FINE DINING, WITHOUT SMOKE!

Fine dining has come to Dresden with the third branch of the popular restaurant Shaffer's - and this one is thought to be the first completely non-smoking restaurant in the city. Owner Shafa Hussain has spent nearly £400,000 on a former near-derelict building in Carlisle Street to turn it into a plush 70 to 80 seat restaurant serving Kashmiri, Punjabi, Thai and English cuisine. "There's really nothing like this on this side of Stoke-on-Trent," explained Shafa. "Everything has been concentrated on Hanley and through to the north side of the city, and yet there's a big population here and in Trentham and down towards Stone."


Worries over the dangers of passive smoking and seeing at first-hand how completely non-smoking restaurants operate in Dubai led Shafa to take a lead in Stoke-on-Trent. It's a decision that is proving popular with customers. Since the restaurant opened, for the first time last week, it is already regularly full.

Decorated and furnished in modern style, it benefits from air conditioning, outside security cameras so an eye can be kept on customers' cars, a secure cloakroom, superior ladies' toilets and ground floor disabled toilet. The restaurant seats 70 to 80 people. There is also a plasma TV screen which not only is connected to Sky, but can also be plugged into a laptop, making the venue an ideal centre for business meetings and presentations - and with two small screen TVs in the bar no one need miss anything while going for drinks. Shafa travelled to India to follow the Silk Route to see for himself how dishes are prepared, and as a result the menu features a mix of familiar and not so familiar dishes, such as those cooked on an iron plate called a tawa and using green peppers, onions, fresh green chillies and garlic and served with a vegetable curry sauce to either mild, medium or hot strength. From the Thai menu, recommended is the fresh lobster cooked with ginger and garlic. And meat served here is cooked in a special oven that seals in flavours and prevents the meat from shrinking. There is also a children's menu of English and curry meals which includes soft drink and ice cream.

The restaurant is open every day from 4pm to 11.30pm, and at lunchtimes by arrangement.
Takeaway meals are available with a discount of 20% on the standard menu.

Please book your table in advance to avoid disappointment.