This has got to be be best Indian takeaway in the south of Birmingham! The food arrives on time and…read moreis always piping hot! No matter what you order it tastes amazing, they will cater to specific needs and add/remove items as requested. Give it a try!

I found this place by looking for Indian restaurants with plenty of vegan options. Indeed, their…read moremenu makes it pretty clear what is or can be vegan. We arrived around 6pm on a Thursday for dinner, and the place was dead. The interior is fancifully set up, and service is very friendly and professional. We ordered: -Vegan tofu curry (£12.50). This was a creamy, mustardy curry, with chunks of firm tofu (seemingly to resemble paneer), drizzled with coconut milk. Rich, creamy, tangy and balanced. Really nicely done. 4.5/5 -Tawa sabzi (£10). This was a drier dish coated with a mustardy curry paste, with cauliflower, potatoes, green beans and peas. The curry has a bit of a sour tang to it but was well-done. 4/5 -Methi aloo gobi (£10). This was also a drier dish, with a fenugreek-driven curry paste coating the cauliflower and potatoes. It was quite similar to the Tawa sabzi, with that sour tang to it. Also well-done but it was too similar to the aforementioned dish. 4/5 We asked for a spiciness level "just above" what they would ordinarily make, and man was it spicy -- not too much for us but bordering that. Overall, tasty food, great service and a pleasant environment. Recommended.

I wish to caution somebody willing to book in an event with Itihaas, Birmingham. I had a terrible…read moreexperience in trying to recover a deposit refund during COVID and eventually ended in losing £ 3,000 in the process. I had booked a Wedding Event for 300 guests to be held in August 2020. We paid £6000 as a deposit for the catering and venue. It was paid by 2 credit cards @3000 each by me and the bride's mother. Unfortunately, the event had to be cancelled with mutual consent due to COVID regulations. As per the prevailing government regulations we were entitled to a full refund barring some expenses incurred by the merchant in the process. We were given a list of expenses incurred amounting to £1494 which were highly manipulated and unreal. We were charged £ 200 for a food tasting event which never happened and charged for the time spend in e-mails, telephone conversation and venue viewing. These, we believed were a part of overhead expenses and were not permissible as expenses incurred by the merchant. We did not receive any services and were entitled to full refund. We still offered a liberal £ 500 to close the dispute but was declined . We were offered a truncated refund of £ 4506 out of £ 6000 as an unconditional offer in April 2020. We had no other option to seek justice and to apply for a charge back from our credit card providers. The process of chargeback was prolonged due to COVID shutdown, and we eventually recovered £ 3000 from one of the credit card providers. Unfortunately, the other credit card providers could not recover our deposit due to delayed and poor representation. We were already frustrated by the ongoing saga and eventually asked Itihaas to honour the initial unconditional offer and pay us the balance of £ 1506 . To our surprise the management refused to pay the balance on the grounds that we used a charge back to seek justice and recover our dues. The management decided to pocket a sum of £ 1506 which was initially offered in the conflict unconditionally. This was extremely appalling, and we felt cheated by the Itihaas management. I will strongly recommend anybody willing to book an event to think twice. You are in for an ordeal and could end up in losing a lot of money.

Good food!! Reasonable prices, not licensed so bring your own drink, friendly staff…read more Only let down here is the wait sometimes if busy you have a long wait as they go to pieces once a few people come in at once! Parking can be a bit crap as its on the street with shops etc. delivery again if they are busy don't answer the phone and you may have a long old wait for delivery man!

I visited Mela just before Christmas for a Christmas curry with three friends…read more Although I've lived in Harborne for three years now, this was my first visit to Mela *hangs head in shame*. In fact it was my first time out for a sit down curry in as many years. It's something that I used to do a lot as a couple, but being single one heads more to pubs and bars than restaurants. I don't know why, it just works out like that. Mela sits above Haart (I think they're related to the Quagaars), in the centre of Harborne High Street. That's not centre as in the middle of the road, otherwise one would get run over by a bus whist stuffing down a balti. Ok, it's half way along the high street (How's that?). The décor is classic for it's genre; high back leather chairs, strange abstract art on the walls, low lighting and fine white linen on the tables. Mela is a Bangladeshi balti house. I believe it's named after the Boishakhi Mêla), which is East London's celebration of the Bengali New Year and is the largest Bengali celebration outside of Bangladesh. I generally find the level of service is much higher in South Asian restaurants, than in those that're British ran around the same price range, and Mela was no exception. The waiters are attentive, but not pushy. As one would expect at such venues the beer is the (modern) traditional Cobra, priced at £3.95 for a 660ml bottle, which is cheaper than a pint in most of Harborne's pubs. I opted for the 'Chicken Shashlick Bhuna Balti', (which is described as "diced chicken cooked with oil, garlic, ginger and homemade shashlick sauce with diced bell peppers and onions in a medium sauce served in a traditional balti dish"), with a Keema Naan. It was so delicious, I just wanted to put it in my face for ever! Two of associates ordered the Tawa, which arrived at the table sizzling on a traditional tawa dish, adding a touch of theatre to the experience. Needless to say, we were all very pleased with our choices. Unfortunately, I didn't get any photos, as I was too busy enjoying myself. None of us had any rice, just a main + naan each, but we were all completely and contentedly stuffed! We paid £75 between the four of us, which included a £10+ tip, so I guess It came to just over £15 each - not bad for a delicious meal & large beer. I'm certainly going to return, and may have to drag some more people along next time!

Excellent food and friendly service. Welcoming upstairs restaurant that was clean and inviting.read more

"THE BEST INDIAN FOOD I'VE EVER HAD*" - my husband…read more Yep, that's his quote. I'm a little snobbier by saying "the best Indian food I've had outside India" (*he hasn't been to India). But in all seriousness, it was delicious. While walking down the canals of Birmingham, we smelled something wonderful and turned to each other simultaneously with eyes wide and both instantly knew what the other was thinking: "we need to eat that". There is something wonderful about smelling delicious flavours and then getting to eat those flavours. We had the vindaloo and a biryani. Of course we had naan and samosas (duh). The menu had a lot of options (almost too many!?) but we went with our standard favourites and were not disappointed. As far as service goes, we have no complaints. It was a quiet Sunday night, so we got fast and friendly service from the whole staff. I think they thought we were a coupla boozers cuz they did seem a little judgey when I got to my 3rd glass of wine. But, ya know, after the 3rd glass you don't really care what people think, right? The only regret I have is that we discovered this on our last night in town and couldn't go back for seconds! Oh, forgot to mention the awesome location right above the canal - great views, beautiful scenery.

Popped in here rather later in the evening than I like to eat, but it had been a very long day and…read moreI was in need of sustenance. There's not much else around in this area, and this place was a) open, and b) errr... open. It wasn't exactly busy, but the staff were very welcoming and made us feel at home without being overly-fussy. We were instantly offered popadums and a drinks order was soon placed for some Cobra beer. Very soon the combination of beer and popadums started to relax the tensions of the day. I wasn't starving hungry and didn't want to eat a large meal this late, so I settled for the fish bhuna and a plain nan. The food was absolutely delicious I have to say - very tasty without being too spicy. Just what was needed for a late evening meal. A surprising little gem of a curry house in this deserted stretch of Hagley Road. Well worth visiting if you're passing - they deserve the custom.

The Banu is modern restaurant situated on the busy Hagley Road, close to the areas of Edgbaston,…read moreHarborne and Bearwood. The restaurant has been here since the 1970s and has changed management many times. I happily chatted to the current manager whilst I was eating at my table. He was a friendly chap and told me that he was in partnership in the 1980s and now fully owns the restaurant. The décor inside the restaurant is pristine and inviting. It has a contemporary approach that reflects the modern style cuisine that they serve. Their mission is clearly stated on the menu and that is to serve the best in authentic food of the Indian Subcontinent, specialising in the Indian and Bangladeshi Cuisine. The specialty dishes include Madras, Bhuna, Kurma, Balti Pathia, Rogan Josh and Karai The Chefs specials Chicken Salami Singri Saag Chicken chilli & Garlic Massalla Chicken & King Prawn Anarkali I had a very hot Madras and a Mango Lassi to help reduce the heat levels. I enjoyed the succulent chicken and the rich sauce that it was served in. The service was quite good and the staff were very friendly. I will be sure to come here again.

A new addition to Lye High Street's numerous unlicensed balti restaurants…read more We booked a party of 6 in response to a very generous promtion offer, check out Twitter, it may still be running. It is new and very clean with modern decor, nicely done but slightly cold & hard for my taste but the ceiling is effective. It was unsurprisingly busy on the night but all seemed to be running smoothly and efficiently. An interesting menu with quite a few new choices. The service was very good, a reasonable wait before our order was taken and also between courses. The starters were well above average and you could see that an extra effort had been made in the quality and presentation. The main courses we chose were off the Specialities list all appeared individualy cooked and not derived from a standard curry pot. My chicken and vegetable dish was excellent, hot & tasty, containing a varied selection vegetables. The family confirmed that their main courses were also very good. We had no complaints with any of the accompanying rice or nans and the pillau rices was particularly good. Based on my experience it is certainly better than I was expecting, indded better than most of the competition but to survive it has to be. It reminds me of the short lived Delhi Eatery, that too was excellent but somehow didn't manage to capture the vibe and subsequent trade, it would be a big pity if Azka went the same way.

The taste of the food is indifferent. Naan was less than great. Everything is very oily and greasy…read more All three of us felt really sick after having eaten this food. No recommendation from us.

This is one of my favourite Bangladeshi Restaurants. The staff are always very polite and helpful…read more The food is fantastic in my opinion. I have not tried many other restaurants in this area even though there are many to choose from. What is the point?

One of the nicest indians in selly oak, on the corner of bristol road and tiverton road it is very…read moreclose to selly oak station. The food is wonderful and the chefs specialities are a definite choice. The price is a little higher than the other selly oak indians, but you do pay for quality. Serves Draught Kingfisher which is a great accompaniment to an indian. Sometimes gets quite hot in there though, so its best not to wear too mayn layers!