{"id":4166,"date":"2021-06-03T10:21:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-03T10:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eatmcr.co.uk\/?p=4166"},"modified":"2021-06-15T14:40:32","modified_gmt":"2021-06-15T14:40:32","slug":"middle-eastern-restaurant-habas-by-the-el-gato-negro-team-is-now-open","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eatmcr.co.uk\/news\/middle-eastern-restaurant-habas-by-the-el-gato-negro-team-is-now-open\/","title":{"rendered":"Middle Eastern restaurant Habas by the El Gato Negro team is now open"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A new Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant from the team behind Manchester restaurants El Gato Negro<\/a> on King Street and Canto <\/a>in Ancoats has now opened its doors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Habas has been inspired by chef patron Simon Shaw’s love of Middle Eastern food which started when, as a young chef, he would enjoy Middle Eastern food like chicken shawarma and Persian dishes after finishing late night restaurant shifts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simon said: “I was probably into Middle Eastern food before Spanish if I\u2019m honest.\u00a0 It was back in \u201898 when I was living in London that I first became interested in it. Going for a shawarma late at night was our thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019d go to these incredible places on Edgeware Road or in Bayswater after work, or even after we\u2019d been out, it was quite a social thing.  I remember thinking wow, what a great style of food this is; it\u2019s amazing, so fresh and vibrant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI knew then that I wanted to open a modern Middle Eastern restaurant; this isn\u2019t a new thing.  I\u2019ve directed some of that influence into dishes at El Gato Negro as there\u2019s so much overlap in styles and ingredients, but it\u2019s really exciting to focus on this diverse region\u2019s many cuisines with Habas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The restaurant has been a long time coming, as the team has actually had the building on Brown Street for four years but, due to various reasons and most recently due to the pandemic, the restaurant has only just been able to open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walking down the stairs into the Grade II listed building, diners are greeted by a neon logo as they descend the steps towards the bar area. The space comprises a large dining area with an open kitchen; a bar serving signature and classic Middle Eastern cocktails, wines, beers and spirits; a lounge area where there will be live music performances; and a private dining area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The bar at Habas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Some of the original features of the building has been restored, like exposed brickwork and original terracotta floor tiles. The space has a cosy feel, filled with wooden, leather and velvet furniture and dotted with Middle Eastern furnishings like Persian rugs and woven cushions. There are also some pieces that Simon has collected over the years like a neon bee sign, a retro fruit machine and a Manchester-themed mosaic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking about the space Simon said: \u201cI always knew we\u2019d acquired a great space.\u00a0 It\u2019s everything I like about buildings, it\u2019s old, it\u2019s quirky, it\u2019s got lots of different facets to it.\u00a0 When it was empty it was amazing but once we started to put the furniture in, and the bits I\u2019ve been collecting these last four or five years, it ticked every box.\u00a0 It\u2019s reminiscent of some of the influences from Tel Aviv that I saw.\u00a0 It\u2019s everything I expected and more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The menu is split into six sections: mezze, seafood, meat, vegetables and grains, desserts, and sweets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The mezze platter (\u00a39.50) includes Habas hummus, whipped labneh, mixed spiced nuts, baba ganoush; olives and pickles, toasted lavosh bread and homemade pitta bread. Among the other dishes on the mezze menu are filo cigars with feta,, spinach and tomato with a red pepper sauce (\u00a38.50), a Levant style chicken liver pate (\u00a37).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Beetroot hummus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Seafood dishes include prawn and crab fritters (\u00a37), chargrilled octopus with smokey aubergine and crispy shallots (\u00a313) and chargrilled monkfish with tamarind sauce and tahini dressing (\u00a313.50).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signature dishes on the meat menu include spicy lamb ‘jackets’ which are fried potato skins filled with lamb and minted yoghurt (\u00a38.50) and a crispy fried chicken schnitzel with chilli and lime butter (\u00a311).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For sides, the list features bulgar wheat salad with cauliflower and pomegranate (\u00a35.50), wilted spinach with peanuts and chilli (\u00a35.50), Syrian lentils with zhug (\u00a36) and Lebanese batata harra – spiced fried potatoes with dill sour cream (\u00a35). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The restaurant has a cosy feel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To finish there is a range of desserts like chocolate babka with coconut ice cream, Turkish delight cheesecake and Medjool date and orange cake, pistachio ice cream (all \u00a36.50), alongside traditional sweets like baklava and homemade Turkish delight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Touching on the menu Shaw added: \u201cI\u2019m very happy with the menu, it\u2019s six months hard work, it feels well balanced and completely different to everything else that I\u2019ve done.  There are a couple of old El Gato favourites in there, which as I\u2019ve said before, were always waiting in the wings, but they sit really well with the style of this food.  I\u2019m really happy with it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diners can enjoy a lunch deal from 12 to 5pm Monday to Friday which is \u00a315 per person and includes a selection of small plates, bread, hummus, zhug and sour cream, and can a drink can be added (Beirut beer, house wine or soft drink) for an extra \u00a32.50.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Habas is located at 43a Brown Street and is open from Wednesday to Sunday with last food orders at 10pm.  To book a table visit: www.habas.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant from the team behind Manchester restaurants El Gato Negro on King Street and Canto in Ancoats has now opened its doors. Habas has been inspired by chef patron Simon Shaw’s love of Middle Eastern food which started when, as a young chef, he would enjoy Middle Eastern food like chicken … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":4279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nMiddle Eastern restaurant Habas by the El Gato Negro team is now open - EAT MCR<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eatmcr.co.uk\/news\/middle-eastern-restaurant-habas-by-the-el-gato-negro-team-is-now-open\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Middle Eastern restaurant Habas by the El Gato Negro team is now open - EAT MCR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A new Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant from the team behind Manchester restaurants El Gato Negro on King Street and Canto in Ancoats has now opened its doors. Habas has been inspired by chef patron Simon Shaw’s love of Middle Eastern food which started when, as a young chef, he would enjoy Middle Eastern food like chicken ... 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