IT has been a year of exotic additions to our dining scene with spectacular interiors unveiled (Sakana, Iberica, Tattu) and a strengthened Indian presence – mega street food destination Scene opening in Spinningfields, Tiffin Room and Aaamchi Mumbai attracting spice lovers to Cheadle and Rusholme’s Mughli making it on to the shortlist for the 2015 Manchester Food and Drink Awards while launching an innovatve pop-up in Alderley Edge, the Railway Cafe. Plus Liverpool barrister Nisha Katona's take on street food, Mowgli is reported to be on its way to the Corn Exchange.
Arriving in Peter Street around the same time will be Asha’s. While Aaamchi Mumbai is a Bollywood-themed chain waiting to happen, Asha's has already gone two better – it’s inspired by a Bollywood singing legend, Asha Bhosle, and is the latest in a string of glamorous Indian eateries across the globe run by the ARIL Group.
Asha, now 81, will grace the September opening of her eponymous Manchester restaurant, which promises ‘a delicious array of Modern Indian Cuisine paired with an exciting, modern cocktail menu and carefully selected wine list’. Many of the dishes originating from her own recipes.
The much-delayed £2m project is housed across two floors in the elegant surroundings of 47 Peter St, facing the Theatre Royale. The upper ground floor is the 100-cover restaurant and the lower ground floor will host the cocktail bar for 70 and a private dining space (CGI below).
Herself a noted cook, Asha opened her first restaurant at Wafi City, Dubai in 2002, and the brand is now dotted all over the Middle East. A Birmingham outpost has featured in the Michelin Guide since 2009.
Cocktail consultants for the Manchester venue include Marian Blake from the Nightjar in London (top three cocktail bars in the world) and our own Jamie Jones, reigning ‘World’s Best Gin Bartender’.
Muso footnote: Asha was the muse for the band Cornershop, which paid tribute to her with Brimful of Asha, a 1997 international hit, later remixed by Fatboy Slim. In her own right she is the most recorded artist in music history, with over 11,000 songs in over 20 Indian languages, and in over 1,000 Bollywood movies.