Veeraswamy

Britain's Oldest Indian Restaurant

ABOVE: The "purple area" of Veeraswamy in London, which has operated in Victory House on Regent Street for nearly 70 years.

In 1926, Veeraswamy was founded by Edward Palmer, the great-grandson of an English general and an Indian princess. The restaurant was named "The Veerasawmy" in honor of Palmer's grandmother; after a menu printer's typographical error in 1934, the restaurant acquired a new name by default.

logo Over the decades, Veeraswamy's celebrity guests included the kings of several countries, Indian prime ministers Nehru and Indira Gandhi, and actors such as Charlie Chaplin and Marlon Brando. Its legendary status faded after the 1960s, until the owners of Chutney Mary acquired Veeraswamy in 1996 and gave the 70-year-old restaurant a top-to-bottom overhaul.

Today, the owners describe describe Veeraswamy as a "reincarnation" of the historic restaurant. The old colonial decor is gone, having been replaced by a stunning modern interior that makes use of colored laquer on the walls, frosted glass, golf leaf, and beautifully polished wood floors. The new restaurant is billed as "smart and casual," and it's the kind of place where you can feel comfortable whether you're dressed in your Sunday best or in club gear on a Saturday night.

Style with sustenance

Enough about atmosphere: The true measure of any restaurant is what arrives at your table, and Veeraswamy's kitchen has been good enough to win a "Best Indian Restaurant" citation from Time Out and favorable reviews from such British periodicals as The Times, the Sunday Telegraph, the Spectator, and Harper's & Queen.

The head chef, Gopal Kochak, works with a team of cooks from regions throughout India, so that dishes are prepared by experts who know how to prepare their native cuisines--and, in some cases, creative variations of traditional dishes--from the northwestern frontier to the tropical shores of the Indian Ocean.

Owners Ranjit Mathran, Namita Panjabi, and Camellia Panjabi are quick to pont out that spices (which are a critical part of Indian cooking) are ground fresh daily and mixed to order for each dish. They claim that Veeraswamy is one of the few Indian restaurants in Britain to do this, and I'll take them at their word--especially after an impeccably cooked dinner at Veeraswamy with the PR team from Hampton Court Palace, Kensington Palace, and the Tower of London. For more about the menu and the restaurant, see the next page.

Next page: Menu, prices, location, hours

In this article:

Veeraswamy Restaurant (introduction)

Menu, prices, location, hours

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