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When chef Mohammed Saleem cut the ribbon on Daata’s new George’s Street site, emotions ran high. The moment closed a circle that began in 1990, when he arrived in Ireland from Pakistan as an 18‑year‑old with a visa and his mother’s recipes.
From a small start on George’s Street to running a local chain
Saleem’s first job was in Shalimar, the only Pakistani restaurant in Dublin at the time, which was then on George’s Street. His daughter Aliha says he arrived with limited English but quickly found support among neighbours and market traders.
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She recalls how local fruit and flower vendors would give the young newcomer small bags of fruit as he walked to work. Those early acts of kindness left a lasting impression and, decades later, felt especially poignant when he opened a restaurant across the road from his first workplace.
Today Saleem and his family run **Daata**, a group that includes restaurants in Wicklow and four sites in Dublin. The George’s Street opening was a milestone for a business that grew from those modest beginnings.
A family business handed to the next generation
After years of building the brand, Mohammed and his wife Shamim have stepped back. Their children, Aliha and her brother Fahad, now manage the day‑to‑day operations.
Fahad leads the kitchen while Aliha handles front‑of‑house duties. Both were raised in a household where recipes and techniques were learned by watching their parents work long hours—first in a takeaway in Bray and later across the Daata locations.
Aliha says her parents never forced them into the trade. All three children went to college, but the pull of the family restaurant proved strong. Competition between siblings exists, she adds, yet it’s tempered by collaboration and compromise when it comes to running the business.
Signature dishes and a Taste of Dublin appearance
The menu leans on family recipes. Their best‑selling dish is the **Afghani Chicken**, a cream‑based curry flavoured with fenugreek and lemon that originated with Mohammed’s wife. It will be among the dishes served at this year’s **Taste of Dublin**.
Aliha and Fahad plan to present a starter of vegetable samosa and prawn pakoras, as well as their butter chicken. The butter chicken has even been singled out by chef Gordon Ramsay, who reportedly called it the best he’d ever had.
Festival details and wider appeal
**Taste of Dublin** returns to Merrion Square from Thursday 11 June to Sunday 14 June 2026. The four‑day event promises a mix of restaurants, live entertainment, masterclasses, cocktails, wine tastings and artisan food stalls.
For the Saleem family, the festival is a chance to showcase the dishes that trace back to a village kitchen in Pakistan and to the small, supportive Dublin community that helped launch their journey. For visitors, it offers a curated sample of why Pakistani cuisine has wide appeal: a variety of flavours that can suit even reluctant eaters.
