Hadramowt — Restaurant in Wales

Interesting Yemeni restaurant nestled amongst what is known as the Arabian strip. Yemeni food has its own flavour. Yes, it IS different. The interior is nothing flash but reasonable. The menu had a few familiar middle eastern starters. I would have preffered if it stuck to just yemeni specials to keep with a solid yemeni menu. several of the dishes I asked for were "finished". Not a great start. Makes you wonder if they really are finished or the dishes are listed to make the menu longer and are rarely ever available. Jury is out on that one. I went with an old friend so we had a meat dish and a fish dish. There were a number of Arab people eating, which is always a good sign if the food demographic choose to eat in a restaurant as opposed to home. Service was reasonably good. Fresh lemon juice drink was ruined by adding spoons of sugar. If menu says fresh juice...it should not have added sugar. The zest of the juice was lemonned out and it didn't feel fresh at all. It tasted like watered down cordial and sugar. Maybe it was. I didn't finish it. Authenticity matters. The starters were not what we wanted but they were actually very good. Piping hot and good flavour. For my main I had seabass. They only do one seabass. It's a bony fish but once you get round that, the grilled flavour was excellent. The side sauces in little metal bowls were equally excellent. Not too spicy and the fish had good balance. Their focus is the main courses. They did an excellent job of both meat and fish. There is far too much rice being offered but you can ask for less. They might listen...in our case they didn't, but that was only because I hate seeing wasted food. Well worth a visit. Choose a quieter day. Can get busy on Saturday evenings. Suitable for all groups but it's not the langham interior. Not a vegan restaurant and limited vegetarian as it's a heavy meat based menu which is what they specialise in. It is a halal place. Parking outside is a pain. Covid hygiene...They do wipe down tables. But it's a single wipe. Go figure. Don't go for the dessert. There are lots of dessert only places nearby and with hadramowt's limited dessert selection, I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't mostly 'finished'. Prices are very reasonable and portions are big. Two mains, starters and two juices a modest £26. I left a tip because the main was that good. Will I go again, yes. But i know what to expect now and will avoid fresh juice as my juice doesn't naturally come with spoons of sugar at the bottom...

Edit: 29/01/25 - they have greatly reduced their meat portion now with the lamb, last 4/5 takeaways at various times of day and in the week have had way less meat portion. Compare to my original photo. Used to have 3/4 very large chunks of lamb, now you barely get 3/4 strips of lamb if you're lucky. I would drive all the way from another city for this but I'll have to stop, it's no longer the same value for money it once was over the years. Tastes good still but the portion is disappointing compared to what it was - look at other people's photos from a few months or year back. I can't help but feel a bit ripped off to pay the same amount and get less - is you're going to reduce the portion reduce the price too.

Old review:

Really like this place, often come here for takeaway or with friends/family. The food is generally good, sizeable portion for the price and typically very tasty. There's not a huge variety on the menu but you're likely going there for the Mandi. The chicken Mandi is my least favourite, it's a bit dry, I prefer the lamb Mandi but sometimes the portion of meat seems to fluctuate (the chicken portions are much more consistent). I've given the food 4 stars due to the inconsistency. Either way you'll be full and satisfied most of the time.

Customer service is essentially non-existent unless you really try to get their attention, and they DON'T take card but have no sign to say or wont always inform customers of this before ordering. They'll direct you to the closest cash machine which costs to use.

Recommended, but remember to take cash with you, about £13-£15ish if you plan to get drinks...

We thoroughly enjoyed the exceptional culinary delights and delightful ambiance of your establishment. The food surpassed our expectations with its remarkable flavors, and the overall atmosphere created a truly enjoyable dining experience. However, we would like to draw your attention to the importance of extending courtesy and kindness to your valued customers.

During our visit, we placed an order for a hot drink to accompany our main course. Regrettably, there was a delay of approximately 15-20 minutes before the drink was served, indicating a possible oversight by one of the waitstaff. When we inquired about our drink, we were asked to wait while it was being prepared. During this time, another staff member approached us with an abrupt and discourteous manner, informing us that the drink we had ordered was unavailable and suggesting that we vacate the table due to an upcoming reservation. We were disheartened by the staff member's rude and authoritative conduct. However, when we proceeded to settle the bill, we were surprised to find that the original waiter returned with the very same drink that had supposedly been unavailable.

While we genuinely appreciate the excellence of your food, we kindly request that you pay close attention to the quality of service provided. Upholding a high standard of customer service is crucial in order to maintain the stellar reputation your...