Review: Aziz, Cowley Road, Oxford

It’s always important to stay ahead of the game. Where restaurants are concerned it’s vital. No one knows this better than Aziz Ur-Rahman, who has just celebrated 25 years in his Cowley Road premises.

So while news of his latest foray ‘Meat Free Mondays’ sounds fantastically topical and relevant, it isn’t a surprise. There’s a reason The Aziz is still in business.

It seemed almost serendipitous, however, that its first evening was launched just as Vegetarian Week approached. Knowing Mr Aziz, again no coincidence.

So there I was on Monday even-ing, hungry, eager, curious but more than anything excited. Because it’s the right move. We all eat too much meat and having a day off won’t do us any harm. Having something like a veggie thali where you get to try out delicious dishes you’ve never even heard of will only ease the pain. So, accompanied by my vegan plumber Bruce and my stubborn, meat-eating Glaswegian friend to balance things out, in we trotted.

It was an interesting evening, an assault on the senses in every way, most of the dishes were new, and some veg unrecognisable, even to our vegan friend.

In the end our waiter went into the kitchen to produce an actual potol and a karela (one resembles a short, spiky cucumber, the other a cross between a yellow pepper and an onion).

We ordered the thali, just because it was such good value — 1 starter, 2 mains, 2 sides and any rice or nan for £14. The mains included dosas (like an Indian crepe wrapped ar-ound potato masala), idles (steamed cakes) or vadas (crispy dumplings), so if you want to veer off piste from the vegetable curry selection and try something new you can.

While we were studying the menu, a little plate of pushkas were served — tiny shells of crispy purée stuffed with chickpeas in a tamarind sauce, which were so delicious we all let out a little squeal. The thin, crispy, fried little baskets of heaven were the perfect entrance to a meal of intriguing possibilities and culinary delights.

A tiny shot glass of dhal soup with a distinctive banana undertone was less of a success, being too thick to drink (a teaspoon would have helped) and warm, but as both were complementary one can’t really complain.

Besides, that was half the fun, trial and error, finding things you wanted to take home and stroke and others that weren’t to your liking. You could throw caution to the wind and immerse yourself in the strange exotic sauces and dishes placed before you in their little metal bowls.

Between the three of us we tried almost everything on the menu and while I won’t list it all, I’ll note.

The sabzi samosa chaat with yoghurt and chaat masala sauce was a light fragrant pastry dipped into a gently spiced yoghurt, light years away from the greasy offerings you find in supermarkets. The pyazees were thick onion cakes fried in spices which were like Indian dumplings, and again so delicately spiced I could have eaten a plate full, had they not been so filling.

The misti kadu torkari — sweet pumpkin curry — was delicious, although we had to request it hotter chilli-wise.

The Aziz seems to err on the side of caution where vegetarians are concerned, yet the ones I know tend to be much more adventurous and certainly able to cope.

The dosas I could go on about till the holy cows come home. I had to order an extra portion once I’d gulped down the first, despite being generous, because they were so delicious; light crispy, thin pancakes stuffed with a rich, dry potato curry, rolled up and then dipped in the mango spinach or the sambar lentil, the sambar boasting a zing that was so utterly addictive it made my toes curl up in delight.

Waiter: Anwar Parvez

The vadas were little treats of light, fluffy potato and chilli in a crispy crumb as if rolled in polenta and then deep-fried, which again I could have swallowed by the bowl-ful. The potol were delicious; their skins gleaming in their tomato curry sauce, and the alo bortha — mash with mustard oil, dried red chilli and onion — was another massive hit. The ‘okra pashto dares’ was perfect, with none of that stringy sliminess it sometimes produces.

Some of the other dishes were unnecessarily virtuous though, I thought. Give us more curry; let us choose between a vegetable dansak, a paneer masala, or a mixed veg jalfrezi. Give us something we recog-nise, then mix in some unknowns.

The karela bhaji — a bitter vegetable was just that, interesting to taste but not to eat in volume. The sak bija bhaji, chopped spinach with seem seeds, onion and garlic, was a bit earnest, the niramish (veg and lentils) lacking in spice or seasoning, while the tarka dhal and the labra (seasonal Bangladeshi vegetables) were both too watery.

But it’s early days and the paint on the menu hasn’t even dried yet, so there’s still room for manoeuvre.

As it was there were some magic moments, and it was an experience I could happily try again every Monday for the rest of my life.

We declined dessert, having eaten enough to fill us up until You Can Eat Again Friday, and snuck off up the uncharacteristically quiet Cowley Road.

So well done Mr Aziz. It’s a great idea, a new concept and something we should all be taking on board anyway. His way means we get to enjoy it too.

Meat Free Monday takes place every Monday at The Aziz.

National Vegetarian Week runs until Sunday.

Aziz 
230 Cowley Road, Oxford, OX4 1UH 
01865 794945 www.aziz.uk/com

Opening times: Open 7 days a week: 12 noon-2pm, excluding Friday; 5.30pm-11pm Sunday noon–11pm
Parking: Aziz has parking available for its customers opposite the restaurant in patnership with Restore gardens off Manzil Way. Restore gardens is op posite Manzil Way Health Centre.
Key personnel: Aziz Ur-Rahman and his son Abdul who has just taken over
Make sure you try the... All-day Sunday buffet which has been extended into the evenings now due to popular demand. £10 for adults and £5 for children under 12.
In ten words: 25 years and still going strong, the Aziz is legendary