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Take-A-Wars

With over a hundred choices what are the very best takeaway restaurants in Lincoln?

Did you know that there are over 100 different takeaways in Lincoln? With so much choice how do you pick the very best for you? What’s the best in terms of value for money, what’s the best in terms of taste, and what is the best in terms of a speedy delivery? Well Lincolnista has done the ‘research’ (i.e. we ate a hell of a lot of takeaway food) and we’ve come up with a definitive list of where you can get the very best takeaway food in Lincoln. Now obviously you can’t compare a pizza to a kebab so we’ve had to categorize it all. We’re looking at each type of takeaway food separately so let’s kick it off with a good old Chinese…

Chinese

Value for money: If you’re looking for value for money from your takeaway then Food First is probably the place for you. Now while all the Chinese takeaways in Lincoln have a pretty similar pricing strategy, what you get at Food First is good quality and good quantity. You can get a portion of sweet and sour chicken balls, special chop suey, and egg fried rice for just £7.50 and even though it says it for one we found it can probably feed two such are the portion sizes. If you fancy a walk you can get an even better deal by going to Yo Yo’s located opposite the University Library. They offer a takeaway tub for the price of £4.80 up until 6pm or £5.80 after that but it’s at 10pm when you can get buy one get one free on take away tubs at and the best bit about these tubs are if you can fit it in you can have it. If you, like me are one of those people who can’t make up their minds then this is a very good option as you have about 20 different dishes to choose from.

http://www.yoyoinbeijing.com
http://www.just-eat.co.uk/restaurants-food-first/menu

Taste: If you want the best tasting Chinese then you should definitely give Mings Garden a go. If you order something crispy it comes crispy, if you order something in sauce you don’t just get a couple pieces of meat drowned in sauce, you get the right amount. It is exactly what it says on the tin and it tastes great too. For what is the highest quality Chinese then there really is no other alternative in my eyes.

http://www.just-eat.co.uk/restaurants-mings-garden/menu

Speedy delivery: And once again it’s Mings Garden. Delivery can take between 15 minutes to 45 minutes but in my experience it is usually with you in about 20 minutes. Very speedy and high quality food equal one happy Lincolnista writer enjoying some plum duck and noodles for under £10.

Pizza

Value for money: If you want a nice cheap pizza then Sicily pizza is the obvious choice. For just £3.50 you can get a cheese and tomato pizza and even at the most expensive you find yourself paying £6.90 for the Sicily special of mushrooms, peppers, onions, sweetcorn, garlic, ham, salami, and pepperoni. Value for money-wise Sicily is definitely the best you’ll find and on a side note they have enough side orders to feed a small country so you will find yourself spoiled for choice.

http://www.just-eat.co.uk/restaurants-sicilypizza-ln2/menu

Taste: This is the part where the franchises make it in because if you want a great tasting pizza then there really is no alternative than Papa John’s. With 3200 stores across 29 countries there is a reason they have become so successful. The pizza bases are made in store from fresh including the slapping of the pizza and then topped with fresh ingredients and you really do notice the difference. The only drawback is if you want quality you have to pay for it. The most expensive pizza comes in at near £20.00 but if you can use one of their many special offers then you can usually get a pizza for a good price and it is definitely worth the money. My personal pizza of choice is the Big Smokey which contains a BBQ Sauce base, Marinated Pulled Pork, Bacon, Applewood Smoked Bacon, Pancetta.

http://www.papajohns.co.uk/Stores/lincoln/pizzas.aspx

Speedy delivery: For a fast delivery it’s another franchise we turn to in Domino’s pizza. With three separate stores in Lincoln each has a much smaller delivery area meaning you get your pizza a lot faster. Phone to delivery time is usually about 20 minutes and it’s a good quality, maybe not as good as Papa John’s but still very good. Again they are quite expensive but if you can get a discount code then you can get it for a reasonable price and your delivery will be in your hands quicker than any other pizza place in Lincoln. My personal pizza of choice from Domino’s – ham and pineapple.

http://www.dominos.co.uk

Indian

Value for money: If you want a good value takeaway that does Indian food then you’re best bet is to try pretty much any curry house in Lincoln. Prices amongst all are very competitive and it’s the set menu where you will find your value for money. At roughly £12 for a set meal again much like Food First you can easily feed two of what is said to be a portion for one. A few of the places that give these generous portions include Mowgli, Agra, and the Modern Tandoori but pretty much all of them give you a good amount for what you’re paying for.

Taste: My personal go to Indian takeaway is Mowgli. Located on the High Street it really is for me the very best in Lincoln. You get good portions of meat and vegetables and also have that oh so important balance between sauce and substance. If you want to try something a little different then why not go for the tropical chicken - a creamy, mild dish which contains pieces of fruit and complements the chicken surprisingly well. As I mentioned above each dish can feed about two people which is always an added bonus and the food is of the highest quality so if you want a great tasting meal then it’s Mowgli for you. The only drawback is that delivery can take up to an hour with them but it’s definitely worth the wait.

http://www.just-eat.co.uk/restaurants-mowgli

Speedy delivery:  If you want Indian food and you want it fast then I’d recommend Agra. You get good food, good quantity, and most importantly it is usually with within 30-40 minutes. The only drawback is the food is a little bit more expensive and you will find yourself looking at about £5.50 a dish.

http://www.just-eat.co.uk/restaurants-agra-ln2/menu 

And a couple of honourable mentions go to…

And this is the space for all those takeaways that don’t quite fit into any other categories but definitely deserve a mention.

Cactus: Cactus is the only Mexican takeaway that delivers in Lincoln and it delivers great food. You get good size portions and delivery is about 45 minutes. A couple of menu highlights are the Burritos and the £8.99 Special Cactus combo which includes BBQ chicken wings, jalapenos queso, onion rings, garlic mushrooms, potato wedges, nachos with salsa, sour cream, and guacamole dips. If you haven’t ever had a Mexican takeaway then I would highly recommend you give it a go.

http://www.take-a-way.co.uk/menu/2092/cactus-lincoln/

Topkapi: I’ve mentioned Topkapi specifically for one item on their menu: meal deal 12. For £4.80 you get the world’s best (and I really mean best) chicken wrap along with a can of drink and some chips. Not only that but they also do a great kebab, donner or otherwise.

http://www.take-a-way.co.uk/menu/205/topkapi/

So there it is a few great places to bring you some awesome meals when you just can’t be bothered to cook. My personal choice out of all of these takeaways would definitely have to be Cactus. Really good portions, great tasting, and you don’t have to wait long for your food to be delivered. It’s got everything you would want really but all of them are definitely worth a go if you haven’t tried them before.