An old school Bombay café brought to London, Dishoom’s biggest strength is its communal atmosphere.

The Venue
An homage to the Bombay cafes of yesteryear, Dishoom comes complete with lazily circling ceiling fans, draped lights, marble topped tables and a vast array of framed retro advertisements and old fashioned photos on the walls. Should you get bored of studying the walls, the open kitchen provides more entertainment with half a dozen bustling, white-capped chefs. Downstairs is also worth a look, if only to visit the quirky loos and the shelves behind the toilets stacked with old fashioned meds and medical paraphernalia.

The Atmosphere
Even early on in the week, soon after opening, there’s a large amount of people dining and waiting for a table. Staff are friendly and eager to explain the menu, service is swift and the place is packed with young, well dressed diners. Strangely for such a central location, it seems that tourists are few and far between – they’ve probably gone to Jamie’s Italian next door – but it’s certainly not had any effect on the Londoners coming through the door.

The Food
Served tapas-style and served as it’s ready, the food at Dishoom is a mix of grills, small plates, salads, biryanis and more. Prices are definitely decent, especially for the area, with prices ranging from under £2 to under £10 per dish. Chilli cheese toast is a large portion of three pieces for £2.90, but though the cheese isn’t too oily and the bread is crisp it could do with a bit more chilli heat. The pau bhaji (£3.95), though, has just the right amount of spice – a lot – and the dill salmon tikka (£7.50) is well cooked, succulent and flavourful.

The house black daal (£4.50) is also well worth a try as it’s been soaked and then slow cooked for hours, which gives it an excellently rich depth of flavour. A garlic naan (£1.90) is perfect for soaking it up. Chicken berry biryani (£7.50) is cooked in a ceramic pot and sealed with dough, leaving the biryani steaming hot and slightly chewy around the edges. A side of creamy raita (£1.90) is recommended to cool down the biryani’s hot spices. The chilli lamb salad (£7.50) is the only dish that really disappoints – although the lamb is cooked well, something in the salad – perhaps the combination of fragrant mint and sweet chilli dressing – makes it taste too sickly sweet. Desserts, though, aren’t hugely indulgent but are satisfying nonetheless, including a refreshing Gola ice (crushed ice with passionfruit and ginger or pomegranate and chilli syrup poured over, £1.90) and a warm, sugary crumble (£4.90) made with nuts, seeds and a scoop of ice cream.

The Drink
Alcohol-wise, Dishoom offers up a handful of wines, beers and sparkling wines and about ten cocktails, which are all under £6. Choices include a Bollybellini (£5.70), a rose, lychee and raspberry Bellini, and the house punch (£4.90), made with fruit juice, coconut, rum and Darjeeling tea. Soft drinks include the cult favourite Thums Up cola (£2.50), lassis (the rose and cardamom version is highly recommended) and nimbu pani (£2.90), which tastes like an un-synthetic fizzy lemonade.

The Last Word
Judging by the queue at the door and the satisfied faces on the diners, a bit of old school Bollywood glamour is just what the capital needed.

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