Digbeth Dining Club – Tummy Happy

Beef on the Block: Keeping it simple with steak & chips

May 28, 2019May 28, 2019Posted in ReviewsTagged Aldi, Aubrey Allen, Beef on the Block, Birmingham street food, Chimichurri, Digbeth Dining Club, Longbridge Dining Club, Miller & Carter, Steak, Street Food, Streetfood UKLeave a comment

Anyone who knows me well would agree that I’m partial to a nice, slap up steak dinner. In fact, there was a run in joke at my old workplace about how many times a month I ate at Miller and Carter as I talked about it so frequently. It’s my ultimate treat night meal, whether it’s a £20 ribeye from a nice restaurant or a £4 sirloin from Aldi. I love a juicy steak and salty chips.

I was delighted therefore to learn that Beef on the Block were going to be coming to the latest Longbridge Dining Club. These beef loving, blue cheese grating foodies really are the new kids on the block, and it was with great anticipation that I headed down to their stand in the Longbridge Life car park for a taste.

The long queue at the stand was the first good sign that something incredibly delicious was being whipped up in the van. First things first, I quizzed the Beef on the Block guys on what I could eat. What came next was a generous portion of Aubrey Allen Bavette Steak with chimichurri sauce and crispy chips. Let me tell you, this dish was absolute perfection!

The steak was medium rare, flavoursome, extremely tender and melted in your mouth. Both the steak and the chips were nicely seasoned, in fact, the chips soaked up the juice of the steak creating a really moreish finish. I adore chimichurri sauce and so I knew this was going to sit well alongside the steak. Drizzled over the chunky meat, the herby sauce provided a refreshing addition to the dish.

Overall, my first experience of Beef on the Block was top notch. My only regret was that I didn’t order a second portion – always my downfall! If you like simple, no thrills grub that is tasty and filling, then Beef on the Block will be right up your street.

Fish, Chips & Curry Sauce: English Indian

April 1, 2019April 9, 2019Posted in ReviewsTagged Andy Low N Slow, Baked in Brick, Birmingham food festival, Digbeth Dining Club, Gluten free fish and chips Birmingham, Gluten free Indian food, Longbridge Dining Club, Peaky Blinder Live, Peaky Blinders, The English Indian, Urban CheesecakeLeave a comment

Question any Brit on what their favourite national dish is, and chances are curry or fish & chips will feature high up on their list. I mean seriously, are you even British if you don’t roll out of work on a Friday night craving either a large cod and chips or chicken bhuna? So surely putting them together would be a winning combination, right?

Last weekend, I dropped by Longbridge Dining Club. It was the 2019 launch event and an incredibly sunny day, and being only 15 minutes away from my house it would have been rude not to pop along for a cold cider and a bite to eat in the sun.

A good selection of the Digbeth Dining Club regulars had pitched up for the day, including Andy Low ‘N’ Slow, Urban Cheesecake, Baked in Brick and of course, The English Indian. I’d first come across English Indian back in summer 2018, at a Peaky Blinders Live event in Digbeth. I’d been eyeing up their stand all day and had decided that as I’d just eaten a big dinner, I’d pop along later on in the evening for fish and chips. Unfortunately, by the time me and my fella arrived at the stand around 9pm they had run out of fish and were packing up, but they did offer us a free portion of the chat masala chips, which were bloody delicious. Ever since then, I’d been eager to get to a Digbeth Dining Club on a date when they were there.

The great thing about The English Indian is that everything is gluten free and the fish & chips in particular are dairy free. I opted for what is arguably their most popular dish, pakora battered cod with chat masala seasoned chips, madras chip shop curry sauce, fresh mint & chilli mushy peas, dressed with lime and coriander. The batter was crispy and flavoursome, the chips had a delicious coating of spicy chat masala seasoning, which dipped into the curry sauce and seasoning provided a medley of incredible flavours.

The fact that the queue never went down all day at The English Indian proves their popularity and by the time I got home, I was wishing I’d have gone back to the stand for a second portion. Maybe there is something spectacularly weird about us Brits in that we love throwing curry spices and sauces onto our fish & chips, but boy if you haven’t tried combining your Friday fish night cod with masala chips yet, you don’t know what you’re missing. It’s simply a brilliantly clever reinvention of Britain’s most classic dish and once you’ve tried it, you’ll never want to go back to cod, chips and ketchup again.

From Punjab to Birmingham: The Indian Streatery

February 24, 2019Posted in ReviewsTagged Balti triangle, Bennetts Hill Birmingham, Curry houses Birmingham, dairy free birmingham, Digbeth Dining Club, gluten free birmingham, Gluten free curry Birmingham, Street food Birmingham, The Indian Streatery, Vegan Birmingham, Vegan curry Birmingham, Visit BirminghamLeave a comment

Having grown up on the outskirts of the Balti Triangle, the love of a decent curry is in my DNA. Catching up with friends on a weekend and ending the night with a curry is tradition and I always have a favourite curry house of the month. After all, when there’s so many curry houses in Birmingham, the competition is fierce and there’s no room for favouritism, for long anyway.

People had been raving about The Indian Streatery for yonks. Beginning their foodie roots at Birmingham’s very own Digbeth Dining Club under the name ‘Indian Rasoi,’ the eatery soon became a firm favourite amongst diners and eventually set up permanently at a premises on Bennett’s Hill. As with many Digbeth Dining Club regulars, the ‘family foodies’ brought with them a loyal following of locals already converted to the concept of ‘Indian tapas.’ Though relatively new to the food scene, Indian tapas takes traditional dishes and gives them a makeover, much like the Deconstructed Samosa Chaat and homestyle chicken kindly created by The Indian Streatery. The idea is to bring Punjab’s food markets to the people of Britain, using tried and tested family recipes, old memories, plus a side order of added ingredients to suit British palates – Indian Hotdog anyone?

On my visit to The Indian Streatery, I was excited to find out what all the fuss was about. I was damn sure I liked my curry in a bowl with pilau rice and poppodoms, no messing around, no food antics. It was then with great delight that I found myself enjoying a Fresh Spinach & Lamb Curry, marinated overnight with a host of spices, alongside what I can only describe as ‘bangin’ Masala Fries. Both dishes far exceeded my expectations and in fact, the lamb curry was one, if not the best curries I’ve tasted in a good 12 months. Normally I’d cringe at the thought of throwing in a portion of chips with a curry, but here, with a mix of fenugreek chaat masala and tamarind on the fries, blended in with succulent slow cooked lamb, I was on the verge of dribbling.

The menu comes with a listing of gluten free, dairy free and vegan dishes, easily identifiable and ranging in choices. The waiter was extremely helpful with my allergens and offered to accommodate any requests that I had regarding the menu. By the time I had finished my curry and fries, I was already dreaming of another portion. In fact, it’s pretty much all I talked about all week.

In an age where some are predicting the death of the Balti, I feel a sense of confidence in the future of curry houses in Britain. Rather than admitting defeat, establishments such as The Indian Streatery are building on existing foundations, adapting and recreating traditional recipes to bring them into an ever expanding modern day street food market. Whether it’s slapping a curry onto a burger, or giving an Indian twist to the classic chicken and chips, there’s no doubt that these Masala fries making, Pakora transformers are here to stay, and we love them for it!

The Theory of Everything that Makes Burgers Bostin’

January 29, 2019January 29, 2019Posted in ReviewsTagged Arcade Birmingham, Birmingham burger, Birmingham restaurants, Burger Theory, Burger Theory Birmingham, dairy free birmingham, Digbeth Dining Club, gluten free birmingham, Gluten free burgers Birmingham, Hill Street Birmingham, Krispy Kreme, Original Patty Men, Street food Birmingham, The Flying Cow Burgers, Vegan burgers Birmingham, Vegan restaurants BirminghamLeave a comment

As I’ve grown older, I’ve developed a taste for three things; Red wine, olives and burgers. Now I know that burgers have been around for millennia and the good old days of Ronald McDonald should have given me my first real taste of a juicy beef burger in a brioche bun, but as a kid, I was a chicken nugget McSnugget all the way. There was something extremely unconvincing about sticking meat between bread and dumping a gherkin inside for added sourness; it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

You’d have to be a hermit to not have noticed the burger takeover in the past few years. Whilst the classic ‘hamburger’ may have been a big hit across the pond as Yanks competed for the title of biggest and most greasiest burger possible, we as usual decided to take things slower here in the UK. It is only really in the past few years with the rise of independent street food retailers such as The Flying Cow Burgers and Original Patty Men that the demand for burgers really escalated in British cities.

Being gluten free, I often found myself pining for a dirty grab and go burger, or just carbs in general, from the pop up street vendors found at foodie digs such as Digbeth Dining Club. The first time I witnessed a Krispy Kreme being balanced on top of a double beef patty with bacon, maple syrup and onion rings, I was adamant I was either dodging food hell or missing out on a piece of art for individuals such as myself with a combined sweet and savoury tooth.

It was then with great anticipation that I found myself venturing to Birmingham’s latest burger joint, Burger Theory. Situated in Kongs Bar on Hill Street, the venue boasts retro arcade games, table tennis and a fully stocked bar filled with craft beers. Live DJs are a permanent fixture at weekends, but I was visiting on a Friday lunchtime with colleagues and the rather large venue was empty asides from the bar staff – maybe they were busy on Deliveroo but I expected it to be slightly busier.

The menu states that burgers can be ordered with a gluten free bun. As usual, my added milk intolerance made it difficult for me to order many cheese based burgers without needing to substitute half of the ingredients, so I opted for The Classic burger, consisting of a beef patty, house ketchup and plain chips, plus the Down n’ Dirty burger sauce. The burger itself was really tasty, cooked to my liking in that it was juicy and still slightly pink in the middle. Alongside the house sauce and perfectly salted chips, it was one of the best, if not THE best burger I’ve had in a good year or so.

If I had one recommendation, it would simply be a request for Burger Theory to stock dairy free cheese to go on the gluten free or vegan burgers. Just keeping in one dairy free cheese would mean that my choice of burgers could be far more extensive, but on the whole, my first experience was a good one and I think the chefs have their burgers cooked to perfection. I can never understand why so many burger restaurants are off limits to me simply because they refuse to stock gluten free buns and create a patty that is friendly to those with allergens, so it was lovely to be given that option.

They call themselves the Creative Burger People, priding themselves on sourcing local produce and making all burgers, sauces and pickles on site. I asked for tomato ketchup to dip my chips in and was provided with a little pot of fresh tomatoes, chopped finely into a delicious, smooth sauce. There’s no doubt that these guys are serious about providing high quality, good tasting food that really stands out from the usual grease found in many burger joints and I think they may have succeeded.