Birmingham Halal restaurant food tour 2022 via Ladypool Road

With the second largest Muslim population after London, Birmingham is undoubtedly one of the UK’s hotspots for Halal food.

It is a must-visit destination for any self-proclaimed Halal foodie, particularly with the famous stretch of Ladypool Road chock-a-block full of nothing save Halal restaurants (many of them HMC).

Sponsored by Mr Wong’s Wok & Box, an incredible new HMC-certified brand that brings authentic Chinese to east London, FtLion headed down to cover some of the city’s leading eateries.

Our tour began sweetly with a visit to “the nation’s favourite dessert brand”, Little Dessert Shop, who practically rule the roost in Birmingham.

With stores in Bull Ring & Grand Central, Hodge Hill, Longbridge, Solihull, Tamworth, and West Bromwich, we hit their newest site at the time on King’s Heath’s High Street.

And they had quite the line-up too with over 15 categories of desserts ranging from American Waffles, Doughlicous Cookie Dough, those popular Tres Leches, and more.

What sets them apart from other fully Halal dessert brands is their innovative bakery that’s responsible for handcrafting all of their signature cheesecakes, cakes, brownies, patisseries, etc.

Just across the road from them, however, is the multi-award winning premium fast food brand Rooster Shack on the High Street.

What separates them from Pepe’s, Dixy Chicken, or even Nando’s, is that, having won winning the Good Food awards three years in succession (2020-22), they are the recipient of the coveted Good Food ‘Gold Seal’.

The secret behind this family-led business is the closely-guarded recipe passed down to them by the original founder, Asa Mamud, with half-dozen truly unique-tasting inhouse piri piri marinades.

If there’s one place that encompasses the confidence of Birmingham’s burdgeoning Halal food scene, it’s Alam Restaurant on the famous Coventry Road in Small Heath.

Having taken over an historic former brewery, this magnificent 250-cover venue offers practically everything under one roof, with a multi-cuisine menu brought to you by a multi-award winning Pakistani chef.

There really isn’t anything like Alam in Birmingham, striking as it does the perfect balance between aesthetics and quality of food.

Located in the city’s largest shopping destination, Bullring & Grand Central, there’s a good reason behind Burger & Sauce‘s recent announcement of opening another four sites in quick succession. This burger brand is going places!

Drawing diners in like a bull to a matador’s red cape, this extremely popular destination spot offers a variety of made-to-order burgers in Alum Rock, Castle Vale, and King’s Heath.

Before moving on to Ladypool Road, there’s one place in Birmingham that’s unlike any other: Tarragon Bistro in Hall Green’s Stratford Road.

What separates this from the crowded market is the vision of chef and owner, Sadek Ahmed, who offers a near-fully Halal fine-dining experience (BYO policy is allowed), with a fantastically conceived menu.

You simply will not find dishes like this anywhere else in the city or, dare we say, surrounding locales, with offerings like the Braised Spanish Octopus, Beef Bourguignon, 9-ounces of 9+ Wagyu Steak, and triple-cooked chips.

The famous Halal stretch of Ladypool Road

Starting off on one side of the happening-place of Ladypool Road is the long-established and reliable Fargo – a HMC-certified establishment that’s all about heart and soul.

With quality steaks, including the best-selling New York Strip, as well as a selection of boisterous burgers, this restaurant has been keeping things fresh and consistent for over a decade now.

From their delicious Nagatron Steak Kebabish to their Cheeseburger Spring Rolls (yup, you heard that right), they offer a range of interesting items you won’t find elsewhere.

Chickaros in our estimation have a formula for success. Not only do they have the aim of elevating fast food, but we reckon they have too.

Their items were full of flavour with nothing left back; and the attention to detail regarding their interior caught us by surprise too given the unassuming shop front.

When these guys go loaded, they really do load up, with the popular Hot Shot Chicken Pramesan below just one example, or their 28 day matured El Dorado Steak Sirloin which is cooked in the chef’s “special sauce”.

They take things like the humble doner and pull out dishes like the Kebabish Mania, which comes with chicken goujons. If you want different, then Chickaros deliver quite the experience.

If Halal McDonald’s and Burger King is your thing, however, then there’s only one place on this stretch that’s worth the visit – Slamburger.

The question with them shouldn’t be ‘why not Slamburger?’, but why? Well, there couldn’t be a more kid’s-friendly restaurant on Ladypool Road, with an actual dedicated corner that boasts family-oriented gaming tablets.

This Birmingham-born brand have been around for a decade now, so know how to keep their menu interesting. Recently, Slamburger launched a variety of new items that include the OG Chicken Doner Kebab Wrap, and the Spicy & OG Chicken Doner Kebab range.

But if there was one thing missing in the area, it was one of those quality bubble tea places. Well, a husband and wife from London have remedied that shortcoming.

FtLion had the pleasure of being the first in covering the opening of the catchily-named NaughTEA Boba that goes the distance in making virtually everything inhouse.

Serving three types of drinks – Specials (9x), Fruit Teas (7x), and Milk Teas (11x) – they also do a number of innovative Specials like the Jammy Dodger, and Mango Panna Cotta, as well as Fruit Teas and Milk Teas such as honeydew, rose, taro, Thai, Hong Kong, and more.

While there are plenty of them about, Mi Chaii on Ladypool Road is entirely different to the many karak chai cafes out there in that they’ve successfully merged this concept with the traditional restaurant model to offer something far more.

The inspiration behind their menu goes back some 50 years to the arrival from the Indian subcontinent of the family-run restaurant’s father in 1964, with items from their “family’s favourite selection”.

While you won’t find an elaborate Afternoon Tea elsewhere, they also serve five classic Indian Main Meals, hearty all-day breakfasts, omelette dishes, French toast, and even freshly-made donuts courtesy of a donut-making machine in their large kitchen, and so much more.

In short, Birmingham offers plenty of variety and quality, and is definitely a destination place worth travelling to for the food alone.