Shimlas Oldham — Restaurant in Oldham

We have eaten at the Bradford branch and this is one of the main reasons for eating here.

We attended the establishment on Sunday 05/02/23 around 4:55pm. It wasn’t really busy only had to tables being used, we were greeted instantly and were given a table for two.

I did notice they had a takeout area in the back I guess this is for pickup and deliveries only – that looked busier than the front.

We ordered:

Mixed Starter (2 Seekh – Lamb & Chicken, Fish, Shami Chicken and Fish Pakora) Mixed Chicken Tikka Donner – Chicken Seekh and Naan Biryani – Chicken Strawberry Daquiri Mineral Water

Total = £33.09

We ordered at exactly 5:01pm (on the receipt it stated 5:13 but we took pictures of the menu right after we give our order to the waitress) and all the food arrived exactly at 5:42pm so around 41 minutes (personally as the long as the food is fresh I don’t mind waiting around 45 minutes).

Food was great Alhamdulilah, starters were delicious my main was great especially with the 2 sauces and love the naan was warm and fresh, my Mrs is very picky with Biryani she gave it 8 out of 10 the only issue she had was it was a bit too spicy the meat was not from chicken breast it was from chicken thigh should could tell. My Mrs really like the Strawberry Daquiri shame she couldn’t finish it as it was still semi frozen as we finished.

If I had any complaints it would be the size of the Raita tub it is really small for the size of the Biryani (I did have to ask twice for the Raita as the our waitress forgot was getting side tracked) and were weren’t given sauces for our starters (mint/chilli/mango sauces) may sound small but when having starter like we did kind of get dry mouth without sauces, I did confirm this with waitress when paying the bill she stated “she forgot” I didn’t make an issue out of it as she was prepping out sauces 2-3 sets of customers come in I think she got distracted with them.

Price, wise we thought the bill would be £40+ but it was less so that was a plus.

We did notice that it did get busier as we were leaving so, I guess this is popular place in Oldham.

This establishment compared to Bradford was slicker and more updated but that would make sense as this is newer. They have good number of tables and seating inside.

Parking I only could think of is Mecca Bingo across the road as parking near the establishment would be difficult, you would be lucky if you get parking on George, Silver and Union Street.

The staff we friendly and welcoming no issues with them.

I would recommend this establishment to my friend and family to...

It's ok...

The place was easy to find, good seating area, nice modern deco, good variety of food.

I wanted to try something different, Shimlas is known for its chicken donner so I tried a variation of that.

Ordered the cheesy chicken donner, meat tikka donner and fish pakora.

Fish Pakora was spot on... Nice batter, fresh looking fish pieces and good flavours.

Cheese Chicken Donner: It's a stir fry with peppers, Peri flavours with cheese melted into it. Tbh I didn't like it. The flavours don't gel together well and what I'm presented with is what looks like a big splodge... with having the cheese and Peri sauce it takes away the flavour of the donner... it might aswell just be normal chicken pieces... I should have just got plain normal chicken donner to see what that was like... The whole dish was a bit overkill, salad was a bit stale... you get some sauces with the plate but no extra bottles on the table except ketchup. I would def not have this again... Did feel a bit nauseous after eating so had to wash it down with plenty of water they provided.

Meat Tikka Donner: What we got was chunks of meat with masala. Seemed like a small portion. So we did get the Meat Tikka but I was confused as to where the donner was? There was no donner... some of the meat pieces were chewy but tasted OK.

The naans were decent size, but bit overcooked as a result they were crispy in places and not fluffy enough.

I'm sure the other food might be good but I have to give a 3 due to not meeting my expectations based on prices...

We came out for a family meal to Shimlas. Me and my family came the first time the whole deco and atmosphere of this place is so welcoming you feel comfortable from the minute you walk in. The owner is very friendly and hospitable great intro and sat us to our tables straight away We helped our self to the menus and from such a large variety of food options we chose all our favourites from fried fish pakoras, fried fish, lamb chops, chicken wings, chicken Popcorn and chips, lamb karai, magaz (lamb brain), plau rice, naan and roti. For drinks we ordered cold drinks, mango lassi, and mocktails. We even got a coconut shake on the house for the little 2 which was a nice addition to end the meal for the little ones. I cant express how much we loved the food, the spice was on point the fish was cooked perfectly, lamb chops were on point and the chicken wings were cooked to perfection (order these starters when you go you won't be disappointed) The magaz was cooked perfectly the spice with the fresh garam garam (hot hot) roties and naan was just delicious and the plau lovely and spicy like we like it Amazing pakistan style dishes reminds me of lahore👌🏻

I recommend this place for family meals, get-togethers or even date nights.

The service was great, fast and friendly. Food was fresh, cooked to perfection and hot when serviced. They have toilets downstairs too.

Thank you for such an amazing experience we definitely will be...