Indian restaurant in the Totley suburb of Sheffield.

The Venue
Mohul lies about 5 miles outside of Sheffield city centre, on Baslow Road, a continuation of the busy Abbeydale Road which runs south out of the city. The surrounding area is quiet and residential, but the restaurant itself sits amongst a row of shops on a busy main road. There’s plenty of parking outside.

The restaurant’s hard to miss – it’s got a highly decorated, Indian-style frontage, with gold-painted arches and domes surrounding tall, elegant windows set within a deep blue frontage; understated this ain't. Inside is a purplish, brownish look, perhaps a little quaintly old-fashioned, to a traditional restaurant offering plenty of tables and plenty of space. There’s no separate bar, and not much of an area to wait before being seated though, so it is best to book a table or make sure you time it right.

The Atmosphere
The Mohul is a drive from most places – on any given night it will attract a reasonable number of local residents who’ve strolled down the restaurant, but many will make the trip from a little further away; you’re not likely to see the kind of stagger-in parties common to Indian restaurants in busier areas closer to the city. The clientele is predominantly middle-aged, couples and groups of old friends and neighbours out for a meal. It’s a quiet place even when busy, very relaxing, very sociable, with friendly, helpful staff who are conducive to the atmosphere.

The Food
A pretty typical Indian menu – if the Mohul lacks for anything, it’s a speciality to really hang its hat on. There’s the usual tandoori, jalfrezi, bhuna, korma, sag, vindaloo dishes and all the rest of it, but nothing that really stands out as going beyond that.

It’s still a great selection, mixing the hot and the mild, and it contains recipes that most curry lovers will find familiar territory. The food is prepared and served to a good standard; breads are light and fresh, starters like kebabs, samosas and bhajis are crisp and not over-fried. Curries are of the thick and slightly drier kind; the flavours of the ingredients come through a little more than the creaminess or hotness of the sauce: a good thing, by and large.

Everything is reasonably priced, with most main dishes around £6 or £7 (a little less for the simple chicken, lamb or vegetable curries, a little more for the likes of the special mixed biryani or the tandoori king prawn karahi). Starters are mostly £2 to £2.50; side dishes like Bombay potato, mushroom bhajee or aloo gobi are almost all at £2.65; breads £1.50 to £1.70; and rice costs from £1.40 to £2.20.

The Drink
A decent wine list and a good selection of Indian and European beers include Carlsberg on draft, for which you can expect to pay around £2.80 a pint. Bottles of Cobra and Kingfisher (£2.50/£2.40) may be preferable, and if you fancy wine, it’s much cheaper if you opt for the one and half litre carafe (£11). All the usual teas, coffees, liqueurs and aperitifs are also available and reasonably priced.

The Last Word
The Mohul is a perfectly good Indian restaurant. It may not have the most imaginative menu you’ll ever see, but it is one that offers good cooking in pleasant surroundings.

venue information venue map view sheffield review add a review