Thanks to competition and razor-thin margins, restaurants close at an alarming rate. For many, surviving just a handful of years is a considerable struggle.
This makes it even more impressive that Jahangir Tandoori, an Indian restaurant located on Session Street, Dundee, has reached its 38th year in business.
Despite opening the same year that Margaret Thatcher won her third successive election and The Great Storm rocked the nation, the restaurant is anything but set in its ways.
This is partially thanks to Tanbir Ahamed, who began working at Jahangir Tandoori in 2017. The restaurant has been under his management since 2023.
When I asked him what he has changed, Tanbir pointed to a wall covered in certificates and trophies. One highlight: The Scottish Asian Food Awards named Jahangir Tandoori the best Indian restaurant in Central Scotland last year.
Tanbir told me that he has improved the restaurant’s already formidable array of recipes by drawing on his 20+ years of experience in the hospitality industry.
It is this improved food that has been bringing home the awards.
However, a restaurant cannot survive by serving good food alone. Service must also be impeccable.
“If you ensure you have good food and good service, you can have a successful restaurant anywhere in the world,” Tanbir said.
Jahangir’s secret to long-term success
“It is important to keep the standard of food and service the same, night after night,” Tanbir told me.
Serving great food and always putting customers first might not sound like rocket science. However, it is incredibly difficult to do every day for years on end.
Naturally, this consistency is something that Jahangir Tandoori’s regulars appreciate.
Numerous online reviewers note that the restaurant’s biryanis, curries and other dishes are always strikingly flavourful, regardless of whether they are ordered online or in the restaurant.
There also seems to be no fluctuation in quality from one service to the next.
Receiving positive feedback is something Tanbir and his team thrive on.
Tanbir said: “Getting positive feedback from customers is everything for us.
“When they compliment our work, it lets us know that we are doing the right thing. We get more energetic and are willing to do even more for them.”
A celebratory buffet
To celebrate reaching this milestone, the team at Jahangir Tandoori are serving a “Royal Buffet” on Sunday June 1.
This buffet will give customers the opportunity to try many of the restaurant’s most popular dishes. Tanbir also plans to serve some new ones.
Although he was not forthcoming about what these new dishes will be, Tanbir did note that several of them will spotlight seafood.
Customers who cannot make Sunday June 1 need not worry. The buffet will be served every Sunday and Monday from 2:00pm to 8:30pm thereafter.
Conversation