The Permit Room
Our Old-Fashioned bottled cocktail takes its name from the Permit Room bar, found in every Dishoom and so named after the official term for all Bombay drinking establishments, in which, according to the Bombay Prohibition Act of 1949, only permit-holders may consume alcohol. Herein, liquor can be sold and imbibed, but only for the goodness of one’s health.
A serving suggestion
Though the doors of the Permit Room are closed for now, you can still enjoy our tipples in bottled form at home. Follow our lead to achieve the perfect pour, and transport yourself back to a cosy corner of the bar.
Our industrious Daru-wallas have readied a most delicious muddle of Woodford Reserve bourbon with bay leaf reduction, green tea and so on. Bottle-aged to perfection.
Per serve, you will need:
- A rocks glass
- Cubed ice
- A bay leaf
- A black olive
The Permit Room Collection
Our first-ever bottled cocktail collection includes three of the Permit Room’s very best tipples – the India Gimlet, Sonia’s Negroni, and the Old-Fashioned – all of which can now be ordered individually, or as a beautifully packaged collection.
Each bottle is carefully hand-batched and bottled in the Permit Room of Dishoom King’s Cross, and makes a delightful and delicious gift, either as a treat for oneself or to bestow upon a loved one.
These 200ml pegs contain two generous serves and are priced at £14 each, or £38 for the set, and are available on the Dishoom Store.
Uttapam are a fluffy savoury dosa, made with rice. They're usually enjoyed with savoury toppings but we particularly like ours with lashings of jaggery syrup and a thick, strained yoghurt. Chef Naved has shared his recipe for making an extra fluffy stack at home.
IT HAS BEEN an annual December habit of mine, these past ten years since we embarked upon this restaurant business, to sit alone, with myself, and reflect on the year gone by. I am grateful to be here in the Permit Room in our restaurant in Shoreditch scribbling and writing, the oddly enjoyable taste of splintering wood from my chewed up pencil smoothed by my decently strong drink.
These are the last few days, the dregs of 2019. It’s my habit to sit here in the Permit Room at this time. I am the be-stubbled and dishevelled regular, cherishing his precious drink at the end of the bar. Weary, I sit here pondering the year, attempting to figure out what it was trying to teach me. What wisdom can I glean from it?
I love to truly understand and appreciate the origins of a dish, and learn how communities have adapted a recipe over time to make that dish unique to them.