London’s oldest Indian restaurant Veeraswamy is under threat

The future of Veeraswamy, the legendary Indian restaurant which opened back back in 1926, hangs in the balance.

The restaurant – which is Britain’s oldest curry house– is currently embroiled in a dispute with its landlord, which has said that its lease will not be renewed. Based in Victory House on Regent Street, the building is owned by the Crown Estate, a property management company which belongs to His Majesty the King.   

The Times reports that Veeraswamy’s lease expires in June. Ranjit Mathrani, co-owner of MW Eat, the company which runs Veeraswamy, said the news ‘came out of the blue’, adding: ‘I think they’ve come to the view that it’s too tiresome having a restaurant there, they want it to be all offices… They don’t care a bugger for history.’

Mathrani is looking for a new site for the restaurant but has taken the Crown Estate to court in order to get the lease extended until a location has been found.

A spokesperson for the Crown Estate commented: ‘We need to carry out a comprehensive refurbishment of Victory House. This includes a major upgrade to the offices and improving the entrance to make it more accessible.

‘Due to the limited options available in this listed building we need to remove the entrance to the restaurant, which means we will not be able to offer Veeraswamy an extension when their lease expires.’

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