I'll start by saying I never ever ever write reviews - but WOW....just wow. Chef Noori and the delightful staff of The Mantu gave me the most unforgettable and delicious culinary experience I've had in Richmond. Where do I start?! As soon as you walk in, the ambiance is inviting, yet mysterious. It is complimented by the wonderful elevatory 90s club/pop music that I adore so much. The decor around the restaurant is stunning, from the handmade wood carving above the community table to the different ceramics lit on the shelving by the bar. The chef's friend, Michael, was there helping for grand opening night and boy - he was a hoot! He tended to us multiple times during the night, asking about our food or just to crack a joke. The food was just incredible...with every bite, you got a different explosion of flavor and each time it was a pleasant surprise that you didn't see coming. My boyfriend and I ordered the Beef Mantu (YUM) for the appetizer, the Mantu for drinks (if you like pomegranate, that's basically their whole drink menu), and the pan-friend Eggplant and Beef Chapli Kebab over Kabuli Pallow rice. I almost never clean my plate when I go out to eat but you can bet that I did this time! I've had Afghan cuisine only once before in D.C., so I was too excited when this place opened because the flavors of the Afghan cuisine are so beautiful, so full of life, and Chef Noori clearly brought that to the table. We were even brought to the back of the kitchen after our meal to congratulate the Chef himself - I was a little starstruck! So, PLEASE come eat here and support this wonderful restaurant and story of Chef Noori - you will NOT be disappointed!!! read more

See all

Nice experience and seemed very authentic. I have no idea what I ate, the entrees were tastier than appetizers even though appetizers sounded more exciting. The meats with the entrees were so good. I NEVER say get the chicken, but it was so good, get the chicken. Everyone was really nice even though there was a language barrier. Really nice people. read more

I had never had Afghan food before coming here but I'm now a fan. The vegetable mantu dumplings are so good. You get three in an order which honestly is enough to fill me up. I would also recommend the butternut squash dish. Multiple people have told me the eggplant dish is wonderful so I will be trying that next. This is a great dining options for vegetarians as you can see but they also have many meat/seafood options. From those I would recommend the chef's special shrimp. This spot shares a parking lot with Ellwood Thompson's and it's always nice to not have to do the parallel parking hunt on Cary Street so if you're in that part of town I can't recommend this place enough. read more

The Mantu - Chicken Koobideh - Afghan Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

See all

This food was so good! My husband and I went for the first time for dinner to celebrate our anniversary and we were impressed. We were excited to see a veggie friendly menu, very flavorful! The staff were all super friendly and offered suggestions since it was our first time. Perfect place for something different for a date night! read more

No idea how this place has 4.5/5 stars. I went last night with a party of 6 and as empathetic as I am to their circumstance "post-COVID," I have a hard time justifying the pricing on their menu. Unless it's a 5 star Michelin chef, charging upwards of $25 for okay menu items is bold. I ended getting the chicken tikka kebab ($22) which barely had any flavor, and I also ordered a makers pomegranate which tasted like makers on the rocks ($9). Overall, unless they're writing reviews themselves, this place will be a big let down. read more

After reading all of the intriguing articles I couldn't wait to invite a colleague I hadn't seen in awhile out to lunch. We were both disappointed because of the bland flavor and overuse of ketchup to spice up the dish. Yes you read that correctly ketchup. Ketchup? After both the vegetarian appetizer and dumpling entree came plated with ketchup we thought it was a mistake. I looked at the menu and did not see that common tail gate condiment listed on the menu so we were not pleased with the misrepresentation. The restaurant is beautifully decorated with full bar and centrally located in a Carytown shopping center with plenty of parking. Maybe they should add french fries to soak up that ketchup. read more

See all

Former site of Burger Bach, beside Elwood Thompsons-I went for lunch on a Weekday with a dear friend. The restaurant was nearly empty. We sat outside because it was an unseasonably warm day for December. The host placed a sharp white cloth on our table and brought water. We are a vegetarian and non-enlightened and ordered a dal soup, beef and vegetable mantu and followed with a pudding. The service was polite, a little slow but not concerning. We got one smudged water glass but that was promptly corrected. It looks like there may be music at night; there was a raised carpeted area with a guitar in the dining room. But the food. That food. The food was extraordinary. Really really good. Familiar and exotic, we ate everything and loved all of it. The mantu was bright, complex and totally enjoyable. The soup was fresh with great layers of flavors. The pudding was perfect. There was an interesting drink menu and several other dishes we were interested in trying. We agreed we would be back. Finally all this was affordable with a tab of $30 for the both of us. If you are reading this review and considering going-go. Go today. You're welcome. read more

The restaurant is housed in the firmer Burger Bach space and retained their aesthetic. They have outdoor dining which is nice, particularly in the time of COVID. The place wasn't busy- we visited on a Tuesday evening- so there was only one person working the entire front of the house. This made things a little slow but it seems all restaurants have slowed in the face of the hospitality labor shortage. The food was good but not exceptional. The grilled meats were a little dry and bland. The best dish we tried were the dumplings. Those were quite good. read more

From service, ambiance, and food: all great! I enjoyed every single bite that I had. Lamb tastes wonderful. Beef taste great. The rice! Ahhh.. just let me have a free refill on that. read more

Wow! We had a wonderful meal and evening!! It started with a Negesh kabob (so) that was an amazing hard boiled egg wrapped and cooked... with a yogurt dressing. Followed by... a beef "mantis" and lamb shank! Delicious!! We will be back very soon! read more

The Mantu - Beef Mantu! Yum. - Afghan Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

See all

Highly recommend The Mantu, which is in Carytown across from Ellwoods Market. We saw this chef from Richmond on "Beat Bobby Flay" and we've had it on our to-do list ever since! Well today was the day! We had a kid-free afternoon and decided to try something new! Absolutely delicious!! So flavorful!! Great service too! read more

Food is exceptional authentic Afghan dishes. Owner/Chef is usually in-house during the evening service. Pleasant small dining room. Has outdoor seating. read more

A strong 3.75 with potential. My first experience dining in this new addition to the area. It was also my first taste of Afghan cuisine and I very much enjoyed it. It was the first time I'd been back inside of this space since it was formerly Burger Bach. I always like the location and layout as it's at the headwaters of Carytown. Ambiance was comfortable, great natural light, and service was friendly and attentive. My table began with cocktails (Sazerac all around) and what turned out to be my favorite dish of the night, Beef Mantu. Wow, those where very good! If there was one bone to pick I'd wished that our server, who was very kind and attentive, knew more detail and was able to be more descriptive of the dishes. Not a huge deal but one that would up the par a bit. I found the spices and flavor combinations to be quite refreshing, in a new frontier sense of the meaning. Simple yet complex in depth. I'll certainly be back. read more

See all

One of the worst restaurant experiences we've ever had! The food was gross, sloppy, quality of ingredients was so poor, I'm sure it was rotten and/or handled with no hygiene or food safety, our stomachs were twisted later that night and the next day. The chicken was rubbery, the beef kabobs hard and full of filler. The dumplings that they are supposedly famous for were nasty. The "manager", older white lady with tattoos was so fake, un knowledgeable, made stuff up and lied. She kept mentioning she had new kitchen staff and they didn't speak English....that should have been our RED FLAG RUN AWSY NOW MOMENT!!! She tried to tell us the fruit juice was freshly squeezed to order, including pomegranate, it came out not tasting at all as described and was obviously not freshly squeezed anything, it was like a concentrate or powder mix. Unfortunately we were there to celebrate a family birthday with out of state members and didn't want to ruin the night with complaints but what a mistake that was, we regretted it the moment we left and all started to talk about how horrible the food and service was. Wish there was a zero rating or even negative, people need to stay away from this place. Anyone rating this place as anything more then horrible is either used to eating garbage and didn't mind paying too much for it, don't have functioning taste buds or have stomachs that have been trained to consume bacteria and rot. read more

I got takeout from Mantu for the first time since the pandemic and it is most definitely the best takeout I've had in Richmond during Covid. The food held up amazingly well, even though Mantu is a fine dining restaurant that is so enjoyable in person. They really seem to have taken care to plate dishes, even during this crazy time. And I especially liked that they don't use styrofoam or any excessive packaging. The portions are generous. But the most important thing is, their food was amazing. It is like a warm hug, and I can't imagine a better meal during these trying times. The lentils in my beef dumplings are out of this world. Why am I raving about lentils? I don't know, but somehow Mantu made them taste decadent, comforting, complex and rich. The beef dumplings (mantu) were just as delicious as ever, the rice sides so flavorful. Something in my order came with a side of a wonderfully tart yogurt sauce and then a green hot sauce which was a very amazing flavor and I've been using it on eggs for breakfast ever since. I'd highly recommend the chicken koobideh and the aush soup. I want to visit Mantu so badly again, but in the meantime I will make sure to order frequently as this is the perfect season for this comforting food. read more

The Mantu is the most underrated restaurants in Richmond. The food is unique and exciting. And, maybe most importantly, the staff is so kind and patient. What a treat! (Do yourself a favor and order one of the soups). read more

I wanted to like this place so much, but it was not a pleasant experience. We had a reservation for four at 7 on a Friday night and were seated promptly. We were given a pitcher of water and three glasses (even though there were four of us), then waited for twenty minutes until our server came to take our order. It wasn't exceptionally busy, but I did notice that there were only two or three servers. After taking our food and drink order, it took another twenty minutes for our server to come back to the table and ask what our drink order was again. Ten minutes later the drinks arrived, which were not exactly what was ordered but close enough I suppose. We eventually received our food about an hour and ten minutes after being seated. If the food was amazing I could excuse the poor service, but wow what a let down. I expected spices, but was surprised to taste one of the blandest dishes I could ever imagine. I didn't detect any seasoning whatsoever, no exotic Afghan spices, not even salt. I was incredibly let down because this place gets great reviews and the dishes looked appetizing, but there was no flavor in any of our four entrees, which is made even more painful by the inflated prices. $20 or $30 for an entree is fine, but the food better at least taste good. Fifteen or so minutes after finishing, we asked for the check and requested it be split by what each couple ordered, but when the check was eventually dropped off it was all together. All good, that's what Venmo is for I guess. We waited another fifteen minutes for our server to pick up the check to no avail. At this point, the restaurant was nearly empty with maybe three tables seated that I could see. After waiting for God knows how long, I brought my payment to the bar. After all was finished, we had spent two hours in the restaurant. I won't be back and can't recommend anyone else to go either. read more

My family and I had dinner at The Mantu last night to celebrate my birthday and it was fantastic! The food was amazing! My husband said it was the best lamb he ever had. Our 5 month old grandson seemed to enjoy nibbling on the bread . The staff was friendly and it was a pleasure meeting the Chef. I look forward to my next dining experience. read more

My husband and I enjoyed our dinner here. Upon entering we both commented on the nice fragrance and also noticed the pleasant artwork covering the walls. To start my husband had one of the drink specials, the Makers and Pomegranate spritzer, and I had a Manhattan. Each was tasty with an ample pour. We were very impressed with the presentation and delicious taste of the vegetarian mantu and seemyan appetizers we ordered (see photos). For dinner we had the chicken tikka kebab and murch e dolma (stuffed pepper) dishes. Although both were good they paled in comparison to the appetizers. The chicken tikka kebab (see photo) and vegetables were tender but for optimal flavor I suggest letting them set and continue to cook further on the sizzling platter (think fajita) before eating. For dessert we ordered the baklava (see photo) which was pretty but unfortunately neither of us enjoyed it. However, the custard was creamy and tasty. The service was excellent. Overall we had a very positive experience and will likely return. read more

See all

This is a very unique restaurant since it's a modern take on Afghani food. The food was flavorful & also visually stunning. As a vegetarian, I can say first hand that they have excellent vegetarian, vegan (& gluten free options)!! One tip - there are certain items that are listed online but not on their paper menu. We asked for them & they were available. I'm not sure if that is intentional on their part. read more

My girlfriend and I had never had Afghani food. So on this rainy day in April, we decided to cozy up in this cute little restaurant for the afternoon. Cheryl was our server, and she was extremely knowledgeable, courteous, kind, and patient! We took her advice and ordered hot tea while we were waiting, and it knocked the socks off even the most boutique teas I have ever had! All it had in it was saffron, mint, lemon, and some other spices. We ordered the garlic tandoori naan and it was served with a creamy maybe yogurt sauce with fresh herbs in it? The Afghan salad was fresh and tasted like it had just been gathered from the garden. The creamy sauce and a spicy jalapeño cilantro sauce were served with it and I could just eat it by the gallon if I had it right here in front of me now! We ordered the dumplings. My friend got the beef and I got the vegetarian. You can tell the pasta was homemade and hand cut and had a subtle sweet flavor, but just was soft and melted in your mouth. I preferred the vegetarian dumpling over the beef. All in all, it was a 5+ star afternoon and I can't wait to go back. If I'm in the area anytime soon, I'm definitely getting takeout! read more

Journeyed to The Mantu for lunch today. It was such a culinary delight. The Vegetarian Mantu was my choice and it was such a flavorful experience. My guest and I also enjoyed the potato skins (no do not expect stuffed bacon and sour cream--a much more creative approach, the rice with cranberries, naan with dipping sauce and shared a custard dessert. I asked for a non-alcoholic version of the most traditional drink and received a delight juice concoction that was begging for the missing rum that my work schedule wouldn't accommodate mid-day. Met the Chef and the server--who's been there since day one--was outstanding. Will look forward to returning on my next visit to Richmond. Highly recommend. read more

Went to this restaurant with high expectations and was excited to support local owners only to be less than moderately impressed. The food was highly underseasoned; the Afghan salad listed the ingredients as diced tomatoes, onions, cucumbers & chopped cilantro with a fresh citrus dressing. When it arrived it was mostly raw red onions with a highly bitter taste. I love raw salads but I couldn't finish this due to the amount of onion; it lacked seasoning and the dressing was barely noticeable. The kachaloo e dashi would have been excellent if it had been seasoned with salt. My guy and I ended having to ask for salt tableside in order to make the dishes more palatable. We noticed the chef/owner arrived after our meals had been prepared. Perhaps not having the supervision of the staff by the owner may have contributed to a lack of seasoning and salt. I was excited to try a new cuisine but was underwhelmed by the food served. Service was slow and our waitress had laryngitis which made hearing her nearly impossible with appropriate social distancing. We don't get to Richmond often but doubt we would make the effort to eat here again. Sorry Chef Hamidullah Noori. read more

The Mantu - Dining area and bar - Afghan Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

The food was excellent. We had the vegetarian and beef dumplings. Great flavor and the texture was so light, and so soft that we agreed we would be back. Baklava and saffron tea were a perfect end to our meal. Service was crisp and efficient. Looking forward to trying the lamb soup next time... read more

Outstanding food, but TINY portions. I am excited that Richmond has it's first Afghan restaurant, and judging on quality alone it is amazing. Clearly the chef here has the "touch." However the portion sizes really need augmenting. For example the mantu we got for $14 came with four of them, each about the size of a standard ravioli. That was not a typo and I am not exaggerating. I am not saying I need typical chain restaurant sized portions, just enough so that two people spending $80 don't leave hungry. Perhaps doubling that 4 mantu to 8 for $14 would be appropriate, and would -still- maintain 'boutique' restaurant small portions. read more

Wow, I'm so happy this place opened and wish chef Noori every success! I came w my parents ; we are middle eastern for some context here. The food was authentic and it was delightful to see the similarities and variations within what I like to call cuisines of the Silk Road. The meat Mantu is delightful, very light and flavorful while the veggie is rather spicy. It's nice to find fine dining in richmond which isn't Western European or American in origin. Rack of lamb was super tender and delicious; the sumac reminded me of my grandpa's kebabs. Baklava is great, very cinnamony. read more

We were excited to try The Mantu. I heard the NPR interview and was thrilled to have a new option in the neighborhood. The experience was bad from the beginning. We arrived just after 8pm. It was quiet. We asked to sit outside, since it was a lovely night. The person who greeted us declined that request because there was only a table for four. That would have been fine, had they not seated us inside at a table for four. We ordered drinks and two shared plates at the same time. I specifically requested they leave off any cilantro. We even ordered to avoid it. I have the dreaded soap gene. You know it's a bad sign when your food comes before your cocktails. Either your food isn't fresh, or you have the slowest bartenders on the planet. It wasn't the bartenders. First, the dishes had cilantro. We can brush that off. The problem was, the food was cold. We didn't order salads. We ordered hot food. What we recieved was tepid at best. The vegan mantu kidney bean sauce tastes like unrinsed kidney beans. On top of being tepid, the dishes lacked flavor. We had also ordered a butternut squash side dish. It too was not warm and tasted like margarine. To make things worse, our server was painful. She was the kind of server who made you feel awkward and unwelcome. She wasn't knowledgeable about the menu, and she couldn't get us out of there fast enough. Would I be back? Probably not. I wish the owner the very best and admire his efforts, but this was a wild disappointment. read more

Coming back and getting this for my meal... We were one of two parties on a Thursday night, so hope they make it. read more

The Mantu - Beef Mantu - Afghan Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

Amazing! This place is so great! The Mantua, for which they're named, is delectable! I think we've tried everything on the menu and everything is incredible. Seriously, give Afghan cuisine a try, you will not be disappointed. read more

Went here last night for a night out with some girlfriends and were greeted by a friendly host who seated us right away. The decor and ambiance is beautiful and tastefully done. Our server was extremely attentive and our orders came out very quickly! We ordered a variety of foods to share including the Beef Mantu, Beef Chapli Kabab, Chicken Tikka Kebab, Banjan Borani (Eggplant) and Kabuli Pulao Rice. Each item had impeccable flavor and was plated so beautifully! This was hands down the best Afghani food i've ever had and the whole table agreed! The chef even came out to greet us and ask us about our food which was so nice of him! An absolutely wonderful addition to carytown and Richmond in general. Can't wait to return and try some other items! read more

My wife and I were excited to try this new international restaurant. We really enjoy middle eastern food and there were a lot of similarities to what is offered there. The service was friendly and our server seemed knowledgable about the menu options and was able to offer some suggestions. The food tasted great and presentation was excellent. I think our only concern was the prices and this was why I had a hard time giving more then 3 stars. Although the food was good we weren't sure if the quantity or quality was on par with what we paid. The cheapest entree option was $24 and there wasn't a lot of food. I would be willing to come back again but with so many other options for great food in RVA at a cheaper price I think they will need to adjust the entree prices or increase the serving sizes a bit. read more

My first experience with Afghan dishes and not my last. The atmosphere was cozy and upscale but comfortable enough to dress in casual attire. Chef Noori came by to greet and check on us. read more

The Mantu - Afghan Near Me - Richmond, Virginia

See all

The food here is very good! Everything is well seasoned and flavorful. I wouldn't classify it as amazing, but, very good. They didn't do much with the atmosphere of the place from Burger Bach (but they did do some things like replacing booths with tables) but it feels and looks classier. Strolling in at 7 PM on a Friday night, my wife and I got a seat right away. Not a good sign for a hot, new restaurant in Richmond, especially in Carytown. The seating inside was numerous but a little too compact - the tables are very tight. They probably could do well with removing a few. We also noticed, as a couple in their mid 30's, that we were also the youngest people here. Not a complaint, but an observation, and likely due to the menu prices. We ordered the beef mantu and the chicken chapli kebab, and split both. While we were waiting, we were given bread (which really should have been warm, but was room temperature) and water (which, even with the small glasses, only got refilled once). The cocktail menu looked nice but we passed on it. Our waiter apologized to us several times about the wait, making us feel uneasy instead of what was, otherwise, fine. Slow, definitely, but fine. The food, while tasty, was not $40 worth of food. $30? Maybe. My wife got full but I could have eaten more. The beef mantu was great, but 3 dumplings just isn't $16 worth of food. The legumes and sauce (or was it lentils? peas? the menu doesn't even mention it) it was sitting on was cold, but that didn't seem intended - it seemed like it had been sitting out. It was also more of an appetizer or small plate. The chicken chapli ($20) was, more or less, a chicken burger served nicely and with rice and potato strips - while really flavorful, I feel confident I could repeat it at home. The rice (we got the one with carrots and raisins) was incredibly good though - I've never had carrots that tasty in my life. The lamb on other tables looked amazing, but my wife doesn't like lamb, so maybe next time on that one. While we were eating, the table next to us had their appetizers come out about 2 minutes before their entrees. They were very upset. It didn't seem like this was the first time this had happened either. All in all, I just can't tell if they're trying to be fine dining or upscale casual. Half of their menu items seem like fancied-up street food, while the other half seems like they're trying to compete with the numerous, upscale farm-to-table establishments. They also need to get their cook staff and wait staff on the same page (and, you know, refill water). I'll happily give them another shot and the benefit of the doubt since they recently opened, but they need to iron out the kinks and establish their identity. They just seem a little confused about what they're trying to be. And the prices need to adjust or it's not going to get a lot of repeat business. read more

This place reminds of pakhtun food from Pakistan. Their chapali kebabs and kabuli palao are just amazing and took me to my childhood when we used to get chapali kebabs in Peshawar. read more

This place has only been officially open for about 1.5 months but it feels like they have established a perfect rhythm already. The service was outstanding, beginning with the wonderful and friendly hostess, continuing with the attentive and helpful server, and rounding out with the amazing head chef. We shared the beef mantu, beef chapli, and banjan borani between three adults. After these three dishes and the complimentary bread (with dill sauce?), our appetites we were satisfied but not engorged. We then tried the rasmalai for dessert on the server's suggestion and were not disappointed! And just when we thought the experience could not get any better, the chef sent out a complimentary tray of four servings of saffron custard, which was the perfect conclusion to our beautiful experience. I cannot wait to go back to the The Mantu for dinner again! read more

See all

The food was delicious, the atmosphere was lovely, and the service was great. We had the vegetarian and vegan Mantu and a variety of other dishes. The dining room gets a little smoky as the night goes on but I highly recommend this place to anyone b read more

Really enjoyed this place. As an afghan from San Diego, I was looking for food that reminded me of home and this delivered. I got the banjan and shurwa and they tasted just as good as my mom and family make. I really recommend this place! And if you want to have the true Afghan experience, all 50+ year old afghan men love lamb chopan kabob and the chef makes it perfectly. read more

See all

I want to write a good review of this place. I've wanted to try their food almost since they opened. This week, I finally got to go there. The restaurant was less than half full- maybe 1/2 the tables were occupied but the bar was emptied. We were greeted, seated and given menus. A couple leaving as we arrived raved to us about their meal. We studied the menus and made our decision. Then we waited. There was just one front of house person - serving the tables, answering the phone, filling takeout orders. We get that, so we waited. We didn't throw in the towel until after a patron arrived, sat at the counter, was given a drink and had his order taken. In the time we waited, we noted three other tables still had menus, one table received their food, and another had their water refilled. We never even got water. As we left, after 15-20 minutes, I approached the waitstaff behind the bar to explain why we were leaving. He said " I forgot about you" Small place, we were by the door. Hard to miss us in a half empty place. If EVER in our time there he had acknowledged by wave or nod that he knew we were waiting, I'd have given it more time. And I understand that the takeout and delivery orders need to be dealt with. But taking care of that last customer to arrive before even bringing us water? That was the last straw. read more

Terrible service. Had to ask 5 times for our check and waited 1/2 hr for it. Food just ok but brought wrong order. read more

Had my birthday dinner here and I loved it! They have a ton of vegan options. The entrees were fairly small but they were beautifully presented, delicious, and surprisingly filling. Great ambience inside and our server was SO sweet. The chef even came out and spoke to everyone individually that was dining on the Thursday night that we went. Amazing experience! read more

See all