Dishoom King's Cross

Much loved, humble and unifying Bombay street staple. Hot potato vada, crunchy titbits and chutneys, tucked inside a soft home-made bun. Sprinkle the red spicy masala to taste.

A bowl of toasted pistachios and shredded mint leaves with finest, greenest broccoli, fresh red chillies, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, dates, lime and honey.

Hearty black chickpeas, shredded kale, crunchy capsicums dressed up with lime and chilli. Toasted almonds scattered on top.

Chickpeas sing with high spice and surprise black tea, with puffed puris and sweet halwa alongside. Much drama but absolute harmony.

Roomali Roti Rolls are made with delicate 'handkerchief' bread, baked and filled to order from midday until late at night. Best eaten with the hands.

Grilled paneer tucked inside a crisped roll with onion, peppers and green leaves. Mint chutney on the side.

Spicy charred chicken, lavish salad and tomato-chilli jam.

A fine, crispy snack, not unlike papad. Dip happily in the spiced chutney, made to an old family recipe with dependable apple, not fickle mango.

Gujarati filo (not Punjabi shortcrust) stuffed with minced lamb, onions and spices.

Crunchy Punjabi-style shortcrust pastry, pea and potato filling warmly spiced with cinnamon. Tamarind chutney for dipping.

Fine lady's fingers for the fingers.

A bowl of mashed vegetables with hot, buttered, home-made buns, Chowpatty style. No food is more Bombay.

A nostalgia for Bombayites. Green chillies, capsicum and garlic in cheddar melt on white sliced loaf.

A classic of Irani cafés: spiced minced lamb and peas with toasted, buttered, home-made buns.

Much loved, humble and unifying Bombay street staple. Hot potato vada, crunchy titbits and chutneys, tucked inside a soft home-made bun. Sprinkle the red spicy masala to taste.

Warm-cold, sweet-tangy, moreish. Golden-fried sweet potato covered with cool yoghurt, pomegranate, beetroot, radish and carrot. Tamarind drizzle and green chutney lift it nicely.

Cold and crunchy, light and lovely. Puffed rice, peanuts and Bombay Mix tossed with fresh pomegranate, tomato, onion, lime, tamarind, mint.

Some Irani cafés now aim to please with Indo-Chinese fare. A plate of crispy garlic-ginger-soy-chilli-chicken is a modern café staple.

Bombay's Koli (fishermen) Wada (district) recipe: a bowl of delicate, crispy morsels – perfect for chutney-dipping.

Chicken thigh meat is steeped overnight in garlic, ginger, coriander stems and a little cream. Slightly pink when fully cooked.

A family recipe, using a marinade of sweet vinegar, not yoghurt. Laced with ginger, turmeric, garlic and green chilli.

A cheese with a soft and forgiving nature that picks up flavours wonderfully. Marinated with pickling spices and yoghurt then gently charred with peppers.

King Oyster and Chestnut mushrooms with malai marination, char-grilled for bite and finished with butter, lime and masala.

The seduction is in the tumble. New potatoes are smoky-grilled, broken apart, tossed with butter, crushed aromatic seeds and green herbs.

Minced lamb is marinated with green chilli, coriander and cumin, then grilled.

Two chops of generous proportions. They lie overnight in a special marinade of lime juice, warm dark spices, ginger and garlic. Served pink, for juiciness, and blackened by the grill.

Each one charred slightly at the edges, succulent and simple, nothing to bamboozle.

A Dishoom signature dish – dark, rich, deeply flavoured. It is cooked over 24 hours for extra harmony.

A steadfast, humble and delicious vegetarian curry, beloved of Bombay families.

Tender chicken in a rich, silky makhani sauce. A good and proper curry redolent with spice and flavour.

Finest mutton marinated in red chilli, ginger and garlic, then cooked with black peppercorns and whole spices. Robust, spicy and tender.

Slow-cooked, layered and aromatic, the Biryani traces its origins to Iran – as does the old Bombay Café. A pot is to be shared, or kept as spicy contentment all for oneself.

Tempting and flavourful pot of chicken, ginger, garlic, mint, coriander and rice cooked together in the Kacchi style. An homage to Britannia’s Chicken Berry Pulao, with cranberries.

Sturdy, savoury jackfruit and delicately flavoured rice, potted, sealed and cooked the traditional way. Adorned with barberries and sultanas.

Grilled tenderstem broccoli and snow peas tumbled with chilli and lime.

Corn-on-the-cob, brushed with butter and grilled over charcoal fire. Finished with chilli, salt and lime, Chowpatty style.

A messy to-do of cucumber, onion and tomato. A little lime lifts the whole affair.

Delicate minty yoghurt, cool as a cucumber.

Freshly baked in the tandoor.

With minced garlic and coriander sprinkle.

Cheddar is melted inside.

Soft handkerchief-thin bread, thrown, stretched and griddled to order on an upturned tawa.

Wholewheat bread, delicately charred from the tandoor.

It means 'the fragrant one'.

Within a spongy-rich mawa cake lies black poppy seeds. Alongside it, zesty Yuzu ice cream and warm-sweet jaggery syrup. Flavour and texture come together in harmony.

Silky caramelised basmati rice pudding cooked nicely with vanilla-infused coconut milk, cardamom and cashews. Cooled and layered with blueberry compôte.

Melting-in-the-middle chocolate pudding served with a scoop of Kashmiri chilli ice cream. You will not want to share.

Fluffy ice flakes steeped in kokum fruit syrup, blueberries, chilli, lime and black salt. To the uninitiated, the first spoonful may surprise. The second is captivating.

Cinnamon or Kashmiri chilli.

The chai ice cream melts seductively into the coffee liqueur and vodka. Decadent and not unlike a dessert.

Sweet creamy treat with memories of golden Chowpatty sunsets. To say 'kulfi jam gai' is to say 'I’m feeling very cold!'

Satin-smooth, sweet real mango.

Creamy, proper pistachio.

The original with a hint of caramel.