Thesub-continent has a different cooking style every fifty kilometres, andhere, we quietly boast, you can try most of them. And of course thereare the European influences and our customers’ suggestions. Nowadaysour dishes are truly eclectic, with ingredients as diverse as Cognac,South Pacific King Prawns and Marmellata di Rosa sourced from the rosefields of the Swat valley in the Himalayas. These are not cheap, butnothing but the best is good enough for our customers.
Theearliest known recipe for meat in a spicy sauce with nan bread appearson tablets found near Babylon in Mesopotamia, written in the cuneiformtext of the Sumerians from around 1700 BC. The Shish Mahal hasn’t beenin Glasgow quite that long, but its culture and cuisine have changedGlasgow’s tastes, just as Glasgow’s tastes have changed the Shish, asit is affectionately known by our customers, and Glasgow has become TheCurry Capital of the United Kingdom beyond all dispute.
Thefounder, Ali Ahmed Aslam, the handsome chap with the grey hair, openedthe Shish Mahal in the Sixties and generations of Glaswegians know himas Mr Ali. This was something sensationally new, waiters wearing dinnerjackets and a menu with all sorts of new taste sensations, includingour world famous (and unchanged) lamb bhoona, a dish so addictive, weare told, that there has been talk of classifying it as a Class A drug.
Themenu has broadened down the years to reflect the changing and moresophisticated tastes of our clientele, but we like to think that ourvalues remain the same. Good food and good service will never go out offashion. Our motto is: “Unspoilt by progress”, and we plan to keep itthat way.
Ourcustomers are almost as eclectic as our menu. They come back, yearafter year, from far-flung corners of the globe, and they recommend usto their friends, something that we find particularly heart-warming.
We hope that you will find our menu and your meal to be equally heart-warming. Welcome to the Shish Mahal.
Here at the Shish Mahal we like to think of our food as a journey,one during which we can take you places which will excite, places youmight not have thought of going, but ones you will enjoy once you getthere. Our menu takes you on a trip from the ultra-cool slopes of theHimalayas to the fiery plains of Madras, from the lush valleys of Swatto the bountiful Indian Ocean, with more than several stops along theway.
The sub-continent has a different cooking style every fiftykilometres, and here, we quietly boast, you can try most of them. Andof course there are the European influences and our customers’suggestions. Nowadays our dishes are truly eclectic, with ingredientsas diverse as Cognac, South Pacific King Prawns and Marmellata di Rosasourced from the rose fields of the Swat valley in the Himalayas. Theseare not cheap, but nothing but the best is good enough for ourcustomers.