KABUL CITY RESTAURANT, LEAGRAVE ROAD, LUTON

There was quite a surprised buzz around the old Mirpur Grill restaurant in Luton being converted to Kabul City, especially as the former seemed to be doing quite well. A Kabul City fan-for-life confirmed that this new place was indeed owned by the same guy who runs the restaurant in London. So we decided to go compare.

The waitress who greeted us found us a nice table but the two little people accompanying us wanted desperately to go upstairs and dine on the floor. We adults weren’t fussed where we sat but apparently this was the way to go. Nicely decorated with the traditionally get up, the upstairs is a reasonable size for a small function too.

We ordered pretty quickly off the menu as we had some idea of what to expect. There was a small language barrier as the Lithuanian waitress struggled to understand our order, but thankfully the menu was numbered on her notepad so we just pointed at the numbers. We listed off hummus followed by chicken wings, chapli kebabs and lamb chops. The main was the traditional Kabuli pilau with a lentil daal side.

There’s really only one word to describe the food – succulent. The generous portions of lamb chops and chicken wings were melt-in-the-mouth tender, and the accompanying naans fresh and lovely. Last time we visited Kabul City in London we couldn’t order any chapli kebabs because the restaurant had run out of meat due to a large takeaway order. Happily it wasn’t the case today and they were as lovely as expected – large, spicy and soft.

You can always tell a good Afghani eatery from its Kabuli Pilau, and here it was - tender chunks of lamb hidden under long grained sella rice with carrots and raisins. Not being a big fan of raisins in cooked food, I was still quite happy to pick them out. However, on hindsight I could probably have asked for them to be served on the side.

I did feel a little sorry for the waitress as she kept lugging our order up and down the stairs, and we didn’t really want to send her back down again when she forgot the accompanying red and green sauces. Now I realise why she would have preferred us to sit downstairs!

The single downside of the evening was where we had decided to sit. The only bathroom in the restaurant was behind us, and as the place got busier, so did the bathroom. We were constantly asking people to close the door firmly to avoid the wind coming from the fire exit nearby and hitting us in the face.

We decided against pudding and green tea that day as the little people had already ear-marked another place for dessert.

Haven spoken briefly to a couple of other people who have eaten at both branches of Kabul City, we have come to the agreement that the food is equally good in quality – I’ve even heard rumours that most of the food is in fact prepared at the London kitchen and booted down the motorway in time for the hungry hoards to arrive in the Luton branch.

Kabul City sets the bar for decent Afghani food in Luton. And the fact that the restaurant always seems to be heaving with people whenever I pass by proves my point. I think this type of food is a hit with children and adults alike because it has a familiar East-Asian flavour without the unwelcome chilly hit and excessive oil which can be found in some dishes available in places nearby.

J10 RESTAURANT & VENUE, GUILDFORD STREET, LUTON

When the experts say location, location, location - they actually have a point. J10 is hidden away on Guildford Street, an area you probably wouldn't be visiting unless you know where you are heading. Otherwise you need Google Maps on your phone or need to walk along the street with your head craned high, so as not to miss it.

But as far as this place is concerned at the moment, location is the least of its problems. It's was past 7pm when friends and I entered and the place was totally empty, and it stayed so until we left a couple of hours later. The decor is lovely and modern and the smell of fresh paint still lingers, as the restaurant had only been open a couple of weeks.

What attracted us to J10 in the first place was the enticing Indian/European menu splashed all over the local newspaper. After a short discussion we decided to order starters off the Indian menu and main off the European. The head waiter (or was is perhaps the owner?) was completely hospitable, coming over to explain the menu and even offering to make dishes that weren't even on it.  We decided to stick to what was on offer - mixed grill and tandoori wings as starters and salmon with ratatouille as main. The serving waitress was helpful and attentive and the complimentary poppadoms and dips were perfectly fine.

But the rest not so much. The grill was  large for what we paid but it tasted of nothing but chillies. The chops and chicken looked and tasted suspiciously over a day old and the seekh kebabs were of the nasty variety which have more gram flour in  them than meat.  I didn't even venture over to the wings but was reliably told by my friends that they were just more of the same.

So while swigging Sprite (out of a can - not something you should see in such a nice looking establishment), I tried to clean out the spice to prepare for hopefully a less fiery main.

The salmon was marginally better, although you don't need to do a huge amount to this fish for it to taste good, except make sure it is fresh. The ratatouille it sat on was edible, although I felt it could have do with more seasoning, but perhaps the taste had been dulled by the starters? The topping of rocket was niether here nor there.

The sauce accompanying the fish did nothing for it and although I hate doing it, I saw myself reaching for the salt.

We all ate  in a subdued manner, filling our stomachs rather than  relishing our great looking dishes. Two of us managed to eat most of portions while the third gave up after a few mouthfuls.

We didn't bother with dessert and left shortly after paying a reasonable bill.

Nobody wants to leave a restaurant even partly hungry, but that was unfortunately the case that day. Perhaps J10 are having a few teething problems getting the balance of Indian and European dishes just right but I can't see any of us returning. Sorry guys, good service and the sole attention of the chef just isn't enough.

LEBANON VALLEY ARABIC RESTAURANT,  LUTON

With the shutters not quite down, the front of Lebanon Valley in Bury Park has been looking unnervingly like a half-closed eye when driving past recently. Still half expecting it to be closed I was heartened that it was open for business when we ventured in recently at lunch-time.

The setting of the restaurant is cushioned, cosy and red, familiar to those of us who venture down to Edgeware Road from time to time.


We were greeted by a lovely waitress who generously offered us a seat anywhere in the (very empty) restaurant and promptly served us with complimentary bowls of hummus, salad and pitta. I was impressed with the offering until on closer inspection I discovered that the pitta tasted shop-bought and the black olives were the vile stuff straight out of a jar. 

The food we paid for was only somewhat better. My companion chose the Arabic salad as a starter and the Lebanon Valley mixed grill for mains. I took a few bites and they tasted fair, nothing special - and my friend agreed. I'm a big fan of falafels and was disappointed with the overcooked, tahini covered portion I was served. My main course of chicken shawerma was edible, if a little on the dry side. I'd like to point out that our mains were again served with pitta bread slightly warmed, possibly out of a packet.

My fresh juice tasted fine but my buddy grimaced when drinking the Fererro Rocher milkshake - it tasted like sweetened semi-skimmed milk.

I was tempted to try some baklava for dessert but decided against it - in fear of being disappointed on one of my favourite puds.

I know the place is newly opened but the staff seem a little too unsure with orders - coming back several times to ask what sauce we wanted on a starter or if we wanted onions in our salad?

There is a fair variety of food to try on the menu including - surprisingly -  spaghetti bolognese and lasagne. Arabic food with a touch of Italian I believe. On further enquiry I found out takeaway is available and the restaurant is closed on a Monday. Prices are reasonable, leaving not much change from £30 for lunch for two without dessert.

Overall view? Our waitress was lovely - but the food not so much. I hope the food improves because we could do with a few more non-chicken-and-chips places to eat in Bury Park. But for the moment it's still worth making that 30 minute journey to our favourite eateries on Edgeware Road.

Salams and howdy people,

KHANS RESTAURANT, LUTON

Along with many others I'd been watching with interest to see the development of the new restaurant on the corners of Wingate and Selbourne Road in Luton. After the spectacular fail of the Middle Eastern style pub and among much speculation, Khans restaurant opened its doors earlier this month.

Staying away for the first week or two - to let those running the joint to sort out any teething problems - I joined a friend at Khans for lunch a few days ago. A waiter saw us coming from the makeshift car park round the back of the restaurant and without much discussion took us to the seating area upstairs.

The menu looked quite similar to another recently opened grill place in Luton so I guess we were comparing the two places already. The waiter was helpful and efficient if a little brash - he seemed a little annoyed when we took more than 20 seconds to order from the quite extensive menu.

A mixed grill was the agreed choice as was the chicken jalfrezi. Debating whether to order another dish the waiter was considerate enough to suggest that what we had ordered was plenty for two people (and a little boy).

The restaurant wasn't too busy so the food reached the table quite quickly. The freshly squeezed orange juice was just that - so a big thumbs up for it. The mixed grill (consisting of chicken and meat tikka, lamb chops and seekh kebabs) was spicy as expected and the meat was lovely and tender, especially the lamb chops and mutton tikka. I'm normally weary of seekh kebabs at restaurants because they consist more of spices and chickpea flour than they do of actual meat. But surprisingly the one mouthful I did take of the kebab was totally meaty.

The green chillis overloaded on the jalfrezi made my eyes water just by looking at it but tasted fab. The accompanying plain naans were fresh and good in size.

Considering the generous portions of the main meal we expected something similar when ordering the chocolate cake for dessert. And here was the biggest disappointment of the meal. The three portions of cake we ordered would easily have been a single slice somewhere else. And the additional £1 for two tiny scoops of low quality ice cream with it? A definite no no.

But overall a good start for Khans. Don't let the standards slip like many places have and you'll have a good future. Make the cake slices bigger and I'll be back to try out the rest of the menu.