Bahar Café

Two reviews in what must be at least 5 years that Bahar has been open — it seems to be little-​known outside the local Somali community. Popping in for lunch today, the chef actually commented to me that he remembered me eating there, 4 or 5 years ago, so I’m guessing they don’t get large numbers of ethnically-​British people coming in.
I ordered fish and rice — it came on two plates: 1 plate of rice garnished with an assortment of vegetable concoctions (spinach, kidney beans, others) and 1 plate of fried tilapia with half a lime and a rather unimpressive salad. A small bowl of green chilli sauce was also produced, along with a jug of cordial and a glass.
As a non-​Somali I was given a spoon for the rice dish (most customers eat with their fingers) but I opted to dig in to the tilapia like the regulars.
I was amazed by the quality of the food — the rice was perfectly-​cooked, all the veggie garnishes excellent, and the tilapia (lime squeezed over + dollops of chilli sauce) was the best fish I’ve eaten all year. I shovelled the meal down like a starving man, as the staff and customers looked on approvingly, obviously pleased at my enjoyment of their offerings. Seeing me finish off the rice, the waiter asked if I wanted more (I didn’t, because the portions were very generous to start with).
The price was £5 — I walked out wondering to myself why I don’t go there more often. I guess it’s because
— Bahar is a lunchtime place, and I’m rarely around Rusholme at that time of day.
— The food is pretty much the same every time (you can substitute meat for fish or spaghetti for rice).
— The atmosphere in Somali cafés is kind of utilitarian — plain tables and chairs, customers all men, (however I’ve been there before with a woman friend — that’s quite permissible), TV showing Al Jazeera.
For these reasons I’m giving it a 4 star rating — but the fish was easily 5 stars, and in value-​for-​money terms — off the scale.
If you’re hungry and on a budget — give Bahar a try. It’s a kind of left-​field choice, but fun, friendly, serves up enough tasty stuff to keep you going for the rest of the day.

Had Lunch today at Bahar, with a friend.
In a Café atmosphere the food was excellent and interesting.
The service was friendly, and obliging
I would recommend Bahar to all of my friends who are looking for an interesting and different meal.

Bahar Café is a Somali café-​restaurant in Moss Side. Although I’ve only eaten here once, I’m very impressed by their vegetarian options and also their claim that all food is prepared and cooked on the premises*. This is pure, home-​style food without artificial colouring.
As this was my first experience of Somali food, I asked for a taster plate of all vegetarian options and was presented with three plates of food and a bowl of soup for £6! They seem to have two different breads — the thinner injera bread (which I have yet to taste), and a thicker, spongier bread a bit like a large, thick English crumpet. Rice is another staple, and here it came flavoured with raisins and mild spices. For the rest of the food, I direct you to the photos I’ve uploaded — even if I knew the correct Somali food words, they wouldn’t come close to describing the richness of flavours and textures. Let me just say that a smooth, starchy potato and vegetable soup was accompanied by three other cooked vegetable dishes and a freshly cooked chutney-​type garnish. One of the vegetable dishes featured kidney beans, another seemed to be centred around potatoes in a starchy sauce — again, see the photos!
I don’t think dessert is emphasised in Somali cuisine, and none was offered here — but I didn’t feel any kind of lack due to the range of sweet, sour and spicy flavours in the large number of main course dishes.
Everything I had was delicious and felt completely wholesome. Although I was the only white face in the place, the welcome here was royal. Thank you, Hamza and colleagues for making me feel so at home — I will be back soon! One last thing — I watched in awe as a wiry Somali senior citizen demolish a *huge* plate of rice only. And why not — their rice tastes THAT good!
*I tested this bold statement by asking whether they use fresh spinach — yes, the spinach is fresh!
Note: I’ve assigned Bahar Café to the ‘Ethiopian’ category as the nearest match available on Unilocal — but I have it from their manager that Bahar Café serves 100% authentic Somali cuisine from the ‘Somali Brava tradition’. From Wikipedia, Brava/​Barawa is a historic port town on the south-​eastern coast of Somalia.