Restaurant review: Zouk in Manchester,UK

Two new restaurants sprung up across from work, and as you can imagine, I went to have a look as soon as I could. The first time around, one of the restaurants was not yet open (Zouk), but my curiosity got me to ask what type of food it would be, and it seemed to be Indian/mediterranean which intrigued me no end. My first impression was good: a big open kitchen in the entrance, a great spacious, high ceiling restaurant space with big windows.
The front of the restaurant is very discrete though and it is not visible from the main road.

Anyway, I went for lunch as soon as I could with a friend.

The first impression is shaped by the open kitchen, the high ceiling and spaciousness (but not agoraphobic)

The staff is welcoming and very pleasant.

and right in front of you, the kitchen, pristine, all open, the kitchen:

And right in front of the entrance, the bread is prepared and cooked, wow!!! they have a traditionnal type of oven, and it means the bread is freshly cooked for you:

The first time I came, I ordered some chicken livers, and they were absolutely gorgeous, greatly cooked, melting in the mouth. The Kulcha bread (a flat sesame bread) was warm and tasty. I ordered also to share some king prawns kebabs, and a lamb grill including kofte, cutlet, all excellent.

The following time, I must say I almost ordered the sheep brain and the lamb trotters, but I left it for my next visit and had the lamb Nahari instead, a very tender piece of lamb cooked slowly for a long time, in a great tomato based sauce. this Lahore originating dish was served with separate little pots of garam masala, fresh herbs, fresh chillis and fresh grated chilis to sprinkle on top of it, and it was absolutely gorgeous. Even when you order the popadums, they have cumin in them, and are superbly crispy.

The menu contains unusual Indian and Middle Eastern dishes, and the staff is truly international (Iranian, Pakistani, Nepalese,...), both in the kitchen and out.

The strong points of the restaurant are definitely the freshness of the food, the originality of the menu and the open kitchen.

Also even on a weekend night, the music is not too loud, and although it is quite busy, the high ceiling give a great impression of space.

I sent a few people there, and they were all rather impressed. So yes if you can, definitely pay Zouk a visit!

Now you will ask, where are the pictures of the food?
Hum yes especially because it does look very good... Well everytime I went to eat there, I did not have my camera with me (yes yes, always carry your camera I know!), and I had to come back especially to take the photos one, when I did not have enough time for a full sit down meal.
Hopefully next time I will have my camera and will take advantage of the great natural light coming in through the huge window...