Adding to the embarrassment of restaurant riches in Notting Hill, Empire Empire takes inspiration from India’s late 70s disco era, combining old-school curries and Indian dishes with a soundtrack of Bollywood bangers.
Founder Harneet Baweja (the man behind the excellent Gunpowder restaurants) has fond memories of Indian disco in the 1970s, and wanted to bring the same fun and energy to West London. ‘We wanted to bring the golden age of Indian music, art and food together in one place,’ he explains.
Empire Empire certainly isn’t skimping on the sound quality - the restaurant has a custom-made Marshall jukebox, loaded with groovy Indian disco classics to dance the night away to. Meanwhile, the walls display works from two of the 20th century’s most respected Indian artists, Jogen Chowdhury and Rabin Mondal, as well as vintage LP covers of cult disco hits.
The menu takes influence largely from Punjab and India’s North West, and Empire Empire has an old-school curry house vibe thanks to crisp white tablecloths and a menu packed with delicious curries. On the menu you’ll find kebab dishes which make full use of the restaurant’s charcoal grill (Lasooni Tangdi Kebab, Nizam Chicken Kebab and Bihari Boti Kebab, for example). You can also expect a wide range of curries and other mains, including a rich chicken Malai curry, and a signature lobster dum biryani with lobster head peeking out of the pastry crust. Whereas Gunpowder tends to not serve breads, Empire Empire will have a huge range of naans, rotis and other breads, as well as rice, vegetable sides and more.
Behind the bar, Empire Empire stocks beers and ciders from 40ft Brewery in Dalston, as well as cocktails and a wine list that focuses on drinkable natural wines.