Akbar's in Leeds

Great food and service. Been coming for 10 years, always great. Thanks to Tanveer who looked after us.

Love the atmosphere in the restaurant. We didn’t know how to order and the waiter patiently recommended dishes for us. Please order the family garlic Naan it’s GIGANTIC. I ordered the lamb shrank it’s tender and flavourful. It‘s not the cheapest option but worth a visit!

very nice food and very good service from our waiter tanveer.

Awesome food and service especially from tanveer

"Disappointing experience at this restaurant! We stopped by to eat but in veg course they didn’t have the option we wanted so we had some drinks and left, but was told by the staff that they don't serve customers who only order drinks. Felt unwelcome and discriminated against. Won't be returning. 1/5 stars."

This is probably the biggest 5 star review I have ever given anything on here and I have made over 100 reviews over the years, a lot of Indian restaurants are very good and most do achieve a 5 star from me which is hard to earn, in order to get a 5 star review from me pretty much means absolutely everything needs to be perfect. This right here is the best restaurant I have ever been to in my life I visited as a late valentine's date with my girlfriend and I am so glad we found this masterpiece of a restaurant! Just like with German Doner Kebab and the most cases with Indian and Pakistani restaurants then food is Halal but that doesn't bother me. The food here is to absolutely DIE for it's the best curry I've ever had and I've had hundreds Indian restaurants are my favourite kind of restaurants Italian coming in at a close second. The staff were more than friendly seated us at a busy time straight away took our order and it wasn't even 10 minutes before I got the most gorgeous meal I've ever had in the 26 years of my life! I'm some cases with restaurants I have actually had to approach the staff myself to tell them I'm ready to pay the bill here they really do work as a team no need to remind them about the bill they are so focused on the customer service it's actually amazing. Cooked fresh no reheats very good ingredients best looking and best tasting curry I have had, usually I go with Madras but because I've had dental surgery lately I need to avoid spicy stuff for the time being so went with the good old classic Chicken Tikka Masala and it's the best one I've had. Now for the final part of this review the pricing, honestly this isn't that badly priced to say the quality of service and the overall to die for meals you get here price range just under £30 per person which for this style of restaurant and overall quality is amazing. Now about the negatives? Uhh yeah there isn't any negatives honestly we'll be back for sure!

Great food & great service. Our waiter shubbs (aka shoaib/shabbu 😂) was very helpful and overall looked after us well. Thanks.

The starters were dry. We had lamb chops and chicken tikka. Table next to us had kids running around. Main nice but nan just ok. Don't think anyone will be bothered as place mega busy. They did not ask if food was nice or ok. Shame...

Great food. We tried haleem, cheppali kabab and Balti chicken a few times and they were delicious. They could’ve used less oil to make it more Enjoyable.

Walk in with 2 friends, staff were great to accommodate and seat on a busy Friday evening. Excellent meal, completed my third Chefs challenge, the staff were great and even gave me a little mint sauce to help me along the way. Akbar's is the go to curry in Leeds for me, I'll be back for challenge number 4 soon

Went for a meal with my partner and bro n sister in law, the staff were so friendly and really polite and went above and beyond to do anything they could for usxx

Don't have the kulfi, £5 for a bit of squirty cream with a 30 pence ice lolly isn't worth it. Curries were excellent but would have been a nicer valentines experience had the waiter bot poured a beer all over me.

I am a regular at this place and have been attending for years. The curries here are varied, interesting and you can find something for everyone here. Prices are reasonable and the staff are respectful and chipper. I hold this place as my standard for curries and the like and everywhere else I go never comes close to matching. The tikka seasoning, lamb chop spice rub and pickle tray all stand out above competitors and the aauces are stellar. Bounding with flavour. The standout dish for me is the: Chicken Tikka Mekkani - Though on the sweeter side, it straddles the line of a Korma but with more depth of flavour and complexity. Bright red and bold, sweet and spicy but not so sickly as to ware you down. Other alternatives would be a simple Balti, the Karahi is an Asian favourite and the Madras is there for a flavoursome challange. Add a jug of the mango lassi to your order for a drink/dessert hybrid to cool you down and reset your tastebuds, and you're goldem. My largest criticism would be the atmosphere, the building is very large and very loud. Don't expect a quiet candle lit dinner here, they often play loud music for celebrations but you are almost always guarteed a seat. Bookings are only required for parties larger than 8.

Delicious and great service, thank you Tanveer for being so attentive!

Excellent Indian Cuisine! Our relatives invited us for a special dinner during our UK tour (Aug 2024): Indian food. I do not often had the opportunity to eat South Asian cuisine but I have tried in both my home country Canada as well as in the USA and even in Dom. Republic. This place had the best so far, truly exceeded my expectations. Same went for my family. I especially loved the nan (the interesting bread-like food hanging on a big hanger-sort-of).

Definetley go again really friendly nice and clean

Best Indian restaurant in Leeds city centre area. Lamb chop is the must try item.

I first came here in 2010, when Akbar's really was (at least one of) the best Indian restaurant in Leeds. This was reflected in the prices, but it was a treat and back then it was a 5 star experience all round. Now, I feel like Akbar's is a budget version of its former self. The prices are very much average, but so is almost everything else. Back in 2010, it felt quite posh, but now I'd almost say tacky, with pop music playing and sweets all over the floor from what appeared to be some sort of party. I guess times have changed and Akbar's has moved with it. It's a perfectly reasonable place still, but you might want to look elsewhere if you want a classy experience. One commendable point is that tipping is entirely optional: they don't automatically add a "service charge" to the bill like most other restaurants.

The worse curry I've ever had, an egg based Jalrezi, prawns that tasted of football boots. Should have know windows looked like not been cleaned for about 2 tears. Got an old night club bar feel to. Apparently toilets where atrocious when girlfriend went to chuck up her prawns. Waiter was a cool dude though.

Thursday night evening meal turned out to be wonderfully tasty. We had a fantastic service from Mr Tanveer who made great suggestions as to meals options. Will definitely be back soon

Great atmosphere and service. Food is also 👍

It's a nice place it really is and is very clean and tidy. Staff are very polite as well. I ordered a keema curry, which was nice, but the rice should be free with curry. My local does the most amazing keema and comes with rice. Would I go back probley not as some of the work colleagues got starters, and they were quite pricey. But the staff was very nice and friendly and the food was lovely. Thank you.

Qué terrible experiencia anoche. Llegué para abrir para agarrar una mesa para 2 como sabemos que se pone ocupado. Un montón de pequeños percances de servicio que elegimos no detenernos en (dejar platos de inicio para usar en la tubería principal no reemplazar cubiertos, etc.), pero cuando terminamos nuestra tubería principal (42 minutos en nuestra comida) una factura fue abofeteada en la mesa - sin oferta de postre u otra bebida. Todavía nos quedaba la mitad de nuestras bebidas en este punto. Encontramos esto v pushy pero, de nuevo, dejarlo ir. Luego, cuando colocamos nuestro dinero en efectivo, y una propina de £ 10 el camarero estaba literalmente rondando sobre nuestro dinero en efectivo / devolvió el cambio que dijimos que podía guardar, lo puso en su bolsillo y en 2 minutos volvió a la mesa y solicitó que dejáramos la mesa como lo necesitaban. En este punto habíamos pasado 45 minutos en el establecimiento y estábamos terminando nuestras bebidas. ¡Le dije lo increíblemente grosero que se nos había dado que ni siquiera nos habían ofrecido el postre y ni siquiera habían tenido una hora para nuestra comida! Aprecio que sea un sábado por la noche muy ocupado, pero no creo que ni siquiera deberías tener un espacio de una hora para una comida de £ 100! Dije que estaría terminando mi bebida y luego pedí hablar con el gerente que escuchó, pero realmente no parecía molestado.

Great evening of a large party of 11. Special thanks to Amaan who made us feel very special & welcomed! Great server and made sure all was catered for. Thanks for a great evening!

La comida era promedio, el arroz Keema no se sentía fresco. La supervivencia debe mejorarse. La actitud de uno de los empleados no era buena y estaba siendo demasiado inteligente. No se servía agua.

Lamb chops starters were poor. No kids menu just £7.95 for chicken nuggets and chips which was hardly edible. £5 for a small bottle of cobra. No value for money whatsoever! Bang average food & service pretty much the same

Pasaba la noche en Leeds con dos colegas de trabajo y sugerí un curry en Akbars, que todos acordamos que era un plan excelente. He comido en varios restaurantes Akbar (incluido este dos veces antes) y la comida estaba definitivamente a los altos estándares habituales. Todos dijimos lo sabrosa que era la comida y los precios eran razonables para un restaurante de buena calidad. Pedí el Chef's Challenge 2 (el curry Phall) y lo terminé sin problemas... estaba muy sabroso y perfectamente especiado. El menú dice que si lo terminas obtienes un certificado y un helado de cortesía, sin embargo tuve que pedir el helado (no se ofreció) y nunca recibí el 'regalo sorpresa extra' mencionado en el menú (aunque lo he tenido antes, así que sabía cuál era la sorpresa y no estaba preocupado de que no se ofreció). Los únicos aspectos negativos (y la razón de solo obtener una puntuación de 4 / 5 ) fueron los precios de las bebidas... Pedí una cerveza Cobra, y me preguntaron si quería una pinta... Dije que sí, sin darme cuenta de que significaría dos botellas a £ 5 cada una, así que una pinta de cerveza resultó ser £ 10. El otro inconveniente fue la imposibilidad de presentar un recibo del IVA. Trabajamos para una organización benéfica que puede reclamar la devolución del IVA en los gastos, sin embargo, la falta de detalles sobre las tasas de IVA y los montos en cada tasa significó que mi empresa no puede reclamar la devolución del IVA, lo que no fue genial. Es un poco decepcionante que una empresa que ha existido durante 30 años no haya instalado hasta recibos capaces de proporcionar una 'factura de IVA menos detallada' que cumpla con la orientación de HMRC VATREC 16042. En resumen, la comida era increíble, el ambiente maravilloso, vergüenza el precio de las bebidas y la falta de una factura de IVA quitaron la ventaja de lo que fue una gran comida con colegas.

Very good service amazing food come back soon

Nice food excellent service by tanveer

Great food , Great service , Staff very friendly , I've been here on many occasions and never had a bad experience . Love the large naan breads .

nice food and good service by tanveer

Rude waiters, the curry’s also don’t taste of much or much and the chicken tastes microwaved

Quantity so less compared to increased price.previously was very good portion but now .. oh noo Service needed to be improved.

Unbelievable Evening in Great Company

Went to Akbar’s in Leeds tonight and was greeted and served by Tanveer. He was so lovely to us and his service was excellent. He made our evening. Great food and outstanding service, will definitely be returning soon.

The best restaurant!!! The inside of the place looks luxurious, the furniture is super comfortable. The dishes are brought out by the chefs and they are incredibly delicious! The waiters are very attentive. There were rose petals on the tables in the evening, on the eve of Valentine's Day! We will be frequent guests here! It was an unforgettable time, thank you! ❤️

Went last night Saturday 18th it was full we had to wait about 15 mins for a table for 4. When we got sat down and ordered our food to say the place was packed the food and service was incredible been twice now. Well done to the staff and the chefs in the kitchen fantastic food. Thank you

Decent food and speedy service. However the music (a Spotify playlist - not even premium so we had to listen to the adverts) was on SO loudly I could barely hear anything that was said to me. I’m not even an old man!

Great food, but feel that everything has got hotter and spicier since we last visited. Make sure to check the bill if they get any of your order wrong.

We had an amazing time at Akbar’s the manager tanveer made sure we was well attended to and took care of everything in a rather amazing manner would definitely pay a visit again. Great service by Tanveer!

Good quality food. Variety selection of food and drinks, all well marinated and prepped. Staff are friendly and welcoming. Overall worth visiting.

The Leeds Akbars branch consistently fails with their service every single time I have visited. I went with a friend today and a worker called Waseem (don’t know if he’s the manager or what but he’s one of the waiters and always acts incredibly egotistical), this guy I have had multiple interactions with not only today but several other visits and has been incredibly distasteful and doesn’t know how to treat younger customers or even serve them. I observed the manner in which he speaks to other customers of a different descent compared to myself and let’s just say, it’s always been biased (funny considering I’m bangladeshi myself). He is incredibly rude and I witnessed him speaking to one of the workers .who I personally know, in such a disgusting manner. The chefs have JUST as much of a right to be creating a warming atmosphere and tend to be more helpful than their rubbish waiters (i.e Waseem). The male who I knew of, came to speak to me respectfully, briefly ensuring the food was okay and instead Waseem aggressively pulled him back and started being condescending towards him and attempted to belittle him by asking me “is this your friend?” How disgusting and as an older man you should not be speaking to a member of staff in such a way. Every time I have spoken to Waseem it has been unpleasant and he doesn’t know how to phrase his sentences in the correct way towards customers. Waseem then starts hurrying the chef and leaves him alone when I said I know him. Utterly disgusted and therefore ruined my whole experience. My friend witnessed him multiple times staring at us which is not what a waiter is meant to do. I have deep experience in the hospitality industry and have a family who own successful hospitality businesses and believe me, this is not something that I take lightly. I will be informing management at some point. Such a shame I took a friend who’s never been to Akbars before in hopes for a nice evening but in return, left with disgust and I won’t be visiting this place any time soon.

The Leeds Akbars branch consistently fails with their service every single time I have visited. I went with a friend today and a worker called Waseem (don’t know if he’s the manager or what but he’s one of the waiters and always acts incredibly egotistical), this guy I have had multiple interactions with not only today but several other visits and has been incredibly distasteful and doesn’t know how to treat younger customers or even serve them. I observed the manner in which he speaks to other customers of a different descent compared to myself and let’s just say, it’s always been biased (funny considering I’m bangladeshi myself). He is incredibly rude and I witnessed him speaking to one of the workers .who I personally know, in such a disgusting manner. The chefs have JUST as much of a right to be creating a warming atmosphere and tend to be more helpful than their rubbish waiters (i.e Waseem). The male who I knew of, came to speak to me respectfully, briefly ensuring the food was okay and instead Waseem aggressively pulled him back and started being condescending towards him and attempted to belittle him by asking me “is this your friend?” How disgusting and as an older man you should not be speaking to a member of staff in such a way. Every time I have spoken to Waseem it has been unpleasant and he doesn’t know how to phrase his sentences in the correct way towards customers. Waseem then starts hurrying the chef and leaves him alone when I said I know him. Utterly disgusted and therefore ruined my whole experience. My friend witnessed him multiple times staring at us which is not what a waiter is meant to do. I have deep experience in the hospitality industry and have a family who own successful hospitality businesses and believe me, this is not something that I take lightly. I will be informing management at some point. Such a shame I took a friend who’s never been to Akbars before in hopes for a nice evening but in return, left with disgust and I won’t be visiting this place any time soon.

Pleasantly surprised! I don’t usually choose a curry but the food here was gorgeous. We were a family of 15, with lots of young children. The staff were extremely friendly, kind, patient and made us feel relaxed. Loved their sense of humour. Will definitely revisit next time we are in Leeds, maybe leaving the children at home! Great staff!

We had a great meal at Akbars. The staff looked us and everyone enjoyed the food. There are some good curry houses in Leeds but Akbars is ideal for larger groups.

Rushed, barked orders at by the waiters. Wouldn't bother going back again.

A few days ago, I dined at this restaurant with my girlfriend’s parents. The food was absolutely delicious, and everything else seemed great. However, one server completely ruined the entire experience. A tall server, around 185-190cm, threw dishes and utensils onto our table every time he served us. To make matters worse, when we were paying the bill, he even shouted at us. We came to this restaurant as customers—why on earth should we be treated this way? While the other staff and the food were excellent, this one employee left us with a terrible experience. Because of him, we will never want to visit to this kind of place again.

The place need refurbishment to dirty inside in the sitting area all around ...

Catered for 24 of us on works do food was great as usual and drinks were flowing

You will discover this restaurant provides a great customer experience from start to finish, mainly because the staff and management respect their customers making you feel valued. The food was excellent and I particularly liked that the chef delivered some of the dishes to the table. Thank you for a nice evening.

The place is brilliant l, good staff especially tanveer who is the manager good guy, special thanks for Mr paul

Great service and food... Was looked after by Manager Tanweer

Amazing staff, service, and the food. Pretty relaxing atmosphere with some good, not too loud music. Can't fault anything. 😊

I enjoyed recieving a certificate and free ice cream for eating the hottest plate on the menu. Friendly staff. Great night.

Food was good , but ar very high price

Very good food and service but very busy made it overwhelming

Went to eat at Akbars after zayn maliks concert and i must say outstanding service by Shoaib , food was served fast and quality of service was spectacular. A must visit when in Leeds.

Busy but still good attentive service

The best place ❤️❤️ I been to Akbars with my friends everything was perfect food was excellent the atmosphere the best ❤️❤️

While serving guy was little rude but , Manger came and he knew what he need to do did his job excellent very calm kind Thankyou so much Muddassar infinity 🌟 for you

I came today with my friends for her birthday and while we ordered food the guy was very rude i feel so sad its kind of insulting i also came here for nice food and spent more than £100 but its my last they i came here never recommended to anyone

Excellent service provided by Tanveer. Food was excellent, big portions we couldn't eat it all but we took it home. Recommend the dhal makhani, butter chicken and of course the garlic naan. Unreal food 5/5

Food is very good, Mr Waseem provides good service :)

My first visit hopefully will return it was a quiet evening when l went not full and we were there at 5pm

It was lamb on the bone , and Mr tanveers sehb served it well

Best chicken tikka masala I’ve ever tasted. Stunning 🤩

Nice place to go for Indian food in Leeds. Prettt standard selection of curry’s but nothing to shout about.

Really good food and excellent service. Can't wait to visit again!

Good was great, service was fast and friendly. We were a large party of people (11) and everything came at around the same time which was good. Was reasonably priced too. The large naan was a fun novelty too, but was also tasty! Would recommend if in the area.

Excellent service and excellent food deffo worth a visit 👍🏼

Thank you so much for the great food and service. 5 stars

The waiter pretended to be friendly and paid the bill in the end. They received a lot more money.

Cannot fault it. Really nice staff and an incredible meal. Got the lamb shanks and they added some green chillies to spice it up for me. That and the amazing fresh naan make this a top choice for me.

Very good staff amazing would recommend to try out there food very reasonable prices for where it is in the town centre 👍

It's the place we go to eat. When we asked for a bill, we had a long conversation with an employee who repeated 4 times that the tip was not included in the fee. Since when is it mandatory to tip a crappy presentation? food was not tasty enough. luckily i rounded up the bill and came out paying £60 for a disgrace + tasteless meal. I will never go through the door again Leeds Akbar brunch.

Always had a great meal, but have been let down this time. Always busy, what had happened not even half full on arrival. Ordered starters wh7ch were ok, main curry, usually good chunks of chicken this time very small cubes and over cooked, nann bread ok. Left very disappointed as have used akbars for years, and have always recommended, but not this time. Needs to go back to what they used to be.

This is a gem of a place. Excellent food, service and atmosphere. 10/10 for a fantastic Indian restaurant experience.

Great service from Ali and manager sarmad

Delicious food. Fantastic service.

CHECK THE RECEIPT - they overcharge for things not in the receipt. The food was okay and the waiter was amazing, I gave 1 star review because the receipt was £70, but they charged me £77, without even notified me. If this was 10% service tax, that is fine, but no warning or even mention about it.

The restaurant is Pakistani and their food is delicious. I recommend going there and trying it. The food is varied and the quantity is large. The dish is enough for two people, the menu is varied, the prices are reasonable, the service is fast and excellent, and the place is large enough to serve large numbers. All the employees were quick to serve, especially Amaar and Rizwan, who took the order and were interested in us and wish them well-being. We went back to him a second time and his food was very delicious. I recommend his food and the service is the best and the food is fast 👍🏻

Went to Akbars in Eastgate (Leeds) last night with family and friends. Tanveer (Manager) was very welcoming, friendly, gave his best customer service throughout the night. Food was lovely, warm, fresh! 100% reccomended!

Always a top place for a great curry.

The customer service was poor and the food was very average for the price. We understand that the place is crowded and servers will be busy but the attitude towards us the entire time was very poor.

Went with a party of 14 without a booking, they couldn't do enough to accommodate us genuinely first class, the food was outstanding! We'll definitely be back!

Was very impressed with the food and service will definitely come back

Splendid food , great atmosphere and lovely interior inside the restaurant. I just want to bring up that the manager tanveer was absolutely ace , he welcomed me and my wife and helped us with everything . Straight 5 star hospitality. Kind regards

The food is always cooked perfectly and packed full of flavour, the staff are super friendly too. I’d say it’s the best Indian food in Leeds.

If you're a fan of Pakistani cuisine, Akbar’s is definitely worth a visit! The Nihari was absolutely lovely—rich, flavorful, and perfectly spiced. One of my go to places when I’m in Leeds or Manchester! Please open one in London!!! :’)

Naan bread is of good quality. I ordered one naan bread with seafood balti and a poppadom. I think one main dish is enough for only one person.

Went here on the 21st September for a birthday meal with the family (including children). Food was great, little slow to come though, and prices were not too bad. However, after barely finishing our meal we were told we had to leave the table as the next booking had arrived. We had been at the table for 1 hour and 30 mins. We still had drinks so had to stand in a tiny area outside the toilets to finish. This ruined an other wise good night. If you have a time limit they should warn you before hand and speed up with bringing the mains. Based on the experience I would avoid and go to the Leeds Road restaurant instead.

Not worth the Hype!!! As it was a special day, we wanted to celebrate by dining out. Everything was lovely the atmosphere, the vibe. Later we got menu and we were having small talks and taking pics, Even though they knew we were busy, they were keep bugging us to order. We said will check, give us some time, again he's there asking us to order. It was irritating which we hated. Later ordered samosa chat and 2 bread and a curry. It was not worth the Hype. There are so many other curry places i would recommend. Ignore this place if possible.

High-end rendition of the classic balti

Good food with great service. Prince was really helpful and good at his job! + food served here is halal!

very good service at Akbars bradford thanks to sherry good guy very pleasant and knows how to speak to us

Good Indian food served fast. The large hanging naan was the highlight of the meal

My fav place around here. Come for the lamb chops every time I’m. In town. Everything else is decent too. Always happy to sit walk ins and a no fuss service.

One of the best restaurants in Leeds! Affordable, 5 star food, 5 star service and a cozy dining place. If you come to Leeds or live here, you're missing out if you don't come here.

Everything was a bit meh really. 4/6 of us today have an upset stomach. Long wait for drinks. Waiters didn't know what so e of the dishes were when they came out. Garlic naan bread was dry, certainly the low point. Highlight was the starters. Bhaji and Chaplin kebab. Everything was overpriced for what it was and the service. I won't have "busy Saturday" as an excuse, what do you expect in Leeds city centre on a Saturday?

Was pretty disappointed with the dining in Leeds in general but did not enjoy the food here at all. Staff were amazing, place was lovely and clean. It was late and this is the only place open. I really hope we were unlucky on that Friday night or it’s just we are used to a different style in Essex. Going by reviews, lots of people liked it , but wasn’t for us .