Ask a taxi driver in Manchester where to get the best kebab in Manchester (often the best way to discover such things), and there’s a very good chance you’ll end up at the Rusholme Chippy. That’s exactly what happened when a couple visiting from America jumped in a cab and asked that very question. There was no hesitation, it was straight to the Chippy.
It’s stories like these that Osama, who’s worked behind the counter for 25 years, says get him right in the feels. “It’s very emotional because it becomes part of people’s life stories,” he says. “You’d be surprised, I’ve met people on planes, and they’ll say, ‘You from Rusholme Chippy?’”
Rusholme Chippy isn’t just a kebab shop. It’s a cornerstone of the Curry Mile, a road already packed with history. Opened in 1977, it began life as a traditional chippy with just a handful of tables. Now, it’s an institution, over the years changing to serve traditional Afghani grills as well as fish and chips. “Everybody knows about Rusholme Chippy. I think it’s part of the heritage of that road,” Osama says.
The legacy runs deep. It started with Osama’s uncle Mo – or ‘the guy with the glasses’ as he’s known – serving up sustenance for generations. “We’ve got the third generation coming now. Grandfathers brought their sons, now their kids are coming. It’s a family cycle.”
And with good reason. The food has cult status, made from scratch with secret family recipes that are guarded like treasure. Take their legendary kobeda kebab, a spicy, handmade skewer of minced lamb, not far off a foot long, served on a stretched out flatbread, bubbled and scorched from the tandoor, on a square of chip paper. No frills, no fuss, no plates even. It’s a five napkin situation. “Nobody else can make that kobeda,” says Osama. “It’s exclusive to us.”
There’s also the Kabuli pulao, the Afghan national dish made with slow-cooked lamb shank, topped with sweet raisins and currents scattered like jewels, and a side of aromatic broth. “Everything you see is marinated with a special recipe,” Osama says. “Obviously, the secret will be with me. Nobody else.”
But Rusholme Chippy isn’t just known for the classics. The menu spans from chippy staples to full-on Middle Eastern feasts; fresh chicken tikka with rice, tender grilled meats, and of course, chippy-style chips. “They’re chippy chips, but the best quality. We buy the best potatoes. Some go soft when you cook them, ours come out crispy, and soft inside.”
Part of what keeps the place alive is how it fits into the nighttime rhythm of Manchester. The Chippy stays open late. Very late. “On Fridays we’re open until 4am, Saturdays until 5,” Osama says. “It’s a focal point, a meeting point. We enjoy it, because we hear people’s stories, with all their history. That’s very nice.”
Ask around and you’ll hear it again and again, Rusholme Chippy isn’t just about food. It’s where people come after nights out, family gatherings, or after long late shifts.
We meet a doctor who the Rusholme Chippy fed consistently throughout his training at medical school in the 90s. He’s here with his own daughter, feeding her before they head for the train and she returns to her own college education.
A mum arrives with her two toddlers for lunch. She needlessly apologises for being noisy – they weren’t really – and tells us her dad used to bring her too, from the age of about six. They’d let him take her behind the counter, where upon he’d lift her up to watch the bread cooking in the tandoor, bubbling up instantly in the intense heat.
”It’s an institution, isn’t it,” she says. ”And the people are so lovely.”
You can’t fake that kind of loyalty. It’s earned over decades of staying true to what works: ridiculously generous portions and consistently great food (and perhaps a dash of being open when everyone else is closed). It’s more than just a place to eat.
It’s a place with soul.
Rusholme Chippy, 62 Wilmslow Rd, Manchester M14 5AL
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