Now don't get me wrong I love good fish and chips (despite the heartburn) but a city with no ethnic diversity, no exciting new dishes and ingredients which you can also buy on your way home from the pub at 3am, that city doesn't even bear thinking about.
The growing number of new cuisines and trends - bubble tea and frozen yoghurt anyone? - excites and delights me. I love travelling all over the world and sampling authentic local food, so returning from my travels and finding replications of these dishes cooked here in my home city fills me with pure joy and nostalgia.
So bearing all this in mind, here is a collection of my favourite places to eat that serve international food.
1.Japanese - Yama sushi - London Road
For the best and freshest sushi in Sheffield this small eatery cannot be beaten. Do not visit without trying their soft shell crab tempura. Unless you have an allergy to shellfish or something like that then yeah, it's ok you don't have to eat that.
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| Yama Sushi Unagi Maki and California Roll |
2.Turkish - Cafe Des Amis - Chesterfield road
Lovely cafe/ restaurant in Meerbrook. Serves Turkish/ Middle eastern food and amazing breakfasts. It's very good value too. The decor is beautiful as is their chocolate "sinsation" tart - layers of chocolate mousse and chopped mars bar on a chocolate shell crust. Incredible.
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| Cafe Des Amis Chocolate Sinsation Tart |
3. Mexican - Amigos - London road
Amigos have gone from strength to strength. I first saw them at sharrow market about 4 years ago where they had a stall, I begged them to open a shop after trying a quesadilla and they did just that. Their shiny new large restaurant on London road is busy every evening serving spicy fajitas, burritos and lots more.
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| Amigos Quesadilla |
4. Indian - Urban Choola - London road
This is my favourite Indian restaurant in Sheffield, followed closely by East & West and then Dhanistas. Their Chilli paneer wraps are so spicy that you'll be sporting rouge lips that would give Dita von Teese a run for her money. It's owned by the same people as Amigos too, so you know they're doing something right.
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| Urban Choola Chicken Wings |
5. International - Fusion Organic Cafe - Arundel street
I may be biased in naming this as one of my favourite eateries in Sheffield as I've worked here for four years, nevertheless I love everything about this place. From the fact that they are part of freeman college, giving real work experience to young students with learning difficulties inside the cafe, to the lovely little art and jewellery galleries alongside it. They also cater for pretty much every food intolerance and have lovely staff! (haha) If there is a special on, have it and you will not regret it.
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| Strawberry white chocolate cheesecake Fusion Organic Cafe |
6. Italian - The Italian Kitchen - Ecclesall road
Seen as taste has closed down, my next choice for tasty Italian fare would have to be Italian Kitchen. They serve proper stone baked pizza with a home made sauce and a wide variety of toppings. Nonna's is incredible too, great for a treat as it can be a bit pricy.
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| Goats Cheese Veggie Pizza at The Italian Kitchen |
7. North African - Tassili - London road
With authentic Moroccan style rugs covering the walls and food baked and served in tagines, Tassili really does give diners an experience of the taste and atmosphere of being in Marrakesh! Tender squid and delicious and fresh juice are reason to visit alone, add great value and some silky aubergines and you got yourself a deal!
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| It was dark!! Aubergine with Potatoes at Tassili |
If you like barbecued meat and being able to eat as much as you want until your trouser button literally pings off straight into your dining companions eye then Tropeiro is the place for you. If you don't fancy getting your meat sweats on then the vegetarian food is pretty darn good. Plus the unlimited salad bar has Fejouada - that's stewed pork belly and black beans, one hell of a salad!
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| Waiters carve you strips from hunks of grilled meat at your table at Tropeiro |
I actually couldn't think of a proper French restaurant that isn't a chain..I have a lot more exploring of Sheffield to do, if anyone can help me out here by recommending somewhere I'd appreciate that!
For now let me tell you about the rich chocolate ganache enveloped around tart raspberries baked inside a salty crispy pastry shell. Sound good? Get some.
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| Raspberry Torte and Baileys Cheesecake at La Patisserie |
9.Vietnamese - Pho 68 - London road
A trip to pho 68 is worth it for their Vietnamese salad alone. Fine strips of carrot, beansprouts, chilli and peanuts are mixed with some other party in your mouth ingredients AND it's pretty healthy too.
They also have a great lunch time deal where it's just over a fiver for a massive plate of food with fresh fruit and tea. Do not miss out
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| Aubergine hotpot at Pho 68 |
10. Greek - The Greedy Greek - Sharrow Vale Road
I'm amazed that I haven't ever actually reviewed the legendary Greedy Greek on my blog! I've been there so many times I've lost count. No other Greek restaurant in Sheffield even compares with this place. A true Sheffield favourite. The strofilia makes me very happy.
11.Middle Eastern - Fanoush - London Road
There are no tables or chairs here, just a vast display of colours, pictures of exploding wraps containing falafel and vegetables plus posters advertising local music nights. When places specialise in one dish only, you know it's going to be good. Freshly fried falafel to order and about 10 times the salad options of any kebab shop including their own pickled turnip. Make mine a 10 inch falafel and halloumi wrap with tahini and mango pickle thanks!
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| Constructing my wrap at Fanoush |
12.Pakistani - Kushi - Abbeydale Road
A favourite cuisine of mine for sure, what with being the food I grew up eating of course. Lucky me, I know. These guys make food just as good as my mums and if you've ever had authentic Pakistani food at someones house then you know how amazing it can be. I've never had fish masala better than these guys do it and the vermicelli pudding is like a hug. The deal breaker here is that it's literally all you can eat for under £8. Yes you read that right. Amazing.
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| Masala fish, saag, chana, pilau plus some other tastiness at Khushi |
So here it is my list of twelve places to eat some delicious and exciting ethnic food. I know there is more and I'll probably add them at some point later on, for now though, these eateries make me very happy. Where is your favourite??
8 comments:
Thats a great list and there are several on there that I fancy trying. For other suggestions, Ginseng is pretty amazing. Their bibimbaps are divine. Turkuaz is my favourite turkish place here but I now want to try cafe des amis!
Great list and some new ones I haven't tried. If you ever want a dining partener - let me know!
I love The York pub near Broomhill and Little Hanoi on London Road.
Thanks guys Andrew where is ginseng? I don't even know what a bibimbap is but I want to try one now haha.
Katie that is a great idea! I still need to check out little Hanoi :)
This is true in many ways, and I think what it bears out is that you have to do the legwork / research / trial and error testing over a sizeable physical stretch. There are good things out there, and because they are almost wholly the product of immigrant communities in exurban locations, the visitor to Sheffield is bound to be disappointed because what urban centre we have (I would say we don't) is such a dismal place to be hungry. It would be a laudable project to put together some sort of gastro-touristic map, so that even locals can find some excellent food that is all too few and far between.
For French places, I keep meaning to visit Chez Lahlou. The reviews on it are all interesting, whether they're for or against. But, apparently it's a bit like being in France if you ask for veggie food..
There is a fantastic independent French cafe/bistro in Sheffield - Ceres at Hunters Bar. Jean-Paul's dauphinois is to die for!
Possibly a bit late! but.. Ginseng is in west One: http://www.ginsengsheffield.co.uk/
The bibimbaps are called stone pot dishes in the english menu (I think)
thanks for sharing~ =D
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