The Village looks for all the world like it should be on Canal Street. The huge silver letters announcing its name are very pub/club, and even the name, The Village, suggests gay lub. So, imagine my surprise when it turned out not to be a fish out of water, bringing the delights of gay clubbing to Rusholme, but yet another curry house. That's not to say it's not good though. Because it is. Good, I mean. It's good.
I am totally with Alfie on this: the £7.50 deal is unbeatable. Arguably one of the best meal deals I have ever seen. The portions are great and when one main curry on Rusholme usualy costs you £6-£8, you'd be literally mad to turn this offer down! Not the best curry I've ever had, but close to. I went for seekh kebab and the boyf for bhaji, so I can categorically say that both starters are ace. Just make sure you go with someone who likes sharing! The lamb rogan josh was very rich, and had a zing that suggested fresh tomatoes had been used somewhere along the line. The lamb was, unusually for a curry place, very tender and lean. The boyf had a fish curry. Now, I'm sure they're lush, but if there's one thing that grosses me out more than fish, it is fish curry. Blarg. So although I can't comment on the fish curry (BLARG) the boyf gives it a reasonable 7/10. One major thumbs-up; the rice was truly lush. Not sticky, but not dry. It was,as Goldilocks would say, juuuuuust right.
Even if you're not going for the £7.50 deal (because maybe you are a millionaire who wees champagne and has a diamond-encrusted XBox) the mains are all priced within the comfortable Curry Mile brackets. So unless you order three mains each and allll the starters, I'd estimate that you'll not end up paying more than £15 a head, including drinks.
Another good call by Alfie: the staff are bloody lovely, friendly sorts, who will be by your side in an instant, should you need anything.
All in all, a lovely place, which also has a shisha lounge. I haven't tried that yet, but you can bet your bottom dollar I'll be back to see if it measures up to the high standards Village has set for itself...
Unusually for a curry house, The Village offers a fairly good range of desserts. I was farrr too full from my rogan extravaganza, but I did sneak a bite of the boyf's carrot cake (v. reasonable at £2.50 for a generous slice) and can report that it was pretty scrummy. read more