Sanjeev Kapoor, now in his sixties, is the subcontinent’s celebrity chef incarnate. The Mumbai-based telly star’s Mastering The Art of Indian Cooking is one of my go-to-guides to that vast country’s myriad regional cuisines. So, confronted with the new Dishoom Leeds Malvani Lamb special, I consulted the guru.
He shares several recipes from the Konkan Coast around Malvan town, 300 miles south of the Maharastran capital, once known as Bombay. In context, no distance really; the state is bigger than the entire UK. Malvani Shrimp Fry, Fish Curry, Chicken Hirwa Masala and bone-in Lamb (or Goat) all share the coconut and souring agents such as tamarind and kokum to be found in Goan cuisine even further south. Given the location, seafood I expected; lamb less so.
The Leeds Dishoom version follows the template of a fragrant blend of dried red chillies and spices, ample ginger, onion and garlic. The gravy is infused with roasted coconut, cardamom, chillies, turmeric and pippali pepper. Surprisingly fiery. The upmarket casual dining brand has policy of introducing a unique special for each of its launches. At the time of writing it now operates 11 cafes and four spIn-off Permit Room bars across the UK.
All are inspired by the Irani cafes in South Bombay that catered for the Parsi Zoroastrian minority. It has long been a colourful but dwindling culture and in truth none of the originals can ever have looked as smart as this Dishoom that opened on August 14. It is definitely the hottest ticket in town.
The immaculate re-fit, alongside the Victoria Quarter features cosy leather booths for families and groups to settle into, alongside a wooden bar at the heart of the restaurant. Vintage decorative lights, sourced from the mother city and lovingly restored, sit alongside bespoke lighting throughout the café, casting a warm glow that evolves from breakfast through to late evening.
Start off with a bacon naan at brekkie, tuck into a Ruby Murray and house black dal at lunch and as dusk falls take every advantage of the Permit Room bar’s delights, culminating in a Samir’s Vice cocktail marrying tart pineapple and sweet strawberry with tropical Takamaka Seychelles Rum Blanc, fat-washed in coconut milk and dashed with cardamom bitters.You need never leave.
That was my inclination on our preview visit. This Dishoom doesn’t have the advantage of the Manchester version’s epic Victorian premises; indeed its defining style is Art Deco more redolent of Thirties Bombay. But it immediately shares the same vibrancy and has a story all of its own.
Co-founders Shamil and Kavi Thakrar, who opened the original in London in 2010, have hd fun creating a myth for each subsequent Dishoom. Here it’s some shaggy dog tale from war-time Bombay (then a bastion of the British Empire) based upon the explosion on board the SS Fort Stikine in Bombay Dock in April 1944, which sent gold bars flying across the city. Legend has it that some of the missing gold was never recovered.
Dishoom Leeds reimagines the fortune made from the gold bars and glamorous mid-century details abound through both interiors and artwork. Guests can read the full story on Dishoom Leeds’ website here.
The disaster is referenced in The House Rules emblazoned on the wall of the first floor main dining room dining hall: “No stealing gold bar”. As in other Dishooms the rest of these quirky admonitions are geared to the city they are in. Such as “No exchanging corn for meals” – a charming tidbit from Leeds’ history, where hungry patrons would once barter corn for their supper.
The all-day dining roster (which does include a toothsome grilled corn cob doused with chilli butter) is fixed on Bombay comfort food inspired by the city’s cafés, grills, street stalls and family kitchens. But is also strays across the rest of the subcontinent.
Witness that slow-cooked Malvani Lamb. Accompanying is golden laccha paratha, flaky and ghee-rich, for dipping and a sharp onion salad. As always at Dishoom don’t ignore the sides. They are some of the best things on the menu – old faves such as the house chaat (fried sweet potato covered with cool yoghurt, pomegranate, beetroot, radish and carrot plus a tamarind drizzle and green chutney) and, of course, Dishoom’s legendary signature dish – black dal simmered for over 24 hours. New to me was a side of warm aubergine chutney, addictively sweet and sour.
To accompany, we had to try Kohra IPA, made specially for Dishoom by Leeds craft beer maestros Northern Monk, built to handle spicy food. I was more than happy with a Dishoom Margarita (aim for the smoky mescal variation)
A sign of the times, there’s a great non and lo drinks offering, even beyond Indian staples such as sharbats and lassis.
Dishoom, 68-78 Vicar Lane, Leeds, LS1 7JH. It is mostly a walk-in café, with guests welcome anytime. Reservations will be available for breakfast and lunch, with limited evening bookings available from 6pm.
Flavours of home – a Maharashtran diversion
At The Guild of Food Writers Awards 2026 the International or Regional Cookery Book Award went to Indian Kitchens: Treasured Family Recipes From Across the Land by Roopa Gulati (Bloomsbury, £26). The Fortnum & Mason Awards judges went one further and named it their Cookbook of the Year. It is a wonderfully evocative exploration of diversity in food and in culture as seen “from the home front”
Take the Jewish community of Alibag. Roopa’s chapter on Maharastra takes her this ferry port an hour south of Mumbai where she meets Yael and Ralphy Jhirad for lunch. The Children of Israel, their Jewish community, here and in Mumbai, has been in India for 2,000 years after fleeing persecution. In recent decades many have migrated to Israel, leaving just 5,000. In contrast to the Parsis, who number 60,000.
The Jhirads follow kosher rules in dietary strictures and observing the Shabat. During Passover food made from fermented grains and pulses is not allowed and processed foods such as dried spices are forbidden, unless certified as kosher. Quite at odds with the pillars of Indian cookery? No tart-tasting tamarind or cooking, so Yael compensates by adding lime juice, tomatoes or green mangoes.
This ground-breaking book (from an author brought up in Cumbria) and restaurants such as Dishoom unlock a whole world of Indian cooking that is a far remove from the curry house staples of yore.
