Offering 'Traditional Yemeni Cuisine', Hadramout is another Arab café-restaurant worthy of note to the vegetarian, even if you do have to pick your way through the menu a bit. Décor is nice in an informal way - etched patterns in the glass, woven beech-ply backs to the chairs, Arab news showing on the TV, Arab-only family dining area through the curtain.
What looks like an older version of the menu is available to view online. Have a look at that, but you really need to go in a talk to the server as it is not a question of a big mezze selection you can see in the display fridge here. From the menu - and I have standardised the spellings for ease of Wikipediaing - vegetarian options include fasolada, ful medames, hummus, mutabal, shafout (a pancake?) and mixed vegetable stews served with a couple of types of rice or naan bread.
(OT: Checkout this page for a fascinating story of ful medames being cooked in the embers of fuel used to heat the baths in Cairo! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ful_medames Maybe that sort of fuel economy will gain in popularity as we go beyond peak oil.)
I ordered far too much food, but it still only came to £6.70, see photos for the whole spread and individual dishes. Hummus came attractively spread across a stainless steel plate, accompanied by one of the best naan breads I have tasted - somehow crisp yet melting in the mouth, execution being everything with these Arab breads. I'm unsure of the name of the spicy mixed vegetable stew which came in a traditional Yemeni clay pot, accompanied by an outstanding baked rice dish. My server offered to switch the rice dish for something plainer, but I am glad I stuck with what I had - yellow with saffron and turmeric, plus some whole cloves for good measure, mmm! The veg dish was OK, lots of spices but not at all chili hot, and cleaner-tasting than most Indo-pak curries. But not hugely exciting either, with soft vegetables outnumbered a bit by potato, which didn't fit well with the amount of carbohydrates I already had on the table! Still, my bad, and as my understanding is that the special rice and veg would have come to £4, that last comment has to be taken in context of the price! Also worthy of special mention were the two fresh sauces which I was handed - think salsa and a yoghurt sauce but both super-fresh and done Yemeni-style with regional herbs. That last point is worth repeating - don't miss out on the sauces, folks!
I haven't yet tried Hadramout's desserts, made from Fatat (special Yemeni breadcrumbs) mixed with various sweet ingredients. For an alternative dessert option, Pastry House is at the end of Walmer Street East.
My server was very hospitable and good humoured - Arab hospitality at its best can be hard to beat and part of the attraction of these places!
Finally, Hadramout may well be the *only* Yemeni restaurant in Manchester. As a non-Arab, I'm impressed by some OK and some outstanding and unique food they are offering in a pleasant environment - Hadramout has my custom! read more