Every autumn, Diwali (also known as the festival of lights) symbolises the triumph of goodness and light over evil and darkness, as celebrators illuminate darker evenings with lanterns and diyas and share warming feasts made up of a number of courses. This year, the main event of the five-day celebration falls on Sunday 12th November but the Diwali 2023 celebrations are running throughout the whole month. From outstanding limited-time menus to spectacular live performances, here’s how to get involved in Diwali in London this year.
Dishoom
Dishoom is hosting its biggest Diwali party to date at The Steel Yard this November, laying on an evening of storytelling music and dance, curated by Alass Badat and featuring performances from Haseeb Iqbal, Sanj J Sanj, 2Flutes, Amritha Jayakrishnan and more. There’ll be hot chai, cold drinks and plenty of veggie dishes from Dishoom to keep you going throughout the night.
Weds 8th November 2023
The Steel Yard, 13-16 Allhallows Ln, London EC4R 3UE
dishoom.com
Pahli Hill Bandra Bhai
As well as featuring artwork from Chila Kumari Burman throughout the restaurant and shaking up special Yuzu and Spice cocktails for the week, Pahli Hill Bandra Bhai is also marking Diwali with two events. On 8th November Sabrina Gidda will be cooking up a collab menu with chef Avi, including dishes like spiced dock croquette, monkfish & scallop kebab and Indian game pie, and on 11th November, basement bar Bandra Bhai will be hosting a Diwali Eve party.
Mon 6th – Sun 12th November 2023
79-81 Mortimer Street, London, W1W 7SJ
pahlihillbandrabhai.com
Gymkhana
As well as celebrating its 10 year anniversary this autumn, Gymkhana is also marking Diwali with a special feasting menu (£110 per head), with a veggie option also available. The five-course menu will feature dishes like Amritsari pink shrimps & queenies with dill raita, kid goat methi keema with salli & pao, wild muntjac biryani with pomegranate & mint raita, and saffron pistachio kulfi falooda. You can choose to pair the meal with a curated selection of wines for an additional £95.
Mon 6th – Sun 12th November 2023
42 Albemarle St, London W1S 4JH
gymkhanalondon.com
Trishna
Over at Trishna, which is also celebrating its 15th birthday, you can choose between three six-course Diwali menus created by Executive Chef Sajeev Nair – the traditional tasting, the veggie menu and the vegan menu, all of which have been designed with red roses, a symbol of the 15 year milestone the restaurant has reached. Dishes include the likes of coconut & curry leaf scallops, mallard chutney seekh, cashew & pepper chicken, and passion fruit ginger malai. There’ll also be limited-edition cocktails like the Jal-Jeera Whisky Soda and Chikki Chikki Old Fashioned to go with the menu.
Mon 6th – Sun 12th November 2023
15-17 Blandford Street, London W1U 3DG
trishnalondon.com
Karapincha
To celebrate Diwali this year, Sri Lankan kitchen Karapincha is holding a twelve-dish supper club at Old Spitalfields Market. Dishes like Kerala-style deep-fried chicken, aubergine moju, chicken mandi, fish polichatu and crispy jalebi will be served on traditional banana leaves and served against a backdrop of glowing candles.
Tues 7th November 2023
Old Spitalfields Market, 16 Horner Square London E1 6EW
karapinchakitchen.com
Brigadiers
Brigadiers are bringing out a Diwali feast of their classics designed to be shared with friends. Priced at £85 per head, the menu will include the likes of achari chicken skins, original BBQ butter chicken wings, and the maharaja lamb biryani feast with Calcutta anda curry, spinach burrani raita, daal champaran and butter naan.
Mon 6th – Sun 12th November 2023
1 Bloomberg Arcade, London EC4N 8AR
brigadierslondon.com
National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich hosts a Diwali celebration each year and for 2023, Mehala Ford, founder of South Asian arts platform COMMONGROUND&, is curating the line-up for the Shine Your Light festival. The programme includes a Rajasthani dance performance from Akademi, puppet theatre, music from DJ Tara Kumar, a lantern parade, rangoli art workshops, sari styling sessions and more.
Sat 11th November 2023
Romney Rd, London SE10 9NF
rmg.co.uk
Babur
Forest Hill institution Babur will be serving up a spesh Diwali menu throughout the whole of November but the real party is happening on the day itself. The restaurant’s marquee will be filled with decorations and candles, there’ll be performances from the Bollywood Vibes dance group, and a menu featuring dishes like chapli kebab, tehari biryani, steamed bhapa sea bass with green coconut chutney, and buffalo milk kheer.
Sun12th November 2023
119 Brockley Rise, London SE23 1JP
babur.info
Kanishka
Atul Kochhar is putting on a six-course tasting menu for Diwali at his Mayfair spot Kanishka that showcases flavours from across India’s different regions. Feast on the likes of chicken tikka pie with cumin mix berry cumin; Orkney scallop with caramelised pear and lime gel; coconut marinated stone bass crab with Devon crab croquette; fig stuffed cottage paneer tikka with cavolo nero and korma; and a mithai dessert platter featuring rasmalai with saffron poached pear, dark chocolate mousse, and almond fudge.
Mon 6th – Sun 12th November 2023
17-19 Maddox Street, London, W1S 2QH
kanishkarestaurant.co.uk
The Cinnamon Collection
Three of the restaurants in Vivek Singh’s Cinnamon Collection – The Cinnamon Club, Cinnamon Kitchen City and Cinnamon Bazaar – will be serving up celebratory menus to mark Diwali this month. At The Cinnamon Club in Westminster, you’ll find a five-course menu for £65 per head, including a festive welcome cocktail, canapes and Diwali sweet treats. Over in the City, Cinnamon Kitchen will have a nine-course sharing feast at £45 per head (minimum of two guests), which includes the restaurant’s signature Kashmiri-style lamb among other dishes. And at Cinnamon Bazaar in Covent Garden, another nine-course feasting menu will be served (£50 per head) against the backdrop of vibrant colour, patterned tiles and illuminated lanterns.
Mon 30th October – Sat 18th November 2023
Various locations in London
thecinnamoncollection.com
Greenwich Peninsula
On Sat 11th November, Greenwich Peninsula is celebrating Diwali with a packed programme of free and ticketed events. For London Design Festival, they collaborated with award-winning graphic artist Murugiah to unveil a new public artwork, Rangoli Mirrored Cosmos, and guests to the Diwali festivities will have the chance to meet Murugiah for a Q&A session. That’s not all, there’ll also be workshops where you can make your own mandala or Diwali lantern, henna tattoo artists, live performances, Bollywood dance classes or workouts and a free exhibition of the work of Nepalese-British photographer, Nina Manandhar.
Sat 11th November 2023
Greenwich Peninsula, London SE10
greenwichpeninsula.co.uk
Bombay Bustle
If you need to pick up a Diwali gift, head to Bombay Bustle. The restaurant will have a beaut gifting table filled with a selection of Indian sweets, including Mega Gangster Ladoos, a box of four large motichoor ladoos and Mini Halwa Boxes of decadent Habshi halwa, which can be boxed up in mint green & pink packaging to take home and pass on – if you don’t them yourself that is.
Until Sun 12th November 2023
9 Maddox Street, London, W1S 2PA
bombaybustle.com