Bombay Bustle | Indian Inside A Dining Room That Looks Like An Opulent Train Carriage
Every year, 80 million tiffin lunch boxes are delivered to workers across Indian cities by an insanely efficient network of dabbawallas.
These tiffin delivery men transfer carefully colour-coded lunchboxes directly from workers’ homes, by rail and by bike, directly to workers, before repeating the whole process to send the boxes back home again.
It’s the world’s most efficient Deliveroo, and it’s over 100 years old.
Paying homage to this impressive operation is this restaurant in Mayfair, brought to you from the respective co-founder and executive chef of Jamavar, Samyukta Nair and Surender Mohan. Taking inspiration from Mumbai’s railways, Bombay Bustle is styled like a vintage train carriage, with curving art deco lines and Wes Anderson-esque pastel hues commingling with textured tabletops and the occasional glint of steely hardware.
As executive chef, Surender Mohan brings his creative flair to traditional Indian home cooking and comfort food. There are Malabar chicken wings and Koliwada squid; Kerala fish curry and overnight black dal. There are slow-cooked biryanis and giant parcels of crispy fried bread, puffed up like balloons, that are the size of your head.
And on Saturdays & Sundays, they serve their Weekend Chillies Brunch. Everything from rich, melt-in-your-mouth wagyu kebabs served on saffron-cashew parathas to Ghati-spiced prawns with garlic and fresh turmeric is absolutely delicious. And it’s washed down by an equally as thoughtful (and tasty) selection of booze, too.
It’s the real jewel in their crown.
NOTE: Bombay Bustle is open daily for lunch and dinner, with brunch from 11am on Sundays – you can reserve a table on their website HERE.
Bombay Bustle | 29 Maddox Street, W1S 2PA
Big fan? Then you might like this list of the best Indian restaurants in London.