for a dinner. With a 'technically too demanding' GPS in his vehicle, he had to rely on his whims and instincts to find Wilmslow road in more than an hour or at least it seemed so! Wimslow road in Manchester is synonymous with Pakistani food - boasting of dozens of different quality restaurants.

Sanam restaurant was his choice and we just followed him. Started essentially as a sweet shop it expanded into a large restaurant. Very nicely and stylishly designed with two floors - the decor is appealing. A la carte menu was presented and the entrees offered were numerous! The starters were exquisitely prepared grilled fish, chicken and lamb - presented with sauces. Appetisers were quite filling reducing the satiety for the main course. Main food items were a whole fried fish and specially prepared joints with enticing spices served with gravy. Pulao made with lamb was appealing to taste buds and chicken was offered grilled with tempting spices. Of all, the joints were most exclusive even by Pakistani standards. The ready supply of freshly baked nans and roties further enhanced the appetite and made us over eat.

"This can accommodate more than four hundred and fifty on the ground floor and offers the largest choice of menu in UK," claimed the desk manager of Nawab restaurant. "It has two more floors and we offer catering and host marriages and private large functions," he added. The restaurant has an independent car park offering space to scores of cars and guarded by well dressed gentleman. Though it was easy to find a parking slot as we went in, it was nearly full by the time we were leaving. The large area designated for waiting backed the claim that on weekends, in spite of the capacity, people have to wait up to two hours. The large waiting area with nicely set multiple sofa sets has large portraits of Yusaf Khan alias Dilip Kumar, on both sides sets a nice theme. The corridors on both sides lead to the main hall. There is a long queue over weekends and guests with little patience are well advised to explore other places. "This is not a restaurant but a food industry," was my immediate response.

The restaurant is called 'Nawab' housed on Stockton road in Manchester. This is the pride of restaurants and boasts of a rich history where people with demanding taste buds travel from long distances to savour the taste and enjoy the variety of food. There are many comfortable seats in front of a large bar adjoining the main hall which, I was informed, refuses to offer alcoholic beverages. This was a big statement because most of local cuisine restaurants have local patronage who demands alcoholic drinks. One has to offer very high standard of food so that people prefer to come for the taste of it in spite of no drinks. The main hall has more than four hundred, very tightly packed seats, denying any privacy. Small tables had difficulty in holding the ever increasing number of dishes and side dishes. As it was early evening availability of seats was no problem. The host Dr Aasim, an old family friend practising as a consultant pulmonologist in Manchester area, was well known in the restaurant and we were ushered to our table in no time.  

It was a massive buffet, a dream come true for a person who had denied himself food for a week. The variety of food items baffled me! There was an extensive counter which offered a variety of food items which perhaps the famous restaurant of Karachi Lal Qila cannot match. Most items were being prepared freshly close by and the aroma had a stimulating effect on appetite.  Behind the counters was an army of smartly dressed cooks busy in producing the most wonderful food. All items were clearly labelled in English and Urdu. For the starters we had an extensive choice of cold salad and spicy condiments. Among the freshly prepared items we had to chose between grilled and fried items prepared at the spot from chicken, lamb and sea food. The main attraction was the ceaseless and uninterrupted flow of freshly prepared dishes.

This was a self service restaurant so everyone had to form a queue and fill the plate. The beauty of the restaurant is that all items are prepared in small quantity so as to serve it fresh. Rice was being offered in many styles from steamed rice to Karachi famous Biryani.  Variety of vegetables cooked in a multitude of styles was most tempting. A host of preparations of lamb and chicken was being offered hot and fresh in pots. Fresh lamb chops were very tasty and being presented straight from skewers. Sea food grilled items were being served to the queue of guests. Exotic food items like Haleem and Nihari occupied the left extreme with all condiments. People preferred many trips and tried to try all  the choices. Many believed in making huge mountains of food to realize later that appetite could not match their avarice!

The ambience had one thing written all over and that was simple finger licking good food. All efforts seemed to be geared towards patient satisfaction - emphasising cleanliness and finger licking  food. Desserts were being served by two gentlemen who offered a variety of tempting cakes, Gulab jamon and freshly prepared warm carrot's halwa. Another separate counter had alluring flavours of ice cream. Many people believing in justice and fair play would have cakes, then halwa and gulab jaman and top it up with 'a little' ice cream. We had to order Kashmiri tea on the insistence of the Pushto speaking young waiter and we really enjoyed it.

The Pakistani eateries in Manchester are a very deeply ingrained part of their cosmopolitan culture. Most of the visitors to the Pakistani and Indian restaurants are local whites, who perhaps, enjoy the spicy food more than us. They have developed the taste for good food and seem to know what to eat. Local curry has literally invaded the English and Scottish culture and though very few would like to try their hands at cooking, most would be glad to try it in restaurants. The demand has led to some very upscale restaurants in almost all the major cities of UK. This has been a major blessing for the people of South East Asian origin as it has opened more avenues of earning for them. Both, who own and who work as chefs and waiters, get good remuneration. This supports many students who work part time to earn their tuition fees. Pakistanis stand to a great advantage and efforts should be made at governmental and private levels to encourage it. Cooking courses may be offered to people wanting to enter in this field. Poly technique colleges should be encouraged to provide training in hotel related trades may it be accounting, catering or service. The consulates can provide useful services to bring the people on a platform and facilitate the development of new restaurants or take away outlets.