From kala bhuna to shatkora curry – let's all get a taste for Bangladesh

Most of Britain’s Indian restaurants are run by Bangladeshis. So why don’t they promote their cuisine, asks restaurateur and poet Ahsan Akbar

In 1810, Hindoostane Coffee House in Marylebone became the first Indian restaurant in Britain. Its owner was a traveller and entrepreneur from Bengal who changed his name from Sheikh Din Muhammad to Sake Dean Mahomed. A man of many talents, in 1794 he was the first Indian to publish a book in English, documenting his travels. Sadly, money troubles forced him to sell the restaurant in 1811.

Nevertheless, Indian restaurants are a thriving business, and around 90% of the Indian restaurants in Britain today are owned and run by Bangladeshis. But even with a British-Bangladeshi population of around 600,000, the Bangladesh brand is weak – rarely does a curry house brand itself as a Bangladeshi establishment.