The first time Mr L&M took me to Zaoq I was the only non-Pakistani in the group, so I let them do the ordering and being true to their boy nature what arrived was a fat-laden feast: cheese naan (two I might add just to be sure we wouldn’t starve while we waited for the mains); a tandoori fish dish I really wanted to try; mountains more roti and naan; and some rich heavy chicken curries that weren’t particularly visually or palate appealing. As you can tell I wasn’t sold on Zaoq.
However, my second visit allowed us to pick dishes that felt much more authentic (and tastier too). Now I’m a convert. In our humble opinion, Zaoq is a MINT.
We visited on a Saturday at the new restaurant (is it now the only one?) in Ezdan Mall. It was very busy, but the service was great, and we didn’t have to wait too long for our food to arrive.
What we ate
Garden salad
There’s not a lot to say about this, but I do love that in this part of the world all salads are served with some fresh lemon for you to squeeze over – take note blighty.
Tandoori Barrah (Roasted Mutton)
Delicately flavoured and perfectly roasted this mutton dish came on the bone, and could be shredded and enjoyed with our salad and roti. I think I was a bigger fan of this dish than Mr. L&M as he wanted something that packed a little more punch. Thankfully we had lots of excess sauce from the Tandoori Kebab Massalah to moisten the meat.
Tandoori Kebab Masalah
Tender pieces of chicken kebab in a tasty, spicy massalah sauce that was so moreish we ordered extra roti to mop up our plates. We’ve been back since and ordered it again, so that should tell you it’s definitely worth a try. Warning: there does seem to be a little excess of oil, so it you’re looking for a ‘clean’ healthy dish, this isn’t for you.
We also recommend: On our next visit we tried the Sonehri Champ – the lamb ribs flavoured with Lahore spices. These are served a little pink (which we’re big fans of), so the meat was tender and juicy, while the flavor of the spices had us licking our fingers and wondering whether we should order a second portion (we should have).
The Damage : 141QR with water and tandoori roti
L&M rating: 4/5
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