CharChar Kitchen in Manchester

Ordered beef curry with rice and a portion of chips. Ok firstly this place is expensive for its location which is in Ashton market Hall at £14 for the above for me is a little overpriced and would like to see some kind of lunchtime offers , maybe one tray deals after all huge nhs population nearby ! After the bad above now for the good The food was really good absolutely no complaints whatsoever the beef was soft and tender and the sauce had just the right bite to it. All in all a pleasant experience just a little expensive.

Revisited CharChar in September as we wanted to try their other fare after our first visit. Mains we ordered: • beef brisket with rice • scallion oil with chicken on fried rice • beef fried rice • chicken curry with spaghetti Snack/sweet we ordered: • an egg & chopped pork sandwich • taro ice cream Drinks we ordered (some of which came with a main): • an iced tea • Horlicks • iced Ovaltines (as they didn’t have Milo) We really liked the scallion oil on chicken - really simple but nice flavours & the chicken was thigh meat which was all the better! The beef brisket was in a watery sauce rather than a thick stew which we were expecting but the flavours were nice & the beef was tender. Both the beef fried rice and chicken curry were served piping hot. The fried rice did not have the wok hei flavour & was a tad sweet but it was a tasty dish overall & was very more-ish. Portion was smaller than expected so it would have been good to have more! The chicken curry was a bit watery rather than thick but it was flavourful & the chicken was all thigh meat, which was good! The toasted sandwich wasn't bad but we were missing the egg! The taro ice cream was pricey at £3 a scoop but it looked & tasted fab! Very thick & creamy with the yummy taro flavour. Great end to the meal! The iced tea was really strong & there was a generous amount of lemon slices so it was super refreshing, as iced tea should be! The iced Ovaltine was a tad weak, unlike thick iced Milo in Asia but it was a nostalgic taste of childhood. Some other niggles: - Portions weren't as hearty as the satay beef with macaroni which we had the first time. - The bill didn't seem to match the prices on the menu. We were charged a pound more. - The rice on the scallion oil and beef brisket dish as well as the scallion oil chicken were a tad lukewarm. All in all, CharChar has some really tasty food which are not too common in Manchester as the HK-style diners seem to be just emerging in the UK. Service is often friendly & people seem nice. It's definitely worth visiting for a taste of Hong Kong beyond dim sum & roast meats!

Spotted this new-ish Hong Kong-style cafe in Ashton market & had to check it out! As we had planned to have some Persian food at Dina's, there was a limit to what we could order. We settled with satay beef with macaroni which came with a drink in a set - we chose the milk tea. We also ordered a French toast with peanut butter & some golden syrup on the side. Everything came to £12 which was reasonable. The milk tea is made with evaporated milk & was very strong. I added some sugar to the tea, so it took the edge off a bit. The macaroni arrived next & was a large bowl. The macaroni was cooked to the right texture - not too hard or soft - and the thin satay beef slices were tender & succulent & drenched in a very flavourful braised sauce. The whole bowl had lively umami flavours! It was so more-ish!! The French toast wasn't as thick as we had anticipated but was freshly fried with peanut butter between the bread slices, & a dollop of melting butter on top. A bottle of golden syrup was served alongside the toast & we couldn't resist  adding some. It was nice & crisp on the outside & was an indulgent sweet treat overall. We really enjoyed our meals at CharChar & would love to return soon to try the other items on the menu. Defo recommended!!