A local restaurant, Dostana, is offering customers 50% off their food menu for the month of September to celebrate 50 years of business.
Although the name may have changed, the restaurant has been under the ownership of the same family for the last five decades as co-owner Danny Karim explains:
“In 1973 my Uncle Abdul, who had been living in the area since the 50’S, opened Kohinoor Restaurant in the centre of Woolton Village and it quickly became a favourite with locals, friends and family. There were no Indian restaurant in the area at that time, and very few in Liverpool city centre, so Abdul wanted to bring the tastes of his home in Bangladesh to the North West.”
After working together for many years Abdul’s brother took over the restaurant in 1989, renaming it The Jewel of India. Ten years later in 1999 the reins were passed to family member Ali, who oversaw the first rebranding of the restaurant.
“Many of our customers still refer to us as The Raj – we have a place in the hearts of our local customers who have been visiting us for decades. It’s wonderful when we welcome a young family into the restaurant and hear them say “My parents used to bring us here back when it was The Raj!”. We feel like we’ve been a part of their lives for 50 years.”
In 2016, the family took the decision to rebrand again and in honour of their loyal customers renamed the premises Dostana, which means “friendship” in Hindi.
“Our customers have become our friends and over the years we’ve seen their own families grow. We’ve hosted weddings, marriage proposals, christenings and baby showers. Customers have spent their Christmas Day with us, and it’s wonderful to know that we were there for such special moments in their lives.”
Like many food businesses Dostana also offer takeaway and delivery, however the real jewel in their crown is their restaurant – a distinctive building on Allerton Road which the family believe was constructed in the late 1800’s.
“We don’t know exactly how old the building is, but customers have told us they remember it being both a post office, and a local pharmacist. When we extended our kitchen back in the 90’s we actually found some small pharmacy bottles buried underground. We’d love to know more about the history of our place.”
Co-owner Danny has been at the helm for over a decade now, and is keen for a new generation of locals to enjoy what Dostana has to offer.
“We recently launched a street food menu, which as proven to be really popular with the younger customers who come to us for a bite to eat before their big night out. We also have plans to refurbish our terrace area this year as this is a real suntrap which is popular with our locals”
To celebrate 50 years of business, Dostana will be offering every customer who dines at the restaurant 50% off their food bill for the whole of September. Customers simply need to quote “HAPPY50” when they make their booking online or over the phone.
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