Dishoom Carnaby

Find Dishoom in London’s busy Carnaby area near the city centre. This Indian restaurant in London is minutes away from most of the city centre’s attractions. Dishoom Carnaby is mostly a walk-in café and all are welcome, any time, no reservations needed. At Dishoom you will be able to sample some Indian cuisine throughout the day.

Begin with a breakfast, which might be a Bacon Naan Roll, a Kejriwal or a Big Bombay. Then lunch lightly on Roomali Rolls and Salad Plates, or linger with a feast. Refresh your afternoon with a drop of Chai and a small plate or two. Dine early or dine late. Or just join us for a tipple – perhaps an India Gimlet, a Permit Room Old-fashioned, or the very good Dishoom IPA?

Picture the scene, it’s 1968, you’re lounging in a stylish Irani café-bar in Churchgate, Bombay. Late night, low lights… Nearby, the young café owner is holding court with a group with friends. They are smoking Simla cigarettes and sharing an illicit bottle of Old Monk while discussing the recent victory of the Savages at the Sound Trophy Contest, and the record they are now due to cut with Asha Puthli. Their English is accented but their threads might not be out of place on Carnaby Street. The jukebox is playing a track by the Stones; for the most part, the singer hits the right notes. For a moment, you ask yourself – is this Bombay, or London, or somewhere in between?

Since 1949, and to this very day Bombay has been under a state of prohibition. Set apart from a family room, there is a special place where only permit holders may consume liquor which has come to be known unofficially as a Permit Room. The Permit Room – the bar within the Carnaby café serves the most delicious and sincere old cocktails, recalling the days before Independence, such as Gimlets, Juleps and Sours; Fizzes and Old-Fashioneds, and a Bombay Presidency Punch.

You don’t need to book ahead of time but if you’d like to make a reservation, they hold a handful of tables back for groups of all sizes every day until 5.45pm. After 6pm, a small number of tables are available to be reserved by parties of six or more, at specific times.