Biryani Near Me in Mayfair: Bombay Bustle's Dum Lamb Biryani on Maddox Street

Dum Lamb Biryani at Bombay Bustle is £39, made with slow-cooked lamb, basmati rice, mint and a boiled egg, and it is served at 29 Maddox Street, a short walk off Regent Street in Mayfair. Dinner starts at 5:30 pm every day of the week, and lunch from 12 pm, so a biryani near me search around Oxford Circus has a sit-down option that does not need a weekend booking weeks ahead.

The à la carte menu keeps its biryani section short. Dum Tarkari Biryani at £29 uses seasonal vegetables with basmati rice and fried onion. Awadhi Murgh Biryani at £32 is made with Suffolk chicken, Lucknowi spices and fresh coriander. Dum Lamb Biryani at £39 is the richest of the three, finished with mint and a halved boiled egg on the rice.

Choose the Awadhi chicken if you prefer fragrance over heat, since Lucknow cooking leans on aromatics rather than chilli. The lamb is the better order on a cold evening and the one most people come back for. Three people can share one biryani with two curries; two people should order one biryani each only if they skip the tandoor section, because portions are generous.

From the tandoor, Malai Chicken Tikka is £26 with yoghurt, cheese, mace and green cardamom, and the Recheado Fish Tikka at £28 brings Goan spice to stone bass. Garlic and Spinach Raita is £6 and is the side most worth adding to a biryani order. Dabba Dal at £11, black lentils cooked overnight with butter and fenugreek, is the restaurant's take on the comforting tiffin lentil.

Here is where to save money: the Achari Lamb Chops cost £51, more than the lamb biryani itself, and on the same table they repeat the lamb without adding anything new. Order Rarah Keema Pao at £22, spiced lamb mince with onion salad and soft bread, as the starter instead, then let the biryani carry the main course. Sweet-toothed diners can finish with the Rose Saffron Falooda from the set menu.

Groups that would rather not choose can book the Feast of Bombay set menu at £75 per person, with a minimum of two people and an optional wine pairing at £38 per person. It runs from a small platter of sprouts sundal and Malabar chicken wings through a tandoor trio and a main such as Malabar Lamb Curry, but note that it does not include a biryani, so order one alongside if rice is the reason you came.

Bombay Bustle opened in November 2017, launched by Samyukta Nair and chef Rohit Ghai, the duo behind Jamavar in Mayfair. Harden's reported at the time that the concept was inspired by the dabbawalas, the Mumbai couriers who carry home-cooked lunches in tiffin boxes across the city every working day. That theme still runs through the menu, from the Dabba Dal to the brass tiffin details in the room.

The ground-floor bar is designed to look like an Indian railway carriage and is known in-house as the Carriage, with lively sharing tables. On the lower ground floor, the Retiring Room is the quieter space, with deep booths, ruby-toned leather and soft lighting. Across both floors the restaurant can seat 108 guests, and groups of 6 to 16 can book semi-private areas.

Tables are held for set times: 2 hours for 1 to 4 guests, 2.5 hours for 5 to 8 guests and 3 hours for 9 or more. There is a 15-minute grace period for late arrivals, after which the table may be released. Cancellations within 48 hours of the booking and no-shows are charged £50 per person, so it pays to cancel early if plans change.

Children aged 8 and below are welcome until 6 pm, which makes lunch or an early dinner the best family slot. The dress code is smart casual, and flip-flops and shorts are not permitted. Pushchairs and large bags are not allowed in the dining areas because of space. A £3 per person cover charge is added to the bill, so budget for it on a large group booking.

Monday to Saturday hours are lunch 12 pm to 2:30 pm and dinner 5:30 pm to 10:30 pm. On Sunday, lunch runs 12 pm to 3 pm and dinner 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm. A weekday lunch is the easiest table to get, especially for the Express Bustle Bowls served at lunch and in the early evening on weekdays; Friday and Saturday dinners are the slots to reserve ahead.

If the restaurant is fully booked, Veeraswamy on Regent Street is five minutes' walk away and also serves a lamb biryani, though at a higher price and with a minimum spend at dinner. A cheaper fallback is takeaway: Bombay Bustle runs takeaway alongside lunch and dinner service, and a biryani eaten in nearby Hanover Square on a dry day is a fine plan B.

Walk east along Maddox Street and you pass St George's, Hanover Square, the Georgian church where Handel worshipped and where many society weddings have taken place. A block north sits Hanover Square itself, a small green with benches and plane trees that is calm at lunchtime even when Oxford Street is crowded a minute away.

Head south-west and you reach Savile Row, the street of bespoke tailors whose cutting rooms can be seen through basement windows. From there, Burlington Gardens leads to the back of the Royal Academy of Arts, and Piccadilly is just beyond. Oxford Circus is the nearest Underground station on the Central, Victoria and Bakerloo lines.

Address: 29 Maddox Street, Mayfair, London W1S 2PA. Hours: Monday to Saturday lunch 12 pm to 2:30 pm and dinner 5:30 pm to 10:30 pm; Sunday lunch 12 pm to 3 pm and dinner 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Prices quoted come from the à la carte menu PDF on bombaybustle.com and include VAT.

Ask the Karpo APP for a pre-dinner drink near Hanover Square, a dessert spot on Regent Street, or an alternative Mayfair biryani if Maddox Street is full on the night you want to go.