The story
Balti was born in Birmingham in the 1970s, in the Sparkbrook and Sparkhill streets where Kashmiri and Pakistani families had settled. The best-known account credits Mohammed Arif of Adil's on Stoney Lane, opened in 1977, who wanted to win over local diners used to quick service and boneless meat. A Sikh engineer nearby pressed him thin, flat-bottomed steel bowls that could sit over a fierce flame, the curry was fried in vegetable oil rather than ghee, and the name came from the Urdu word for bucket. Some link it to Baltistan in northern Pakistan, but historians credit Birmingham, whose Balti Triangle boomed in the 1990s.
Rival claims
Some link it to Baltistan in northern Pakistan, but most food historians (and the OED) credit Pakistani restaurateurs in Birmingham's 'Balti Triangle', notably Adil's (1977).
Also known as balti curry, balti gosht, Birmingham balti.
On the Meridish menu
Balti was the main course on menu No. 17 on October 17, 2026. Its clue in the game, which hints at the place without naming it:
A fast, fierce curry cooked and served in the same thin steel bowl, its name from the word for bucket. Restaurateurs from Kashmir and Pakistan made it famous here in the 1970s.
In Meridish, every dish is pinned to the town or city most widely credited with creating it. A guess within 25 km scores all 100 points. How scoring works.
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balti_(food)
- visitbirmingham.com/blog/post/the-birmingham-balti-a-history-of-the-citys-iconic-dish
- nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/story-behind-balti-birmingham-uk
Food history is often disputed. Think we've pinned it in the wrong place? Tell us at hello@meridish.com, ideally with a source.
