Chamans has a fancy new sign, is he food different?

[PeteM01]

Finally made it to this place last night. Upstairs was full, so we sat in the very brightly lit downstairs section, with a nice view of the kitchen area. We were told that no alcohol was allowed, which made no difference to us but might influence others to stay away.

 

Many items on the menu are preserved from the Chaman days, including brain curry and lamb trotters. However, they also now sell steaks and have more fish dishes, with the marinating meat on display by the kitchen. They also claim to make their own sweets on the premises. The manager told us that the food-style was Lahori, and mentioned a particular food street near the cricket stadium as the inspiration!

 

For the purposes of comparison, we tried our usual Chaman starters - seekh kebab and onion bhaji. The kebabs were clearly homemade and meaty but with less of a spicy kick than we were used to. On the upside, the array of sauces provided was a vast improvement, with mild tamarind, mint and a potent youghurt and chilli combo available. Bhajis were crisp and not too oily, so the meal began well. For mains, I diverged from my usual order and went for chilli chicken. This was a bad idea because it is actually their version of chinese food, very hot but in a clear glutinous sauce. I should have read the menu more carefully! My dining companions had a chicken bhuna and a meat and lentil dish. Both were very good, quite gingery and cooked in quite a dry style, with little free ghee remaining. Neither had the courage to request asian-style spicing, so probably missed out on the best flavours. They no longer serve family naans, but two plain ones were very good - crispy on the outside but with a softer texture inside. A little fresh ghee had been applied but did not overwhelm. Prices were unchanged form Chaman days and we paid less then £10 a head - very good value.

 

After this we had no room for sweets but had a good chat with the manager. All the staff were very friendly and we would be happy to return, perhaps to try more Lahori-style food. It is probably worth noting for those seated downstairs that the toilets are now exclusively upstairs, accessed by a narrow and vertiginous staircase. Interesting after a few beers...

[PeteM01]

Sad to say, Lahori-Dhera seemed to have slipped a bit downhill the last time we visited. The dishes lacked flavour and had more gloopy sauce and/or ghee than previously. We also asked one of the waiters about one of the dishes (haleem - a bit of an acquired taste) and he said he know nothing about it - "I wouldn't eat that <expletive removed>" was the actual comment. Not a good recommendation, even he probably only meant that it was a dish for the elderly rather than just inedible.