London’s Indian Accent becomes the latest Covid restaurant casualty

The London outpost of Indian Accent will not reopen when lockdown is lifted, however the company said chef Manish Mehrotra and his team hope to return to the capital in the future.

Indian Accent’s soy keema

The Mayfair restaurant, located on London’s Albermarle Street, will permanently close, a decision management has blamed on Covid-19.

In a statement posted on the restaurant’s website, operator IRL, said the decision was made as a “last resort” and as a “direct result” of Covid-19. It stated that social distancing measures would reduce the restaurant’s capacity to just 30 covers, which would mean revenue would not cover costs.

“This, combined with the significant fixed costs as a result of operating on one of the most expensive streets in the world, and the general economic uncertainty in the UK, means the business is unviable at its current location,” the statement read.

However, there was more positive news for fans of the restaurant. IRL stated that chef Manish Mehrotra and his team hope to return to London at a larger site in the future.

Meanwhile, the group’s restaurants in New Delhi and New York are preparing to reopen in compliance with Covid-19 guidelines, and are not affected by the decision taken in London.

Indian Accent’s London site opened in 2017, a year after its sister site in New York was unveiled. Mehrotra opened the New Delhi original in 2009 within the Manor Hotel.

Despite failing to gain a Michelin star, London’s Indian Accent attracted rave reviews from the likes of Grace Dent and Fay Maschler. On her visit, db‘s Lucy Shaw praised the restaurant’s “imaginative and unconventional” approach to Indian cuisine, stating that it reminded her of the thrill of her first meal at Michelin-starred Tamarind.

Indian Accent now joins a growing list of fine dining restaurants in London which are closing or relocating due to Covid-19. These include Le Caprice, The Ledbury, Siren, The Frog Hoxton and Texture.