Restaurants across the city are bringing some welcome cheer to January as they invite customers to try cuisine from around the world at a fraction of the usual cost.
With NE1 Newcastle Restaurant Week now under way, diners can make the most of the special menus costing £10, £15 or £20 which are on offer until Sunday. As previously reported, 112 restaurants have signed up to take part in the event and among them are newcomers including DOOD on Newcastle Quayside.
The restaurant, which has taken over the Charts building – originally Flynn’s bar – and serves a Persian and Levantine-inspired menu, is offering a starter, main and side for £25.
On Monday, chef Gold, who has come over from Dubai to take up a job here, was busy in the kitchen cooking up two varieties of kebab, one lamb and one chicken, from the menu to give people an idea of what to expect. And he was making use of the restaurant’s special mangal grill – one of its traditional Middle Eastern cooking options – which involves charcoal and helps seal in the meats’ flavours and moisture.
Jaf Ali, owner of the restaurant, which opened in November and has already proved popular with familiar faces such as Alan Shearer, sees Restaurant Week as a prime opportunity to showcase the menu to a wider audience. While this is a first for DOOD, Jaf’s other city eateries, Dabbawal and Khai Khai, are Restaurant Week regulars and he loves taking part in the event.
“We’re delighted to be part of it,” he says. “It transforms the entire city.”
Both DOOD’s menu and its decor are inspired by the ancient Silk Road spice trade route and Jaf is keen for customers to immerse themselves in local history too. The listed building which DOOD occupies dates from the 18th Century when a map purveyor called Matthew S Dodds printed charts there for ship voyages.
Now old and new sit side by side: original brick walls feature alongside a colourful, new, golden lamp-lit interior and it all captures that spirit of a journey, with dining areas given names such as ‘nomads’ and ‘the merchants’ table’. Jaf says DOOD is the first Persian restaurant of its kind in Newcastle and its unique menu makes the most of the skills set of “one of the best Middle Eastern chefs in the world.”
He also points out the attraction of the building’s spectacular riverside views which take in the bridges and The Glasshouse opposite. “What’s amazing about it, we feel, is the location,” he adds.
Diners keen to experience the latest addition to the quayside dining scene are advised to book up quickly as there are only limited slots still available for Restaurant Week. See DOOD’s menu here and for the full range of other participating restaurants and their available offers see here.