Zain’s

Zain’s used to be the place I’d stumble into during what seemed like the last syllable of a recorded night. The chips, or rather the spindly fries, always seemed so blissfully delicious I’d shovel them into my face, taking bits of polystyrene carton and my own fingers with them.
Some of the food looked ill and the staff weren’t particularly chatty, but I wouldn’t expect them to be at that time. The place just seemed to be open forever, like that Nighthawks painting by Edward Hopper, only less classy.
The turning point was when I got back home one night and noticed Zain’s was shut. It was unthinkable. Not anymore. Nowadays, there’s been times I’ve returned home and Zain’s is just opening again at the start of the day. My, how I’ve progressed.

Zains has been my best fast food friend for the entirity of my time in Liverpool and continues to be so to this day. On a late night this is THE place to get an indian takeaway and it will not let you down.
The fact that they delivered to my halls of residence made it all to easy to place an order and spend money after a drunken evening which is lacking just a little bit of quality grub.
I cannot really say what Zains is like from a sober point of view but from my hazy drunken memories it seems to hit the spot.
If your a student in the Smithdown area then after a night out get to Zains get a curry, save the number and enjoy for many months to come.

Good Lord. Two years on and I still have Zain’s number in my phone. Disgraceful. They used to drop off takeaway to the student halls (Carnatic and Greenbank) and may as well have been stationed on campus for the amount of times we called!
The Garlic meat pocket was a favourite with us, especially if you were Very hungry and Excessively drunk. They do good student deals and if, like I say, you’re wasted, Zain’s is the cherry on top of a night out.
However, in hindsight, although we used Zain’s religiously as our takeaway of choice, it was probably only because it was the only number we had written down. A definite no-​no for the sober or the faint-​stomached.

Really should be viewed as a last resort for anyone feeling the worse for wear in the early hours and in need of something to soak up the booze, Zains has gained a reputation amongst the local student community for providing cheap takeaways til very late but is probably only sought out of habit or desperation when you consider some of the better options nearby.
There is little wrong with the food, but then there is little right. The staff are friendly guys as they need be when considering the drunks and big queues on a saturday night that they deal with on a regular basis.

Zain’s is definitely the place to go when you’re on your way home (Wavertree in my case) from town. As you fall out of your black cab into the shop you will probably find that most people in there are in the same situation as you. Zain’s seems to be the busiest after 11pm for that exact reason.
The food is pretty good, although I was disappointed with their chicken kebab because the chicken is like a tikka style which I wasn’t expecting — also didn’t really go with my garlic sauce and lettuce! The same can be said for the pizzas, I don’t think they offer a normal chicken.
Lets just say… it will taste fab if you’re drunk.

Advertised as Indian and Pakistan cuisine, Zain’s probably does most business out of pizzas and kebabs. Situated towards the outskirts of what I call ‘student land’ (ie from the bridge, up Smithdown Rd to the cemetery and the surrounding areas) this is a handy place for when you’ve had a local drink and get the munchies, or if you’ve been in town and just stepped off the 86 night bus.
As takeaways go, it’s pretty standard. Not a large shop, there can sometimes be some shuffling about if there’s a queue for the counter and more people are trying to get in. With your usual range of soft drinks (although they do the rare Dr Pepper and Cherry Cola here) the food is what you’d expect — a vast range of curries and then pizza, kebabs, burgers and a few extras and desserts. It’s safe to say that whatever your hunger requirements, Zain’s can cater for it. Watch out for the pizza though — my mate was a bit over eager and almost burnt his lips off on the cheese, which was so hot it was practically liquid. You may want to walk home before you eat anything.