When we opened the Cinnamon Club 25 years ago, our ambition was always to create a restaurant that would last forever. But I was also made very aware of how unforgiving the London restaurant scene could be — that one wrong move could send you packing. So, while the dream was big, a part of me was mentally prepared to return to India if things didn’t work out!
Looking back, the naivety of those early years aside, it feels incredible. It’s impossible to measure how much this restaurant means to me: it is such a huge part of the body of work my team and I have built — I don’t have the words to express how deeply it sits with me. It has been the most wonderful journey, and it’s still ongoing. Each day, we come in wanting today to be better than yesterday. What makes it special is the people — generous, passionate, committed — who’ve grown to become family. Hospitality gets a lot of criticism these days, but in my experience it’s one of the most supportive, rewarding spaces to work in.
