Birmingham is the culinary birthplace of the famous 'balti'. Invented in the mid-nineteen seventies by a Pakistani Brummie restauranteur, the balti bowl he had specially designed and manufactured was made in Birmingham and still is in the Washwood Heath area of the City by the Birmingham Balti Bowl Company.
Birmingham curry houses have existed since at least 1945, when Abdul Aziz, one of the first Bangladeshi immigrants to settle in the city, began serving curry and rice to policemen, lawyers, and barristers from a café on Steelhouse Lane. Birmingham owes a huge debt of gratitude to the Bangladeshi Brummies.
Birmingham's love of curries is down to the vast options we have in the city for delicious food, and the history of fusion and experimentation to cater to everyone's tastes. One of the most famous curry dishes, the Balti, was (probably) invented here.
'Brummie' as a name for a Birmingham person is what is known as a demonym. This is a word that shows a person as being a resident of a particular place, and the word is usually derived from that place's name. In the case of Birmingham, 'Brummie' comes from Brummagem, a name for the city used by locals since the 1700s.
Originating in nearby Shrewsbury and quickly adopted by locals in Birmingham, these traditional desserts are a cross between a cake and a biscuit, and have some similarity with shortbread.
It's a combination of stewed beef and vegetables, typically served with a slice of bread. Often reminding locals of a warm hug from their mothers and grandmothers, the Birmingham soup remains a crowd favourite, especially on rainy days.
More than 40 of Birmingham's 99 neighborhoods are 100% food deserts, meaning that the entire neighborhood does not have easy access to fresh affordable food.
Birmingham is known as the founding city for the recognition of Veterans Day and hosts the nation's oldest and largest Veterans Day celebration. Birmingham is the only place in the world where all the ingredients for making iron are present—coal, iron ore and limestone, all within a ten-mile radius.
That, combined with a host of James Beard Award–winning chefs (with seven awards at last count), is why the likes of Zagat and Bizarre Foods host Andrew Zimmern have declared Birmingham one of the hottest food cities in the country.
In the Saxon 6th Century Birmingham was just one small settlement in thick forest - the home (ham) of the tribe (ing) of a leader called Birm or Beorma. Geography played a major role in the transformation of Birmingham from a hamlet worth 20 shillings in 1086 into Britain's centre of manufacturing in the 20th Century.
Brummies' tend to use the word 'alright' as a greeting rather than the usual 'hello'. If we do say 'hello' then we end to drop the 'h' thus saying 'ello' instead. The 'g' in a word with 'ng' in it is often over articulated by Brummies and is effectively pronounced twice.
This suggests that most other regions plump for calling their mothers 'Mum'. But it's popularity in the West Midlands shows it may be a regional pronunciation, maybe influenced by the Brummie accent.
- Birmingham is the 'most religious' of all the core cities with 66% of the population professing a religion. The Muslim group in Birmingham is by far the largest of any core city and is now almost the same size (30%) as the Christian group (34%). Liverpool stands out as being particularly Christian (57%).
Currently, Birmingham is commonly referred to as the UK's second city, although Manchester has also emerged as a contender. Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Belfast also have alternative claims due to their status as capital cities of the other home nations.
London population of over 9.4 million. The 2nd largest city in the UK - Birmingham - has a population of 1.1 million. Is there a direct train from London to Birmingham and how long does the journey take?
Bradford in northern England has been voted “Curry Capital of Britain” for six years running. Our very own spice-obsessed editor, Helen Abramson, went to find out where is the best curry in Bradford.
Birmingham is the largest city of the West Midlands conurbation—one of England's principal industrial and commercial areas—for which it acts as an administrative, recreational, and cultural centre. The city lies approximately 110 miles (177 km) northwest of London.
Birmingham was historically referred to as the Magic City because its soil contained the three necessary elements to produce iron: limestone, coal, and iron ore.
