Ribeye Steakhouse – Manchester

“A premium steakhouse of epic proportions has launched in the happening place of First Street complex in Manchester” is how we first introduced this exciting new addition to the UK’s Halal steakhouse scene in July.

Back then, we had the opportunity of being invited to Ribeye Steakhouse’s media night, where we were not only teased with a taster menu, but also learned of how long it’s taken for this ambitious project to be brought to fruition: three years!

If first impressions could kill, then be prepared for visiting this place during the late evening when the full expanse of its luxurious interior – fully lit and almost entirely visible from the outside – dominates the scene.

The focal point of the entire restaurant is the open kitchen and its theatrical grill, which, in full view of customers, is essentially the heart of Ribeye’s atmospheric hustle and bustle.

A blue and turquoise colour-scheme coupled with floral back drops set the mood, with marble tables spaciously arranged both downstairs and up, which includes a bee-inspired booth.

Most impressive is the effort to which co-owning siblings Sohail and Waquas Kaushal have gone to to ensure this steakhouse’s fully Halal status, with Manchester’s first dry bar, that’s designed to complement “the best meats” sourced both locally and internationally.

As a matter of fact, the level of detail and thought gone into this establishment is such, that the brothers have even included a prayer room.

The nearest car park is Q-Park at First Street (next door to HOME), with a pedestrian car park entrance approximately 30 metres from HOME’s main entrance and around 60 metres from Ribeye Steakhouse who offer diners a 25% parking discount (redeemable by scanning your ticket at the restaurant).

Ribeye Red – A tall light concoction of fresh berries with just a touch of citrus; Manchester Bee – A peach lemonade with a subtle touch of lime and honey; Japanese Tatsu – A sensory blend of sweet and sour tropical fruits – £5.00 each

The drinks menu here is meant to suit everyones taste by being categorised into four sections – Sweet, Sour, Balanced, and After Dinner – and designed to complement the various steaks on offer.

Given our collective sweet tooths, the most innovative of the trio of beverages tried from the Sweet section was the Manchester Bee, whose central element of peach was expertly balanced by the blend of the sweet honey and citrus lime, thus, making this one for those who boast of a mature palate.

If you’re seeking after a more refreshing affair, however, then it has to be the Ribeye Red, wherein the blend of fresh berries offers just that touch of sharpness in the background to help offset its fruity sweetness.

Finally, the exotically tropical Japanese Tatsu is as good as it sounds. With the main kick delivered by the zingy fresh lychee, inclusive of all its tasty little fleshy bits, this is the perfect summer drink given its peculiarly exciting Asian twist.

Slow Cooked Marinated Beef Ribs – Served in BBQ or our special homemade spicy sauce, £7.50

Let us start by saying that these Slow Cooked Marinated Beef Ribs were definitely our fave!

Fall-off-the-bone tender, moist and brilliantly succulent, Ribeye offer these in two contrasting flavours: BBQ and a special homemade spicy sauce. For review purposes, we opted for both.

Living up to the description of ‘special’, the latter will certainly satisfy, as it did for one Lion, those with a love for all things spicy. This unique recipe was strong, heady and one of a kind.

The BBQ on the other hand, with its gloriously sticky sweet textural glaze complemented by a strong and soothing depth of smokiness, managed to win the hearts of the remaining two Lions.

In the end though, no matter which one you choose (we’d honestly recommend both), they both have their plus points.

Dynamite Prawns – Deep fried and coated in a sriracha lime and mayo sauce, £10.00

These light and fluffy battered prawns – crispy on the outside, but soft on the in – weren’t so much “coated” as doused in a smooth and creamy spicy sriracha lime and mayo sauce, which not only provided these wonderfully cooked crustaceans with a sizzling kick, but also helped prime the taste buds for what was to come next. We just couldn’t get enough of these!

Chef’s Selection Platter – A sharing platter of beef ribs, chicken wings, prawns, halloumi and arancini, £18.00

For those lost for choice, perhaps this Chef’s Selection Platter, designed as a cheeky kickstater and comprising of the aforementioned beef ribs and dynamite prawns, as well as chicken wings, halloumi and arancini balls, might be the solution.

The chicken wings were utterly delicious, based as they were in an Asian style sweet chilli sauce that was expertly countered by the smoky BBQ flavour.

As for their take on the Halloumi, then despite the idea being quite novel, the execution wasn’t quite there. As such, while the overall taste was well conceived, we found the crunchy batter, in which the cheese was coated, a little thick for our collective liking. Once you get to the heart of things, however, the halloumi certainly tasted good.

The weakest part of this platter was the Arancinis. These deep-fried risotto balls were coated in bread crumbs and stuffed with black truffle which didn’t quite have the depth of earthy flavour we were expecting despite having crispy daintiness about them.

Wagyu Ribeye (9oz) – 300-400 days corn fed, minimum grade 5, £60.00

And so onto the principle reason behind our visit: the availability of either Filet (7oz) or Ribeye (9oz) Wagyu that’s 300-400 days corn fed, minimum grade-5, and said to be “fully traceable from farm to fork”.

Given the name of the establishment, it was only natural for us to opt for the Ribeye. Soon after being teased with the specimen in question, we were presented with a glistening piece of meat beautifully branded by a tapestry of criss-crossed grill marks across its dark exterior.

The taste of the Wagyu was everything we could have hoped for and more. Just sheer quality with that sweet meaty umaminess permeating with every bite savoured. Juicy and tender, this was a truly memorable experience that was worth the visit alone!

Aberdeen Angus Fillet (9oz) – HMC approved, 35 days dry aged in Himalayan Pink Salt. Sourced from Scotland’s award-winning AA farmers, £27.00

Having gone with a fillet, we were presented with a dense, thick piece of HMC approved meat which, courtesy of it being dry aged in Himalayan Pink Salt for 35 days, meant that this would certainly be for those who enjoy their steaks lean and bursting with a bold, full-bodied beef flavour.

Our recommendation in really enjoying this for what it is, would be to opt for medium to medium rare and no more.

Creekstone Sirloin (10oz) – US Creekstone Beef fed with a 100% corn diet for 140 days, before being wet aged, £30.00

But it’s this gorgeous piece of Creekstone that ought to be your choice of steak if you’re seeking after the perfect middle ground between its aforementioned brothers.

This lightly marbled bar of beef was tenderness personified, with a light umami flavour which we couldn’t get enough of. It was simply presented with some greens, vine tomatoes and a small pot of sauce.

Grilled Lamb Cutlets – Served with creamy rosemary mashed potato and a mint lamb jus, £16.00

The way in which these utterly tender lamb cutlets were cooked proves that Ribeye’s chef is, indeed, an all-rounder when it comes to meat cooking.

In one respect, however, this was a challenging dish. While our initial reaction was that the silky smooth rosemary mash may have been slightly overpowering, the rich mint lamb jus helped to balance things out, allowing us to enjoy these intriguing Grilled Lamb Cutlets. An extremely satisfying munch.

Free-Range Chicken Supreme – Served with chargrilled asparagus and wild mushrooms with a chicken jus, £15.50

Yet, of the two non-steak mains had, this Free-Range Chicken Supreme stole the show. Made up of a pair of succulent breast pieces, and served on a crispy bed of asparagus while being topped with a rich creamy mushroom sauce, this was a complete dish in every sense of the word.

Given the multiple flavour profiles all playing their respective parts in creating a well orchestrated symphony, we would say that this dish was comparable to its steak counterparts in more ways than one.

Triple Cooked Chips £4.00; Sweet Potato Fries £3.50; Homemade Mash £3.00; Mac and Cheese £4.00

These Triple Cooked Chips were perfectly done and seasoned, making them our ideal partner for any steak. If you’re seeking after something different though, then go for the baked Sweet Potato Fries, which were equally well executed.

Otherwise, there’s the rich and creamy garlic-based Mash, which was, indeed, every bit as homemade as the menu suggests. Simply delightful!

For something a little richer and comforting, then their Mac and Cheese was unforgettably good. Oozing with melted cheese, not only was this the perfect portion size, but also nicely judged in terms of its piquancy. A real cheese-lover’s delight!

With every story there is an end. With every meal at Ribeye there is a dessert.

Their meticulous attention to detail can be seen in the effort they’ve put into to creating an exciting sounding desserts menu.

Unlike other steakhouses where this section of the menu is more an afterthought than anything else, Ribeye has hired the skills of a chef that specialises in artisan desserts.

Strawberry Tiramisu – Layers of ladyfinger soaked in orange juice, mascarpone and strawberry pulp, £7.00

The pick of the four had, was the Strawberry Tiramisu. Though we couldn’t quite pick up on the orange juice that these spongy lady fingers were supposed to have been soaked in, they were topped with mascarpone, fresh strawberries and a raspberry.

But what we really enjoyed, was the manner in which the strawberry pulp oozed out to make these soft and spongy fingers a melt-in-the-mouth experience. As one Lion put it: “Honestly, perfection of a dessert. You just can’t get enough! A must for a sweet finish!”

Profiterole Pistachio – A pate a choux stuffed with pistachio cream and covered in white chocolate garnished with candied pistachios, £8.00

Despite being messily covered in plenty of white choc and sprinkled with pistachio nuts, what we really enjoyed about these pâte à choux, was the sweet and velvety pistachio cream used to fill these delightfully good, soft and spongy profiteroles.

Fruit Tart – A shortcrust pastry tartelette filled with vanilla cream flavored with almond topped with the freshest seasonal fruits, £6.00

This shortcrust Fruit Tart was filled with custard-like vanilla sauce and flavoured with almonds, before being topped with a colourful assortment of fresh and juicy blue-, black- and strawberries.

Given its light and delicate nature, this would be the ideal finale to any full on carnivorous outing, we’d say.

Chocolate Fudge Cake – Served with vanilla cream, £6.00

As chocolatey as a traditional Chocolate Fudge Cake can get, this was an indulgent dessert, with additional choc sauce that boasted an attractive sheen, and a scoop of ice cream to offer that hot and cold temperal contrast.