Lasan

Not to be confused with Lassan.

Restaurant in England

Lasan

Restaurant information
Established| April 2002 (2002-04)
Owner(s)|
Jabbar Khan
Chef| Aysan Shaikh
Muraliraj Narashimaraj[1]
Khalid Sami Khan[2][3]
Food type| Indian cuisine
Street address| 3-4 Dakota Buildings, James Street, St Paul's Square
City| Birmingham
County| West Midlands
State| England
Postal/ZIP Code| B3 1SD
Country| United Kingdom
Seating capacity| 64
Website| www.lasan.co.uk

Lasan (Hindi: लसन, romanized: lasan, lit. 'garlic') is an Indian restaurant located in St Paul's Square, Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham, England, and was co-founded by Aktar Islam and Jabbar Khan in 2002. In 2009, it became the first Indian restaurant in the United Kingdom to be selected as the "Best Local Restaurant" by Gordon Ramsay on Channel 4's The F Word.

## History

[edit]

In April 2002, two British Bangladeshi entrepreneurs, Aktar Islam and Jabbar Khan, co-founded Lasan in St Paul's Square, Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham.[4] Islam left Lasan group in 2017.[5][6] The 64-seater[7] restaurant serves modern,[8] contemporary[9] Indian cuisine[8] with modern and minimalist décor[7] and was the first Indian restaurant in Birmingham that did not serve Balti.[4]

In 2010, Islam and sous chef, Aysan Shaikh, won the "Best Local Indian Restaurant" category for Lasan on Channel 4's The F Word after beating Curry Corner from Cheltenham in the semi-final.[10] They then went on to win the overall final,[11] after beating The Pheasant from Keystone.[8][12][13][14][15] Islam and Shaikh cooked a selection of three dishes for 50 food critics, scoring 70 out of 100 to The Pheasant's 61.[16]

## Awards and recognition

[edit]

Hydrabadi Biryani with lentils and raita, at Lasan

In 2007,[17] 2008,[18] 2009[19][20] and 2010,[21] Lasan was awarded first place in the Midlands category at The British Curry Awards.[19]

In 2008, the restaurant was awarded Best Hospitality Business of the Year at the Asian Business Awards and Best Service and Rising Star at Taste of Birmingham. In 2009, it was awarded Healthiest Restaurant Awards[11][22] and the Institute of Asian Business Award.[23] In the same year, it was awarded the Taste Award for Best Service[11] in the West Midlands by Men's Health magazine's Healthiest Restaurant Awards for its healthy cooking techniques and aromatic flavours with fresh spices and herbs rather than fat.[7][22][24] In 2013, it was awarded Best Restaurant at Asian Business Awards.[25]

Lasan was voted one of the Top 10 Indian Restaurants in the UK by The Independent and The Times.[26] It was listed on 'The Sunday Times 100 Restaurants in Britain' at no. 49, becoming the first Indian restaurant outside London to be included.[27] It was also included in the Michelin Guide.[26] In 2010, it was cited by The New York Times as one of the reasons why Birmingham was one of its must-visit cities.[28] In March that year, it was listed as one of the Top 10 restaurants in the Midlands by The Guardian.[29] In January 2012, it received the No.1 spot in Birmingham Mail Top Ten of the best curry houses in Birmingham.[30][31] In 2014, it was listed as one of the top 10 Indian restaurants in Birmingham by Birmingham Mail.[32][33]

## See also

[edit]

* Business of British Bangladeshis

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Suart, Paul (8 November 2011). "Lasan restaurant chef wins major UK title". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
2. ^ "Lasan chef wins big at British Curry Awards". The Asian Today. 5 December 2011. Archived from the original on November 1, 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
3. ^ "Lasan chef wins big at British Curry Awards". Rewired. 21 December 2011. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
4. ^ a b "Lasan Birmingham ~ F Word Finalist". Eat-the-midlands. 6 January 2010. Archived from the original on 1 July 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
5. ^ Stuart, Paul (8 November 2009). "Brummie chef Aktar Islam calls Gordon Ramsay a pussycat". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
6. ^ Cartledge, James (14 April 2014). "Gary Barlow enjoys 'best ever' Indian food at Birmingham restaurant". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
7. ^ a b c "Birmingham's Lasan Restaurant Scoops Healthy Eating Award". Tandoori Magazine. April 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
8. ^ a b c "Birmingham restaurant Lasan wins Ramsay's 'F Word'". BBC News. 8 January 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
9. ^ Fulford, Paul (8 October 2013). "National Curry Week: The top ten curry houses in Birmingham". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
10. ^ Indi (7 January 2010). "Lasan victory on The F Word". DESIblitz. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
11. ^ a b c Deol, Indi (9 February 2010). "Aktar Islam & Jabbar Khan of Lasan". DESIblitz. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
12. ^ Paskin, Becky (8 January 2010). "Gordon Ramsay names Lasan as F Word restaurant winner". Big Hospitality. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
13. ^ "Lasan wins Gordon Ramsay's 'F Word' contest". Redhotcurry.com. 7 January 2010. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
14. ^ "F-antastic! Lasan is Britain's Best Local Restaurant". The Asian Today. 2 January 2010. Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
15. ^ Bruce, Jo (8 January 2010). "Pheasant pub is runner-up in Gordon Ramsay show". Morning Advertiser. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
16. ^ Moriarty, Chris (8 January 2010). "Brum's Lasan wins The F Word". Birmingham: Brum Notes Magazine. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
17. ^ Authi, Jasbir (23 October 2007). "Restaurant proves it's hot stuff". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
18. ^ "Lasan Triumph at British Curry Awards". Ethnic Now. 28 October 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
19. ^ a b Fulford, Paul (5 November 2009). "Birmingham restaurant Lasan wins third curry 'Oscar'". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
20. ^ "Birmingham restaurant Lasan celebrates more success at British Curry Awards". Birmingham Post. Birmingham. 5 November 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
21. ^ "Four in a row for Indian restaurant Lasan". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. 23 November 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
22. ^ a b "Indian restaurant wins 'healthiest' award in UK". UKMalayee. December 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
23. ^ "Lasan riding high on awards". Menu Magazine. December 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
24. ^ Bridgewater, Emily (18 July 2013). "Lasan, Birmingham: Curry but not as you know it". Express & Star. Wolverhampton. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
25. ^ "Lasan win Best Restaurant at Asian Business Awards 2013". Midlands Business News. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
26. ^ a b "Winner of Gordon Ramsey's The F Word Best Local Restaurant 2009". The Gastro Card. 4 March 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
27. ^ Belle, Lula (30 October 2013). "Lula Belle Meets Aktar Islam, Great British Menu and F Word Winner". Glamour In The County. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
28. ^ Derry, Joahnna (7 October 2013). "Lasan, James StreetKeep Calm and Curry On". Birmingham: Flavour First. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
29. ^ "Michelin in the Midlands: Top 10 restaurants". The Guardian. 2 March 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
30. ^ "Birmingham Mail Top Ten: The best curry houses in Birmingham". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. 18 January 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
31. ^ "Lasan restaurant boss's delight at No.1 spot in Birmingham Mail Top Ten Curry Houses". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. 23 January 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
32. ^ Beardsworth, Luke (9 October 2014). "National Curry Week 2014: Birmingham's Indian restaurants reviewed". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
33. ^ Fulford, Paul (10 October 2014). "National Curry Week 2014: Birmingham's top ten curry houses". Birmingham Mail. Birmingham. Retrieved 1 November 2014.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Lasan on View Birmingham
* Lasan on View London

## Further reading

[edit]

* Williams, Zoe. Birmingham, restaurant review. The Daily Telegraph. 16 August 2010
* Norman, Matthew. Lasan, Birmingham. The Guardian. 29 October 2005
* Burns, Amy. Lasan, Birmingham. Express & Star. 20 September 2011
* Restaurant Review: Lasan in Birmingham. Birmingham Post. 14 October 2011
* Bridgewater, Emily. Lasan, Birmingham: Curry but not as you know it:. Express & Star. 18 July 2013

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