From Dishoom to Permit Room: How Indian food changed in the UK
London-based Shamil and Kavi Thakrar, owners of the restaurant chain Dishoom and the bar Permit Room, have a strategic expansion plan to change the face of Indian food in the West
Indian food is an integral part of London’s dining scene. But, Dishoom turned the idea of chain restaurants serving Indian food on its head by opening upscale branches in decidedly expensive areas of the city. Since founders and cousins Shamil and Kavi Thakrar opened the first Dishoom outpost in Covent Garden in 2010, the restaurateurs worked to change London’s expectations of Indian restaurants and food.
Late last year, the founders launched a new, more affordable model. Sister brand Permit Room is “a salute to Bombay’s permit rooms, beer bars and drinking holes." Permit rooms are unique to Mumbai. They are places offering affordable alcohol to drinkers who have a permit or license to drink.
Shamil reveals that liquor was banned in Bombay in 1949, leading enterprising aunties to secretly serve drinks from their front rooms. By the 1970s the law was loosened, and permit holders (having obtained their liquor permits ‘for the preservation or maintenance of health’) could buy alcohol. “And so permit rooms were born. They still exist in Bombay. The Dishoom Permit Room is our tribute to them," says Shamil.
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The first Permit Room by the Thakrars opened in Oxford, and was followed by Cambridge and Brighton. The founders are now readying to bring Permit Room to London’s tony Notting Hill area in May at a site previously occupied by the Portobello Gin Distillery
“Permit Room is an extension of Dishoom. It's the naughty sibling... or perhaps it’s the wayward son who has raided the liquor cabinet. It’s an easy-going, all-day bar-café," Shamil says of the concept inspired by the underground drinking culture of Mumbai.
The new brand, like its elder sibling, aims to shake up “tired and clichéd" representations of Indian culture in the UK.“British people might tend to think of things like Bollywood, curry houses, or cricket when they think of India, but there's so much more, be it food or culture," Shamil says.
Shamil was born in Uganda, and had to return to Mumbai as a baby in the time of dictator Idi Amin. The family moved to Leicester in the UK, where his father, with his brother, went on to establish Tilda Rice, a company they sold for £250 million (more than ₹27 billion) in 2014. The cousins visited Mumbai routinely during holidays since childhood, and their fondness for the city shines through in Permit Room.
The Permit Room menu has a tapas-like approach to food, offering shareable plates against the larger portion sizes served in Dishoom. The café-bar lets you begin the day with a cheery breakfast such as a marmalade mimosa and a naan topped with a choice of savoury fillings. If you're peckish, order the Crispy Spinach Chaat or Kali Mirch Chicken Salad, and follow it up with hearty chole, delicate fish moilee, or rich lamb curry. Pair your meal with a drink that has a distinctly Indian flavour, be it the Mangosteen Daiquiri, Aunty's Anjeer Manhattan, Premier Padmini Negroni, and Spicy Guava Frose.
The Permit Room menu also makes place for what Dishoom diehards love: Chicken Ruby, tender chunks of marinated chicken grilled to perfection and dunked in a spiced tomato gravy; Dishoom Black Dal, made creamy and luscious by the slow disintegration of tender lentils; and Chicken Berry Britannia, a flavourful Irani-style chicken biryani named for Mumbai's Britannia Cafe.
The décor seems to have been inspired by Mumbai’s Irani cafes as well: tiled floors, wooden panelling, spinning ceiling fans, and tiny booths.
“Mumbai is a city full of stories and layers of history. Our fondness for Irani cafés and the way they brought people from all walks of life together over food is reflected in Dishoom – and now Permit Room," Shamil says.
The founders recall that changing perceptions about Indian food in the UK, where curry and Chicken Tikka Masala were all the rage, took “a lot of hard work and effort".
“One of our biggest hurdles was convincing people to see Dishoom as an all-day destination. We're pretty well known for our breakfasts now, but the idea of going to an Indian restaurant for breakfast - or even lunch - was pretty unheard of when we started. A billion people have breakfast every day in India and we asked ourselves: can we bring that to the UK?" Their breakfast menu features Parsi omelette, uttapam, naan rolls, lassi and loads of options for chai.
Dishoom, with 10 restaurants across the UK, is positioned as a “a love letter to Bombay", to its food and its culture, its many varied people, its rich history, and its endless eccentricities.
Both founders visit the city that’s their muse regularly, with Shamil clocking at least one visit a year and Kavi making around five trips a year. “He runs our Bombay Bootcamp, a trip that employees earn after working at the business for five years, where we take you to all the places that have inspired us in making Dishoom," Shamil says.
The founder is quick to list foods that exemplify the spirit of Mumbai to him. “Pav Bhaji, as no food is more Bombay; Vada Pav the humble Bombay street food staple; Bun Maska Chai, an Irani café classic; Keema Pav, another Irani café favourite; and Bhel, the classic Bombay chaat."
In the last 14 years, Dishoom has opened thirteen restaurants with over 2,000 team members. “In 2024, we ranked in the Sunday Times Top 10 best workplaces list. We reached the milestone of donating 20 million meals to children at school who would otherwise have gone hungry," Shamil says, adding that they have organised Eid and Diwali festivities that have created community over culture and food and broken down barriers.
What’s next for Dishoom? Going across the pond. After a successful pop-up at New York’s Pastis restaurant in the summer of 2024, the hospitality group is aiming to open its first overseas restaurant in the US. “We have long wanted to bring Dishoom to the US. We’re not in a rush but are exploring the opportunity," Shamil says.
Teja Lele writes on travel and lifestyle.
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