Planning a Birmingham weekend with friends: where to book a table

Looking for restaurants for a Birmingham weekend with friends? Spend the days in the city centre, then book your group's evening table in the Jewellery Quarter at Aara, 108-109 Icknield Street, where we serve dishes from right across India, from Andhra and Telangana specials to North Indian tandoor classics, and weekends book up quickly, so reserve before you arrive.

Getting a group together is the hard part. Agreeing where to eat should not be. Below is a simple weekend shape: a busy Saturday in the centre, a slower Sunday in the Quarter, and dinner that suits everyone at the table. Every city stop links to its official page, so check times before you go.

Saturday: start in the city centre

Most group weekends begin at Birmingham New Street, which Network Rail describes as a major transport and shopping hub, with Grand Central shopping centre built around the station. Step outside and the Bullring is right there.

For groups who like a bit of competition, Bullring's own guide to things to do with your friends rounds up its leisure venues: full-body virtual reality, interactive football games, indoor mini-golf, and bowling with karaoke booths. Some venues are over-18s only in the evening, so book ahead and bring ID if you are heading there later.

If your group would rather take it slower, the same guide points to the free terraces at the Library of Birmingham, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery on Chamberlain Square and the Ikon Gallery in Brindleyplace. Visit Birmingham's 48-hour itinerary adds Birmingham Cathedral, which offers tours, and Digbeth for street art, board games and an independent cinema.

Saturday afternoon: walk the canals

Between the shops and dinner, the water is the easiest way to slow down. The Canal & River Trust's city-centre walk is a one-mile route between Livery Street, by Snow Hill, and the Mailbox. It passes the Farmer's Bridge Locks, Old Turn Junction, Brindleyplace and Gas Street Basin, and at Lock 8 you can spot lines of poetry carved into the lock arms. The Trust also notes that the Jewellery Quarter is just west of Lock 9, under Newhall Street Bridge.

Walk it from the Mailbox end and you finish beside Snow Hill, one stop by train from the Jewellery Quarter. Birmingham Museums calls it a three-minute journey.

Saturday night: a table for the whole group

This is where we come in. Aara is a warm, casual dining room on Icknield Street, on the western side of the Jewellery Quarter, and we are open until 23:00 on Friday and Saturday.

Getting here without a car is simple. The Grand Central tram stop sits at the entrance to New Street station, on Stephenson Street. Take a tram towards Wolverhampton and get off at Jewellery Quarter. Birmingham Museums puts the trip at about eight minutes, and the same tram takes you back into town afterwards. If someone in the group is driving, there are three free spaces in front of the restaurant and free parking on the left side of Pope Street, 24/7.

A few things that make group bookings easier:

• Book online at /book. Your table is confirmed as soon as you submit.
• Twelve or more? Call us on 0121 389 9882 so we can set the room up properly.
• Allergies or dietary needs? Add a note to your booking and mention it again when you arrive.
• Walk-ins are always welcome when we have tables, but Friday and Saturday evenings fill up.

What to order for a group

Our menu cooks right across India, so a table where everyone wants something different can all order well. The trick with a group is to share.

To start the table off: Chicken 65, Malabar chicken, Apollo fish or a street-style chilli sauté in paneer or chicken, with poppadoms and the mint & tamarind chutneys. The tikka platter is the easy answer when nobody can decide.

From the North and the tandoor: butter chicken, chicken tikka masala, paneer tikka masala, dal tadka and lamb sheek kebab, with tandoori naan and tandoori butter roti for tearing and passing. Our tikkas are marinated overnight and chargrilled in the tandoor.

From the South: the Andhra chicken fry, the Telangana mutton curry and the Madras chicken bring the heat and spice of the dishes we grew up with. Our slow-sealed dum biryanis come in vegetable, chicken, chicken tikka, lamb or king prawn, and in a large size that is made for sharing. Add bagara rice if you want a fragrant rice on the side.

To finish: kulfi, a round of mango lassi, or a Masala chai before the tram home.

We use halal meat in our meat dishes. Vegetarians are well looked after too, from paneer tikka and soya chaap tikka to chana masala, saag aloo and the vegetable dum biryani.

Sunday: a slower day in the Jewellery Quarter

If you are staying over, give Sunday to the Quarter. Visit Birmingham describes it as the home of British jewellery, with more than 100 independent retailers and craftspeople, over 200 listed buildings and World Craft City status. Start at the Chamberlain Clock, then wander to the historic Key Hill and Warstone Lane cemeteries, or pick one of the Quarter's museums, such as the Museum of the Jewellery Quarter, the Pen Museum or the Coffin Works. Check each official page for opening days first.

We open at 12:00 on Sunday and serve the full menu until 22:00, so a long lunch before the train home works as well as dinner. Parking on Carver Street and Pope Street is free all day on Sunday too.

Book your weekend table

Aara, 108-109 Icknield Street, Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham B18 6RZ. Open daily from 12:00, until 22:00 Sunday to Thursday and 23:00 on Friday and Saturday.