Berenjak

Verdict: Book It for Soho's Most Convincing Persian in London

At ££, you are eating Michelin-recognised Iranian cooking at prices that make most of its Soho neighbours look expensive. If you have never eaten Persian food and want a first encounter that is both serious and fun, this is where to start. If you are weighing it against splashier rooms nearby, know that Berenjak wins on value and accessibility, not ceremony.

What Berenjak Is

Berenjak is built around the kabab houses of Tehran; tight, smoky, social rooms where the cooking comes off a mangal barbecue and a tandoor oven rather than a pass. The Soho site channels that format with exposed brick, painted plasterwork, stained glass windows, mosaic floors. It is not a large room: the counter seats you directly in front of the open kitchen, brown leather booths line the walls, a handful of tables sit beneath a skylight at the back. The scent of charcoal and grilling meat from the tandoor and mangal reaches the room before the food does, which is a useful signal that most of what comes out is cooked to order over live heat.

The venue is part of the JKS restaurant group, which also operates Hoppers, Gymkhana, Sabor, Bao, Kitchen Table across London; a track record that matters when evaluating credibility. JKS does not open casual restaurants carelessly, Berenjak reflects that: the room and kitchen feel considered rather than approximate.

The menu divides into meze, kebabs, khoresht stews. Charcoal-cooked aubergine with tomato and Cacklebean eggs is a well-documented starting point, sangak, a rectangular wholewheat flatbread baked on pebbles, arrives with enough structure to use through the meze. Among the kebabs, a minced lamb shoulder preparation has been noted repeatedly for tenderness, served alongside saffron rice. The drinks list includes sharbats: fruity cordials with green herbs, some spiked with spirits. They are worth ordering if you are new to the format.

For First-Timers: What to Expect

If this is your first time at Berenjak, book the kitchen counter. Watching food come off the tandoor and mangal in real time is part of the experience, the counter seats are the leading vantage point. The booths are fine for groups who want conversation; the skylight tables at the back are quieter. The room is described consistently as dimly lit and buzzy, that atmosphere is a feature here, not a liability, but if you need a calm environment, go at lunch on a Tuesday through Friday rather than on a Saturday evening.

Service is described as charming, which at Berenjak's price point is an advantage over comparable options. The room runs full most nights, so do not assume you can walk in without a reservation.

Private Dining and Group Bookings

The database does not confirm a dedicated private dining room at the Soho site. What Berenjak offers instead is a format that lends itself to groups: sharing-style meze plates, a booth layout, a kitchen counter that accommodates solo diners through to parties of four or five comfortably. For larger groups wanting a closed-off space and a tailored menu, this is not the right venue, you would be better directed toward the private dining rooms at Sketch, The Lecture Room and Library or The Ledbury, both of which offer structured private dining at the ££££ tier. At Berenjak, the group experience is the main room itself, shared plates, a communal energy, a menu format that rewards ordering widely across the table. For a group of four to six wanting a lively, informal dinner without a long booking lead time or a high per-head spend, the main room works well.

There is a second Berenjak in Borough Market if the Soho site is full or if your party is based south of the river.

Practical Details

Reservations: Book ahead, the room fills regularly and walk-ins are not reliable, especially Thursday through Saturday.Hours: Monday dinner only (5:30–11 pm); Tuesday through Friday lunch (12–3 pm) and dinner (5:30–11 pm); Saturday all-day (12–11 pm); closed Sunday. Budget: ££, making it one of the better value options for Michelin-recognised cooking in central London. Dress: No dress code data available, the room is casual in style, the Tehran kabab-house format sets the tone. Getting there: 27 Romilly Street, Soho, W1D 5AL. Leicester Square and Tottenham Court Road are the closest underground stations. Second location: Borough Market, for those based in south or east London.

How It Compares to the Wider London Scene

Berenjak operates in a different tier and register from most of the high-profile London restaurants you might compare it against. For a broader view of what London's restaurant scene covers, see our full London restaurants guide. If you are also planning a trip and need hotel or bar recommendations, our full London hotels guide and our full London bars guide cover those categories. For experiences and wineries, our full London experiences guide and our full London wineries guide are worth checking. Further afield in the UK, The Fat Duck in Bray, L'Enclume in Cartmel, Moor Hall in Aughton, Gidleigh Park in Chagford, Hand and Flowers in Marlow, and hide and fox in Saltwood represent the country's broader serious dining options. Internationally, Le Bernardin in New York City and Atomix in New York City offer useful reference points for what Michelin-level cooking looks like in a comparable global city.