 | |  | | | Luso Portuguese Restaurant Manchester - reader comments |  "Having been to Portugal last year, my partner and I were keen to give Luso a go. We arrived at at about 8pm and the downstairs of the restaurant was full so we were shown upstairs. It was a bit quiet but we did manage to get a table next to the window, which was good. For starters, I had Grilled Sardines and my partner the Fish Cakes. The sardines were fantastic and cooked in exactly the same way as in Portugal (a little bit over seasoned) which I like. The fish cakes were also excellent. Full of fish and not packed out with cheaper ingredients.
For mains, I had the special, which was Pan Fried Sea Bass and my partner the Slow Roasted Lamb on Cous-Cous. Mine was again very authentic and also came with potatoes. The lamb though was something else. It was a thick layer of slow roasted lamb on a neat bed of cous cous with a few medallions of pan fried mutton served pink. I had a lot of food envy! We also ordered sides of chips and vegetables. Both of which were just right. My partner had a dessert which we shared and we also had a bottle of Prosecco.
Having read some of the reviews on this site I was apprehensive about visiting Luso. Especially regarding some of the comments around portion size. I really shouldn't have been. We had more than enough food and really didn't need the side orders. We spoke to our waitress after the meal and commented on the portion size. She was very helpful and basically said that they'd listened to the feedback from recent reviews and made changes accordingly. If you like restaurants like Choice or TNQ then you'll like Luso." - Stephen Lake, Manchester - TRUSTED REVIEWER since Sep'08 (13/5/09 - visited on a Saturday evening) |
| | "I went to Luso on Valentines Day and I have to say, while the atmosphere was right, the cost and portions were slightly off. The food tasted great but you got little and got charged the earth. We had to wait awhile for the food so we had two baskets of bread. It cost £10! For hard bread! Overall, Luso was nice but it was really pricey and, being someone who lived with a Portuguese girl and ate the food on a daily basis for a long time, it was simple food at really expensive prices." - Simon, Manchester 15/2/09 (visited on Valentines evening) |
| | "At £15 - £20 each, you would expect a main to feed you, but you'll have to order a starter and a side to avoid starvation at Luso. I could only afford a main and a kebab on the way home. I guess it's value for money if you're an anorexic top model. Not for me, won't go again." - Ugo, Manchester 8/9/08 (visited on a Sat evening) |
| | "The online menu is different to what you get offered at Luso. A single vegetarian option just is not good enough, the online menu is deceptive. I never would have went there as a vegetarian otherwise." - Claire, Manchester 7/8/08 (visited on a Fri evening) |
| | "Having had our table of 10 booked for us by a friend, who lives in Manchester and whose birthday it was, we didn't know what to expect about Portugese cuisine but soon learned all about the history from the menus, which were very helpful and informative. We got a very warm welcome and the staff were very friendly and helpful throughout our meal, with little touches of bringing the right dishes to the people that had ordered them without asking who ordered what, which although basic stuff you don't get that everywhere. Really good mixed menu although only one vegetarian dish. The food was very good and really tasty but you definitely had to order sides to make your main complete and the portions weren't large which you would expect for an average of £16-20 per dish. To be honest that was the thing that let Luso down really as everything was overpriced for what you got and being charged for a very small basket of bread was another negative. I am not complaining about the food or service at all but there are many other restaurants that equal Luso on both these areas for noticeably less money. I'm not tight, none of us are, but it was the combination of a lot of little things that would probably mean we won't be going back unfortunately; the small-ish portions for the price, the prices being on the high side, being charged for bread, having to order sides to complete your meal and having to order 3 courses to feel satisfied etc. It's a shame as it was a lovely meal but when the bill landed, it left all of us with a nasty taste (to use a pun). If the prices were more realistic with other similar restaurants and you had a complete balanced main, so therefore not having to order sides, we would have no hesitation in recommended it to anyone. As it stands I am sorry to say that we won't." - Simeon, Huddersfield, 16/6/08 (visited on a Sat evening) |
| "On a visit to Paul Heathcote's marvellous new Spanish restaurant, Grado, across town, we got chatting to two Portuguese chef's. Inevitably the conversation turned to Luso, the city's only real Portuguese offering - unless of course you count the many branches of the Nando's Chicken franchise. We'd read many mixed reviews about Luso, largely by pompous jounalists or unreliable 'pay-us-for-a-good-review' websites. Even the reviews submitted previously on this page spoke highly of the 'amazing food' but then complained it was 'over priced'. Our two new Portuguese friends basically repeated the same observations, although in fairness Grado is not exactly cheap neither. They said they loved the food at Luso however were more disappointed there wasn't much of a Portuguese community feeling about the place - most customers being British business folk with the city's Portuguese fraternity visibly hanging around at Pau Brasil in the Northern Quarter instead. Not seeing either of these minor gripes as a problem, we arranged to entertain some top London journo's that evening at the Bridge Street establishment. Despite our late in the evening arrival, the service was very friendly and welcoming. Carlos, who we recognised from Piccolino in Stockton Heath, where this website was born, was extremely helpful in explaining the menu. He recommended Luso's signature dish, the Pork Vindaloo (£14.95), which was quite simply stunning. I'm not sure what illegal ingredients they put in it, however I woke up the next morning wanting to go back and feed my new-found fix - it's certainly worth returning for again and again. Unlike the taste-bud killing variety you find in Indian restaurants, the Vindaloo here is a succulent lightly spiced pork and wine stew, from the beautiful Indian state of Goa, once a Portuguese colony. And that maybe where the argument from the Portuguese chef's at Grado comes about. Luso doesn't try to be an out and out Portuguese restaurant, it offers a modern take on the traditional dishes from Portuguese colonies. That said, the Portuguese version of sirloin steak, Bifa á Portuguesa (£18.95) and the Portuguese Monkfish (£18), were also exceptional and the wine list is as representative as any you'd find in the Algarve. As mentioned by many people though, the price is a little on the high side with most dishes requiring side orders - Potatoes at £3.50 and Beans at £3.65 are a bit pricey but the Walnut & Mushroom Salad (£4.50) is again, worth revisiting for alone! So overall, Luso was as we had been lead to expect; food that is as good, if not better, than anywhere else in town but priced as high, if not higher, than some of the most exclusive restaurants in the city. Would the price put us off returning? Hell, no! I have a new addiction to feed!" - neil, restaurants of manchester 10/12/07 (visited on a thursday evening) |
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