About Dishoom
Dishoom Covent Garden was the first Dishoom, opened on Upper St Martin's Lane in 2010 in homage to the old Irani cafes of Bombay, and it remains the group's best-known room. It serves Bombay comfort food from breakfast through to late-night tipples, open all day every day, and it is famous for the queue that forms outside in the evening and for the complimentary chai handed to those waiting in it.
The cafe has since been reimagined around a single idea: Bombay in 1949, at the height of the Talkies era, when early Indian sound films cast their spell over the city's picture houses. The walls carry a collection of artefacts, photographs, portraits and collectables from 1930s and 40s Bombay, and the house specials follow the theme, from the Prawn Pathia, a celebratory dish of grilled prawns in a fiery-sweet tomato masala served with Roomali roti, to the Diamond Thriller cocktail named for the 1940s stuntwoman Fearless Nadia.
Indian restaurant in Covent Garden for breakfast, lunch and dinner
Breakfast brings the bacon naan roll, akuri and the Big Bombay, lunch a Paneer Roomali roll or a longer feast, and the afternoon a cup of chai with a small plate. Dinner runs late, with an India Gimlet or a Premier Padmini Negroni from the bar. The kitchen is halal-friendly, vegan-friendly and vegetarian-friendly, and the building has an indoor-outdoor verandah, wheelchair-accessible entrance, seating and lift.
What to expect on a visit
Dishoom is mostly a walk-in cafe. Groups of any size can book during the day; after 6pm, bookings are taken for six or more and most tables are kept for walk-ins. At breakfast and lunch you will walk straight in; after 6pm and at weekends, waits of 30 minutes to an hour are normal, softened by chai and a seat at the bar once space allows. Doors open at 8am on weekdays and 9am at weekends. Nearest stations are Covent Garden and Leicester Square. Browse more restaurants in Covent Garden, or for a very different kind of theatreland institution, Joe Allen has fed the West End since 1977.
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Reviews
Recommended to try at least once on your trip! Tasty and flavourful indian cuisine - different from the usual. We were on a vegetarian diet that evening and there's a great selection of vegetarian options available. Although it may lean towards the saltier side. For people who prefer less sodium in your diets, yoy may wish to try requesting for less salt and see if it could be accommodated. Great service as well! The server presented us with a complimentary molten chocolate cake as it was my birthday. Thankful for the kind gesture!
Ok the important things , you can book after 6 pm provided the group is 6 people or more. Around 7 to 8 pm on a Friday night at least , the wait for the restaurant is 25-30 minutes. Free tea is served at random for the queueing customers. The restaurant is on 2 floors , each floor is huge . The lower floor seems the more quiet part. The whole place is very busy but buzzing with good vibes and atmosphere. An army of well organized servers are constantly around cleaning serving and taking orders. Indeed our server was a well spoken knowledgeable gentleman. The menu is a moderate size , a good selection of everything. The food itself was one of the best experiences of Indian food I've ever had , and I've been to a lot of places in the UK and india . The spice levels are fortunately catered for the Indian palate . So westerners beware lol Toilets were very nicely decorated and very clean , a bit oldly worldy in design You must at least try this restaurant once in your life! I'll definitely come back here.
I visited Dishoom around 16:00 and was pleasantly surprised by how smooth the experience was, no booking required and no waiting at all, which was a big plus. The service was exceptional. Staff were attentive, friendly, and efficient throughout the meal, which really elevated the overall experience. As for the food, it was generally average. Some dishes were enjoyable, but nothing particularly stood out as memorable. Unfortunately, the salad was disappointing and didn’t match the quality or flavour of the other items on the table. Overall, Dishoom delivered excellent service and a relaxed dining experience, but the food itself felt hit-or-miss. Worth visiting for the service and convenience, though the menu could be more consistent.