Why We Changed the Sunday Roast

We’re both proudly British — born and raised here — but our roots tell another story.

I’m from a Pakistani Punjabi heritage, and Mac’s Lebanese. We grew up in homes filled with spice — the smell of garam masala, cinnamon, cumin and cardamom drifting from our mums’ kitchens.

But like many immigrant families, our parents wanted us to fit in — to embrace British life and values.

So Sunday dinners became a blend of both worlds: tandoori chicken with roast potatoes, burgers seasoned with kofte spices, keema lasagne, and bangers and mash with merguez sausages.

We didn’t know it then, but they were creating what we now call fusion food.

That spirit is exactly what drives us at The Silk Route Kitchen.

We’ve kept the heart of the British Sunday roast — the comfort, the community — and added the soul of our heritage.

So when you try our Marathi Nalli Gosht, or our tandoori-style chicken roast, you’re tasting the story of who we are — two friends, two cultures, one table.

We didn’t just change the roast.

We made it ours

Review: A Roast Experience with an Asian Twist at The Victory Inn, Duke St, Brighton

If you think you’ve had a good Sunday roast before, think again.

This place takes the humble roast dinner and completely redefines it with an incredible Asian fusion flair. As a family we tried three different roasts — the pork, the lamb shank, and the tandoori chicken — and each one brought something special and unexpected to the table.

The pork roast came with a perfectly crisp crackling, giving way to juicy, tender meat beneath.

The lamb shank was the definition of melt-in-the-mouth. Slow-cooked to perfection, it pulled apart effortlessly, and the sauce it came in was extraordinary — rich and aromatic, with layers of spice that built slowly without ever overpowering the lamb’s natural flavour. Genuinely the best lamb shank I’ve eaten.

And then there was the tandoori chicken roast — a true showstopper. The chicken was smoky, juicy, and packed with that deep tandoori spice that hits all the right notes. Pairing it with the traditional roast trimmings shouldn’t work, but somehow it absolutely does.

The real revelation, though, was the sauce. Calling it gravy doesn’t do it justice — it’s more like an Asian-infused jus, bursting with spice, sweetness, and depth. It’s the kind of sauce you can’t leave on the plate; I happily finished it with a spoon.

This was more than a meal — it was an experience. A brilliant blend of comfort and creativity, proving that even the most traditional dishes can be reinvented in the most delicious way possible.

Absolutely up there in the Brighton hall of fame for roast dinners.