I’ve heard good things about Bombay Brasserie as well. Apparently the weekend brunch is relatively good value.
1 Like
Gymkhana looks like a great experience but it is a bit out of my usual orbit. 
I am more of a casual diner, the Original Ivy’s was about right for me on the not quite so formal end of the spectrum.
1 Like
I like potatoes in mine too.
I love jackfruit, but can’t imagine it in biryani/pulao.
1 Like
I’ve made jackfruit biryani before and it’s turned out very well. Young green jackfruit is a good meat substitute.
1 Like
I got the Awadhi Jackfruit Biryani at Dishoom Coventry Garden yesterday and it was rather good! I did not miss the “protein” the way i thought i would.
I got there right at noon as the lunch line was just forming. I told my waitress i wanted to biryani and the mango lassi but would follow her advice on an app or sides. She gave me an “ow”? Chaat. Maybe she said aloo? I asked her to spell it and she spelled chaat, instead. I smiled so she thought she had gotten the right info to me.
Anyway it was sweet and rich and really good.
The biryani came sealed in its pot w dough, which is kind of cool.
Delicious! Layered flavors and spices, plenty of sultanas, not hot but definitely some chilis mixed in there. I would definitely go back.
Waitress was very nice, recommended her favorite park for walking. Surprisingly i knew it (Holland Park) and had stayed at the hostel there 30 years back. I watched one act of The Pirates of Penzance through a small hole the theatre cut in the shrubs to allow 2 hostel guests to watch the plays there. “I am the very model of a modern major general!” Long ago.
Line was down the block when i left.
10 Likes
I think this article has some interesting observations.
6 Likes
Thanks, I enjoyed the article!
1 Like
Various biryani spices available at a supermarket in Penang’s Little India - these are just from one brand.
5 Likes
It’s interesting which brands are popular where, which varieties of biryani they make a spice mix for, and what varies in the ingredients.
I used to mostly see “regular”, lucknowi / awadhi / kolkata, and hyderabadi in Indian brands.
Pakistani brands like Shan have more variation (and types I had not encountered in the wild) like Sindhi, Memoni, and “Bombay” (which, even being from there, I had never seen in a box).
Several southern sub-varieties (beyond Hyderabadi) are now available to order online — dindigul, chettinad, and so on.
1 Like
I am going back to London in a couple weeks and one of the dishes I am looking forward to the most is Biryani. It may not be “THE” London Biryani, but I really enjoyed it at Dishoom Covent Garden so that will be one of the first places I return to in London. The waitstaff there was friendly and professional, so that is a plus, too.
2 Likes
Since there’s still time for your trip, I’d encourage you to do some biryani research - you won’t be sorry!
ETA: Looks like Dishoom put the lamb biryani back on the menu!
(Waiting for them to open in New York this year!)
Also might want to check your dates against Darjeeling Express’ Biryani Supper Club.
2 Likes
I got similar advice before my last visit, ended up at Dishoom and really enjoyed it. This will sound different, or not, but I went by the door to Dishoom 15 minutes before they opened because my bus from Camden Market was actually on time. The host saw me, pointed at his watch, I nodded and got a coffee next door. Came back in 20 minutes and he greeted me with a friendly “You came back!” and a nod. Sounds simple, but he actually cared that I returned. The waitress talked to me like a person, not a guest and the food was rather good or better. The people just cared.
All that aside, having looked at Asma’s menu for Darjeeling Express, it has some dishes I want to try, as well. I will be in London for 4 days at the start and end of my visit, so I will be hitting more than a few. Her photo on the website looks like a woman that knows her way around food, which does not hurt. She has Biryani dinners on April 12th and 26th, I see. I gravitate towards decidedly casual vs. formal, but lunch will give me a feel for what it might be like.
Thank you for the heads up!
2 Likes
