The UK’s oldest Indian restaurant Veeraswamy is suing the Crown Estate over eviction.
Veeraswamy, the century-old Indian restaurant in the UK and the oldest ever built, will sue the Crown Estate this month over the ongoing eviction tussle. Co-owner Ranjit Mathrani said all negotiations with the Crown Estate, the portfolio of King Charles, had failed because the estate was intent on filing a costly lawsuit.
The property wants to convert the restaurant space at Victory House into office space. British media reported that Veeraswamy’s parent company, MW Eat, will present its case to the Central London District Court in a five-day hearing starting on June 29.The company said it wants to carry out a “comprehensive renovation” of the offices on the upper floors of the building, which have been empty since a flood affected the power supply in 2023.
This will require them to demolish the wall separating the Veeraswami entrance. She added that they wanted to create a larger reception area for office tenants, which would allow them to “meaningfully increase” the rents they could charge.
Veeraswami agreed to the proposal and said it could be done without evicting them, and also offered to match the rent the property estimated they would receive when zoned for office space.
“We did everything we could to respond to all their concerns,” Mathrani said, adding that the property lost more money than the renovation project would have required — in a legal tussle that also included loss of rent, as Veeraswami’s lease was not renewed.“It is the prerogative of many reputable contractors to deliver the defendant’s business program in a way that can accommodate the restaurant business.
“This is a standard part of many similar refurbishments in London and elsewhere in the UK,” Mathrani said in the witness statement.
The sacred history of Veeraswami
The restaurant opened in April 1926 and served guests including Winston Churchill, Vivien Leigh, Marlon Brando, Laurence Olivier, Charlie Chaplin and even Queen Elizabeth II. The menu was created by Edward Palmer who was inspired by the recipes for dishes served at the Royal Palace in Hyderabad, which he learned from his grandmother.
The Guardian reported that the King of Denmark used to visit Veeraswami whenever he came to London – he decided to ship a keg of Carlsberg beer to be stored in the restaurant and served to him when he ate a curry.
What the Crown Prince says
A Crown Estate spokesman said: “This is not a decision we have taken lightly.” “We need to undertake a comprehensive refurbishment of Victory House to bring it up to modern standards and full use.
We understand how disappointing this is for MW Eat and have offered to help find new premises in our portfolio so the restaurant can remain in the West End, as well as financial compensation.“Through external advice, we have reviewed alternative proposals including those put forward by MW Eat, and unfortunately there is no alternative scheme that meets our responsibilities as stewards of this heritage-listed building, our legal obligations and our responsibilities to manage public money,” the company said.MW Eat said compensation from the estate would not be enough.A petition to keep Veeraswamy Restaurant at its original premises collected 20,000 signatures and was delivered to Buckingham Palace by the restaurant’s owners in February.
