Number 210 Halifax Road, Birchencliffe, has been a restaurant as far back as I can remember – and that’s nearly half a century.
I’m sure one of our more mature, yet eagle-eyed, readers will contact me to say that it’s much longer than that.
As a child I remember posh friends going to the Yew Tree restaurant for Sunday lunch in the late 1960s.
Imagine such a thing, how decadent it seemed!
Nowadays, many people eat out several times a month. Roast beef and Yorkshire pud or fish and chips are still favourites of an older clientele, but contemporary diners are often looking for something a little spicier to set the taste buds alight – hence the huge rise in South Asian restaurants in Huddersfield (40 Indian eateries at the last count, according to website TripAdvisor).
After the Yew Tree, the premises were occupied by the popular Tamanna’s, run by Nurul Islam – better known as Junior. That was until recently.
This summer the interior was revamped and the restaurant reopened as Grameen Lounge.
The new proprietor is the nephew of Junior, supported by a team of new waiting staff.
Proof that the link has not been entirely broken came with the receipt, which arrived with a Tamanna’s heading.
Grameen Lounge is also the sister restaurant of Grange Moor’s Grameen Spice. (Incidentally ‘grameen’ means ‘of the village’ in Bengali.)
Tamanna’s developed a reputation for freshly spiced dishes, several of which were not your normal run-of-the-mill curries, and indeed Grameen Lounge has no fewer that 18 specialities, several of which were unfamiliar – so we decided to run some through their paces.
The revamped interior is contemporary with clean lines. High backed faux leather chairs nestle on a rich chocolate carpet.
White linen and quality cutlery are the order of the day, and all dishes were well presented on modern, right-angled crockery.
Three or four staff were in attendance in the small interior, service was prompt and friendly and there was no wait for our two pints of draft Cobra, which gave us time to peruse the extensive menu.
Seafood is often overlooked in Indian restaurants, so we remedied this by ordering the mixed fish starter.
It was a good choice and our reward was a trio of sizzling maritime delights, all well presented and beautifully prepared, and each delicately coated with different spices.
The parcels of succulent and lightly spiced cod in a breadcrumb batter were particularly mouthwatering. However, the telapia in a light coriander paste and tiger prawns in Lahori pesto went down a treat as well.
Sizzling onions were the perfect accompaniment to the dish, which also came with a mini side salad and a delicious sweet mint dressing.
For mains we ordered the lamb version of kaleem lazeez and again enjoyed the tender chunks of quality meat, with the chef’s signature delicate touch in the kitchen coming to the fore.
Not being a big fan of cinnamon, I had my reservations about this dish after reading the menu: “a nice balance of Greek yoghurt, cinnamon sticks and zingy coriander” with roasted peppers and stir fry onions.
Trading Standards would have no issue with this description, the kaleem lazeez was indeed a fine fusion of flavours resulting in a rich sauce without one ingredient overpowering the others.
Another couple of Cobras arrived with the excellent chicken tikka – large, tender pieces of chicken breast just cooked through and nothing more, accompanied by a cucumber raita.
For good measure we ordered an entirely unnecessary side dish of tarka dahl.
Unlike in many restaurants where this has the consistency of a thick soup, the lentils here remained intact. I’m not sure if I liked them as much as the viscous version, but they were interesting all the same.
VERDICT: A promising start, definitely worth a visit.
210-212 Halifax Road, Birchencliffe,
Huddersfield, HD3 3QW
Tel: 01422 374616
Website: Not yet
Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday 5.30pm to 11pm, Friday and Saturday 5.30pm to 11.30pm
Children: Welcome
Disabled access: Phone for details
Phone for details: 01422 374616
The bill: £44.65 with several beers
Would you go back? Yes
