We were a party of 12 who had prebooked a table but on arrival were kept waiting for an hour.In turns out that you cant actually prebook here--they just take your details but do not allocate a table.
service was just as disappointing.......
food bordered between mediocre and just unacceptable...dont be fooled by the nice surroundings....if u plan to be drunk by the time you eat and are undiscerning about the food you eat--then this is for you....I have no plans of ever returning here.Not worthy of my money or time.

In my opinion this is the best Indian in Manchester.
The food is amazing, the lamb chops are the best i have tasted. The service has always exceeded my expectations. Akbars have raised the bar and are one step ahead .The only negative i would say is that it can get quite busy and hectic, waiting times can be quite long so get down there no later than 7.30pm

excellent food and service

I went to Akbars in Manchester and was really impressed by the food, decor and service - I gave £15 tip on a £20meal. The second time I was unable to get extra cash so I did not leave much of a tip. The third time I got the same waiter and there were some really aggressive looks and general bad attitude - not impressed!

best curry i have ever had. amazing

Went to Akbars on the weekend for the first time since it opened. Can I just tell you the standard has slipped to an unacceptable level...staff are rude and only polite if you look like you will leave them a tip..Apart from having to drain my dish of all the oil, the food isn't that bad. Safe to say its standards are nowhere near the heights if Karims. Without a doubt the best curry in the North of England. Plus Karims doesn't serve alcohol, one of the pluses being I can hear the person next to me. 5/10

s*ite - sorry has to be said. Food is doused in oil/ghee and the flavours are all the same. Oh and the big stand that the naan comes out on just cuts you off from the rest of your table - what the feck??

You should try Salt N Pepper at the back of it. It's a lot better - used to be a regular at Akbars not anymore - food is standard and service is well below average. It's like a production line - one in one out

My experience at this restaurant was terrible. Firstly, as soon as we sat at our table, we had a waiter coming over to tell us that we had to order within 10 mins otherwise he would call the manager! After he came over for the third time, I eventually got annoyed and the general manager came to speak with us who then apologised and told us that we could take as long as we wanted. Within 5 mins of being told this, we had another waiter at our table, telling us that it was 'high time' we placed an order (bearing in mind that it had barely been 10 mins since we had looked at the menu!) So, being rushed we began to place an order...whilst deciding which dishes to choose we were told by the waiter that we didn't need a starter and that upon ordering 3 dishes, this would be enough for us- Excuse me, but, WHO IS HE to tell me how much I should and should not be ordering!! He was rude, abrupt and arrogant. He took our order and left, and once again, I spoke with the general manager. He then moved us to the other side of the restaurant where apparently his 'friends' would be looking after us and assured us that we should no longer have any problems. Well, that was just the beginning! When our food arrived, I was given masala fish which was RAW!! The chef who served it to us immediately saw and took it back, telling me that he would bring me over a new one within 5 mins...30 seconds later, the same fish dish that had just been taken away was put on our table- at this point I was quite hungry and not in the mood to mess around so cancelled the order and waited upon the main meal. When the main meals came they were barely warm, and tasted horrible (to put it nicely!). The naan bread was given to us hanging off a butcher's rack making the food all-the-less appetizing. Whilst all of this was going on, the general manager and owner of the restaurant (who had been informed about what had happened) were quite obviously mocking us and laughing.
At the end of our dreadful meal, the owner came and spoke with us. Immediately he made a joke about what had happened- except nothing was funny! He said if anything the service was 'too fast' and made out as if we were in the wrong. He then went on to insult us and spoke to us in a very condescending way. I was in shock and watched as he walked off. He didn’t even have the courtesy to offer our meals on the house or even at a discounted rate. I questioned him about this and his response was- "I am the owner therefore I am at the top of the chain, and you absolutely, 100% have to pay” For the sake of the restaurant, would you not have the decency to give your customers the respect they deserve?..Out of everyone the OWNER was the most rude, and I can only wonder how he gets to sleep at night treating people the way he does. Hand on my heart, my friends and I will NEVER be returning to this outrageously appalling restaurant again! My rating for the service and food- MINUS 10!!!!

We dined at Akbar's on Saturday night after reading so many positive reviews. We arrived and realised that people were being honest when they said it's a busy restaurant. It was heaving. Good decor, large premises, noisy and over-crowded.

We were seated after an hour and noticed that my chair was, to put it bluntly, knackered. It had about a yard of play in it and was like sitting on a rocking horse!

We ordered, our poppadums came with an unimaginative pickle tray that had lumpy raita and watery chilli and lime pickle. We didn't get asked how many we wanted, we were just given two.

Our starters came, I had calamari and my girlfriend had chicken pakora. Not bad, but the chicken was slightly underdone as it was only just cooked through.

Mains came. The chicken tikka was very good, rich and plenty of sauce, as was my lamb. Although it wasn't as tender as I'd hoped. The rice was a bit cold and the naan bread was ridiculous. It was served on one of those stupid raindeer's antlers that was utterly dirty, was far too large and way too thin. It was meant to be garlic but I couldn't taste it. We were also seated next to a table of Asian people who I have nothing against. However, they were loud, rude and did not respect the boundaries of our two tables, with the backs of their chairs hitting our table. They also had a 6-month old baby with them which I think is inappropriate for a bust saturday night.

Guys, if you want a "curry wi da ladz, loadza beer and loadza curry for next to note", then come to Akbar's. If you want a civilised meal with good servcice and rich, flavoursome food, stay away. Pete's review below says it all!!

Heard alot about you. came all the from folkestone,KENT , the decor was ok but have seen much better. For the food i gave 3/10 as it was very bland and didnt appeal to me when it was serverd and felt quite nauseus the next day. I asked a waiter for the dish of the day and he didnt have a clue what i was talking about and told me to look at the menu which was very rude. I would recommend that you trained your waiters with vital skills needed for such businessses. And it would be helpful if they could speak english and understand what the customer requires!!!!!!!

Pete, Helen, Moz, Roch, Mike+Stef
This Is The Best Indian We Have Ever Had 6 People Loads Of Beer And A Bottle Of Wine £116 Beat That
Thanks

We have eaten in Akbars and had a number of take outs. The food is the best we have tasted in a long time. I disagree with any comparison to Shimla Pinks other than modern interior. The food at Akbars is far tastier, service friendlier and the price is fantastic! The large number of Asian people eating there speaks for itself! Highly recommend the Lamb Haandi.

i had i meal at akbars on eid with 12 of my mates first time iv been there and i loved the food was excellent the waiter was polite enjoyed every moment of it , the bill was reasonable difenetly coming back. will also spread the news to my friends and family !

akbars is an absolutely amazing resturant but it was too expensive as we are teenagers and had to pay from our own pockets. They need a menu for teenagers that is a bit cheaper.

I had at meal at Akbars in Bradford and is was absoluly fanstkly gd food recmnd to any1 top noch 10/10!!!

This is one of my favourite restaurants!!!! i'd give it ten out of ten! although there is quite a wait for a table, it is definatley worth it. my faveourite would have to be the sheek kebab for starters and for main the khari chicken.......its a must try dish. and as for the family nan well one word for that wowwwwwww!!!
great service and they are always sooo polite. as for it being busy well that just goes to show how good it is.
i reckon the only thing they could improve on is the booking policy. if this was improved i think it would be considered as one of the best restaurants in the whole of northern England
:P

This is one of my faveorite restaurants!!!! i'd give it ten out of ten! although there is quite a wait for a table, it is definatley worth it. my faveourite would have to be the sheek kebab for starters and for main the khari chicken.......its a must try dish. and as for the family nan well one word for that wowwwwwww!!!
great service and they are always sooo polite. as for it being busy well that just goes to show how good it is.
i reckon the only thing they could improve on is the booking policy. if this was improved i think it would be considered as one of the best restaurants in the whole of northern England
:P

I am a big fan of indian food but Akbars does not live up to the Hype. I been ther on several occassions and each time the food is such a let down. My friend ordered a vegetarian dish that had chicken in it. I ordered a prawn dish which had no flavour to it what so ever. Wont be going again if i can help it!

I love the restaurant. The food is awesome. Cant stop dreaming about the lamb chops and king prawns. The mains way much better then in other places, my favourite is balti lazeez! yummy! Love the taste and look of the nun! Unfortunately never get to try the desserts - feel too full! The staff is very good. Some of them are great fun! Lovely guys! and the manager is very attentive to the customers as well as to staff.

terrible service.you wait forever here,no booking policy crazy...food is for meat eaters.vegetarian options are poor.very average Indian food.

Akbar's is certainly very busy - we know because we have to live above it! I would really like to try it but have been put off by the constant smell of raw onions and curry that we have to suffer in our bedroom on a daily basis. This doesn't come from outside but from the internal ventilation system that circulates through the building. Clean up your act, Akbar's and I might consider joining the throngs of happy customers!

Absolutely the best Indian Restaurant ever. I live in Castlefield and go here so often. The food is amazingly tasty, fresh and innovative. The menu is extensive and the naan breads are a real talking point. Akbars has a real energy and buzz. The no booking policy is a great idea as it allows them to get a great amount of covers through per night and nobody minds sitting in the stylish bar with a drink whilst they wait. Friendly waiters attend to you efficiently but never in too hurried a manner. Its fantastic value for money. Dont go if you like a dull eaterie with slow, traditonal service...however if you like the buzz of the city and enjoy having a laugh with your waiter, it's the one for you. Everyone I take there loves it and returns more often than anywhere else. My boyfriend and I vote it as our favourite hang out and definitley the best Indian in town! I never usually leave comments on sites like this but Akbars just has to be shouted about!

i think it is a lovely restaurant and lovely food but need to do something about the no-booking policy

the best indian i've eaten in but it has to be careful it doesn't become a victim of its own success - if you have to wait 2 hours to eat then the food never tastes as good as it actually is...

pls akbars sort out your no-booking policy...

Very disappointed after hearing very good things about the Manchester Akbars. I have visted the Leeds one and everything was spot on there unlike the Manchester one. When we arrived at the restaurant, we waited at the sign "please wait here to be seated". Four waiters went past us and completely ignored us and I was thinking the next guy will welcome us? so I stopped one and he said I need to speak to another guy! We went to our table and found the waiter was really rude as he was pressurising us to make our food choices within a minute of sitting down! Food was disappointing, it was too spicy even though we mentioned twice to the waiter we don't want it too spicy plus it lacked flavour, don't get me wrong I like spicy food but it has to have a good flavour to go with the spice. Location is good and I can understand why its busy as its round the corner from all the bars in the city but Wont be going there again as there are better restaurants in Manchester.

fantatice food but since this has become popular
its like a cattle market and twice as noisey.

couple of other things i was asked to pay cash as
there card machine was out of commission........
or they would get me a taxi to the nearest hole in
the wall at no charge ..........they have lost the plot

had a very enjoyable evening 16 sept the food was very nice the nann bread was out of this world our waiter was really nice having a laugh and a joke with us until it came to paying the bill the card was taking awhile to process when he said was there money in the account andhe said the card had been declined when it had not been we payed with another card as it was my sons birthday i did not make a fuss the waiters name was jay who did not even get a tip

awesome!!! friendly staff, tasty food what more could you ask for and also reasonable price!!! worth the money!!!! I go there all the time!!! every occasion I am at akbars!!!! brill!!!

akbars is phat wiv all da fit w8rs at bradford!!!!!!!!!