Etles Uyghur
Last November, I was invited out to Ningxia in Northern China. I can see you guys rolling your eyes thinking, “we know, you haven’t stopped reminding us!”, but it was truly one of the best trips of my life. Asides from being mesmerised by the landmarks and the ways of the Hui Muslims out there, the food always left a lasting impression on me and I returned to London determined to find halal Hui Chinese food just as good. I never did find an equivalent but I did come across Etles Uyghur, a Uyghur restaurant in Walthamstow.
Just like how the Hui people belong to the district of Ningxia, the Uyghurs belong to the province of Xinjiang, in China, which borders Afghanistan, Russia, and India. Their food is heavily Turkic influenced and their specialties are big da pan ji (big plate chicken) and hand pulled noodles. Both Hui and Uyghur cuisines are dominant in cumin, lamb, and beef.
Back to Etles Uyghur. Upon entering, the decor is minimal and fuss free, almost charming; this really is a hole in the wall. Starving, we got ordering from the small menu.
The Food at Etles Uyghur
Fish hasn’t really been my best friend this pregnancy so I’m afraid I cannot really comment on how good (or bad) the fish was, but based on the above photo, I think it was a hit with the table.
BREAD [£2.00]
We asked for some bread (girda naan) to mop up the broth from the zhong pan ji, but it arrived stone hard. Even after soaking in the remaining stew, the bread barely softened.
The total bill for four people, including drinks and service, came to £56 so £14 each. Wow, this was perhaps one of the cheaper meals I’ve had for a long time. The food at Etles Uyghur may not be everyone’s cup of tea – no crispy duck or smoked shredded chicken in sight – but it is different in a very good and perhaps better way. I have heard that the food here can be quite hit and miss, but from my experience, it was definitely a hit and well worth trying if you are up for something different. Would I return? Of course, I still have the rest of the menu to finish!
For Etles Uyghur’s website, please click here.
As a spicy foodie, I was extremely happy for a work friend of mine to recommend me this place and I can’t wait to go back and have Dapanji (but I saw you wrote Zhong Pan Ji? Have I been writing it wrong this entire time haha?) again. The big plate was extremely delicious but I wasn’t a fan of the boned chicken but the spices, noodles and potatoes mixed in together with it was amazing.
Great post by the way! I also tried the Tugur dumplings and Lamb skewers and they were amazing, the latter especially. Those skewers were seasoned so good, I could have three to myself. Did you ever try the Liang Fen too? Because I heard that was amazing too. I hope you’ll be able to read and comment on my post too: http://nyamwithny.com/dapanji-at-etles-uyghur/