Dishoom

Good food but very poor service

I have often been to Dishoom for lunch as it offers good Indian (not Anglo-Indian) food at a sensible price, and is a decent venue for client meetings. However, I recently discovered that they have decided not to take walk-in custom and will turn you away without a reservation, even if the restaurant is half empty. Coming for a Sunday lunch with my wife, I was told in a particularly dismissive and rude way, that I could not be seated without a reservation for at least two hours, even though the restaurant was half empty. Interestingly as I walked by an hour later it was still half empty! I complained to management who confirmed this policy and seemed disinterested about the rudeness of their staff. So be warned…no reservation, no service.

One to avoid in my opinion. if you are in London you just don't need to put up with this!

Next!

I loved the idea of a Bombay Café, but this did not live up to the hype. Despite having made a reservation, we waited a long time for our table. The food just isn't good enough and this in a city that isn't short of great Indian food. Dishoom is clearly a marketing “concept” with gimmicky food. If you love Indian food, you will be disappointed.

Not for us

We happen to visit this restaurant last week,An empty restaurant at the time we visited but it took the staff 20 minutes to take our order.we could see the managers busy talking to the staff and ignored us we had to Wave for 5 minutes before we could grab the attention of the serving staff at the door.
The food was no way near to be called fresh
The mushrooms looked dry and shrunk.
The lamb Boti Kebab were taste less and burnt.
The house black dal was a waste of money.
The soft drinks were served in bottles which had the rust marks clearly visible on the mouth. The bread basket had the left over of previously served breads in it ( Poor hygiene )
Waste of money is what i have to say.And I do hope that my this review is honestly put up by this site.

I thoroughly enjoyed the food and the atmosphere.

Definitely one place I won't be going back to! I went here for lunch with my husband and the food was just average -quite bland. We both went for the chicken wrap, it was extremely heavy and there was just no real flavour. A family member of mine went here for dinner and had the chicken biryani and would not recommend anyone to try it.

Although being a great concept as a business idea, epitomising the idea of a Parsi traditional Bombay side cafe being a haven for travellers and locals alike, Dishoom Bar Covent Garden appeared to be more of a gimmick. With average food with only a choice of mild flavour it didn't seem very typical of an Indian cafe. However not to be just the cynic, this place is great for socialising, drinks, chatting and its atmosphere is great. The prices are overpriced for the quality of food but you pay more for the atmosphere than anything else. Service was mediocre, having asked waiters if we can order drinks we got served after the 3rd. Also on Sunday kitchen closes at 10pm despite being incredibly busy.
Not to be judgemental but would be most popular amongst younger people and western people who may not have necessarily tasted traditional proper indian street/ cafe food. (mild flavours, bland in some respects)

I've been 3 times – an achievement as I have a relatively small budget for eating out. This is a perfect destination for lunch in Covent Garden, I really enjoyed the chicken roti I had when I came last it was very good value and spiced to perfection. The staff were also very helpful with explaining all of the dips, advising on the spiciness of dishes and were very friendly and attentive without being overbearing. My only criticism is that the same menu is offered all day and there's not many options when choosing a main course for dinner but being styled as a Bombay cafe I'm not sure this is a fair complaint! The ‘rose and cardamon’ and ‘mango and fennel’ lassis are to die for and the highlight of any visit.

“Simply dreadful – poor food, even worse service.

This restaurant is an embarrassment to India. It looks like one of those restaurants where someone has inherited it from their parents and run it into the ground. The owner has no idea.

The meals we had ranged from horrendous to average.

We went to Dishoom for the first time yesterday evening and we were very impressed. The ambience and service were great. The unique selection of dishes were mouthwatering, flavoursome and spicy. All in all, a very enjoyable experience.

Great restaurant. It's one of the best value for money, combined with fun atmosphere restaurants in central london.

A must try!