Barakah

Barakah is a Bangladeshi and Indian restaurant on Bridge Street in central Belper, on the run of independents that climbs from the bridge over the Derwent up towards the Triangle. It works as a sit-in restaurant and as a takeaway, and trades on a bring-your-own-alcohol basis — a useful saving the regulars mention often in reviews.

The kitchen runs the usual long British-Bangladeshi menu — bhuna, dhansak, dopiaza, jalfrezi, balti and a chef's-special section, plus tandoori starters, biryanis and a sensible spread of rices and breads. Standout dishes in reviews are the masala fish — one of the few central-Belper restaurants doing fish curries seriously — and the lamb specials, with the customer chatter on Tripadvisor running across enthusiastic regulars and the occasional hit-or-miss night on staffing and reheated leftovers.

It is the kind of friendly neighbourhood curry house Belper does well, and a more characterful alternative to the chain-style operations further down the parade. Halal kitchen, evening trading only, with delivery offered through the usual aggregator apps as well as the shop's own number.