Bombay nights
Permit Room (Portobello)
RESTAURANTS • First Word
The Skinny: If any restaurant group knows how to expand without diluting its brilliance, it’s Dishoom, with its 11 cafés across the country (seven in London) and plans to crack the US. In 2023, the upmarket Indian chain chose Brighton to debut its spin-off concept Permit Room, an homage to drinking holes that emerged in then-Bombay after alcohol was banned there in 1949. Following openings in Oxford and Cambridge, London gained its own Permit Room in May on a touristy corner of Portobello Road.
The Vibe: Dishoom-lite. It’s a smaller, more concentrated version of the sprawling multi-floor restaurants, in pub form, with consistently warm service. The ground floor retains the pub look and feel, with a long central bar and tightly packed tables. Upstairs, there’s the usual spacious seating, dark-wood tables and floors, artfully mismatched chairs, South Asian art and a beautifully textured orange-brown ceiling. While Dishoom loos are often a highlight, the bathroom here is apologetically small, with a sign announcing, ‘Very sorry, these are OG 19th century pub loos. Bit cramped’.
In a Dishoom first, the whole top floor is occupied by a boutique micro-hotel, Permit Room Lodgings, with two stylish en-suite bedrooms and a living room complete with record player and vinyl collection (fitting for the Portobello Road location).
The Food: While the menu is packed with Dishoom classics like black daal, Ruby Murray chicken curry and bacon and egg naan, there are plenty of new dishes specific to Permit Room. Kick off with chilli cheesy garlic naan bites filled with melting cheddar and spices (save some to mop up your curry). Fish chapali are three meaty spiced tilapia patties, with a spicy green chutney for dipping, while chicken pick-me-ups are deep-fried marinated lollipops with a hot red chilli chutney. Crispy spinach chaat is a treat of swirling chutney and yoghurt, albeit a little on the sweet side.
From the mains, chicken tandoori is the specialty, but we went for prawn moilee, a mild, comforting South Indian coconut curry that’s also specific to Permit Room. It contrasted beautifully with those spicier small plates, and demanded sides of soft, chewy naan and plain steamed rice. Street-food-style charred sweet potato is a highlight – the pale Indian tuber is soft in the middle, blackened around the edges and bedazzled with chilli-lime masala reminiscent of Tajín. For dessert, there are ice cream sandwiches, rum-soaked gulab jamun and a chocolate brownie.
The Drink: We’re celebrating prohibition rebellion, so the naughtier, the better: try a feni martini, a nod to Indian moonshine, or a New Permit Room Old Fashioned. Non-alcoholic options include the classic Thums Up cola and mango lassi.
The Verdict: A great spot to escape the Notting Hill crowds, with rooms you could live in, and all the flair and flavour you’d expect from Dishoom. –Laura Price
→ Permit Room (Portobello) • 186 Portobello Rd • Mon-Thu 8a-11p, Fri 8a-Midnight, Sat 9a-Midnight, Sun 9a-11p • Lodgings from £700 • Book.