This Week In London’s History
Random London Fact Of The Week
We may be accustomed to the ubiquitous nature of Indian restaurants in the capital, but of course it was not always so. In fact, the first ever Indian restaurant in London (and possibly the UK) opened less than 200 years ago.
In 1809, a Bengali entrepreneur named Sake Dean Mahomet opened the Hindoostanee Coffee House on George Street in Marylebone. As with many ‘coffee houses’ of the time, this establishment did not serve coffee – however it did feature a menu that was entirely dedicated to Indian cuisine, offering somewhere “for the Nobility and Gentry where they might enjoy the Hookha with real Chilm tobacco and Indian dishes of the highest perfection”.
The restaurant was popular but financially unsuccessful, and the entrepreneur soon abandoned it and moved to Brighton, where he established a highly successful shampooing business, eventually being appointed ‘shampoo surgeon’ to King George IV (and later William IV).
London’s Weather This Week
There should be quite a bit of sunshine in between this week’s sporadic showers. However, the forecasters seem to think it will get a bit chilly as the week progresses. Scarf, umbrella and shades required.
Picture of the Apple Records building taken from Jeherv’s Flickr photostream.