Spotlight 

URBAN VILLAGE LDN SHINES A LIGHT ON A DIFFERENT FULHAM BUSINESS EACH MONTH. IN THIS ISSUE WE TALK TO Yasmin Kapre, Joint owner of Indian Restaurant, Naayab FUlham

Naayab located at 309 New King’s Road was started by Praveen Rai, former Chef turned Restauranteur, who brought the flavours of Punjab to a little basement restaurant on Park Walk, Chelsea in 1981. Born in Alahbad, Uttar Pradesh, India in 1951, Praveen served in Military School and at the age of 17, became an apprentice at IBM in France. Yasmin who is Praveen’s daughter told Urban Village LDN “ With England just across the water, Dad couldn’t miss the opportunity to visit all the places he had uncovered through the legacy that is Shakespeare. That was it, Praveen knew where he needed to be and quickly fell into the hospitality industry. Moving from kitchen porter, to cook, chef, front of house management and ops manager he became passionate about all things culinary which was underpinned by his extensive knowledge of Indian cuisine passed on by his Mother”.

Praveen opened his first restaurant Romano Santi in Soho in 1977, serving French and Italian cuisine, then headed back to his roots opening Naayab and subsequently other venues including an Indian Jazz Spot called Al The Raj in Brixton in 1992 and The Inebriated Newt. Back to Naayab, Yasmin continues “this is where my Mum and Dad met. My mother, known mostly as “Naz” acted as host and front of house manager, with my Father also hosting and attending to kitchen operations and food management. A thriving atmosphere of daily parties, live music, dancers and above all, delicious food meant Park Walk Nayaab saw the likes of Anthony Hopkins, Lloyd Grossman, Daniel Day Lewis and even Sir Cliff Richard amongst many other A list guests”.

A turn of events in 1986 forced a decision to relocate the business and so Praveen, along with partner and manager Naz chose their current address in Fulham. Yasmin recounts “the new Naayab with it’s exterior laden with hanging baskets of colorful flowers took guests through an almost dingy entryway into a warmly lit, colonial yet Indian style restaurant. You could be seated at the front and oversee the busy New King’s Road, or take a walk down through the infamous corridor to the back where there was a wonderful 40 seat dining room”. Yasmin’s sister Amani told Urban Village LDN “We always took the front round window table when we visited as children; until perhaps it got too busy and we had to shift it! We didn’t mind too much, for it meant a trip to Hurlingham Park!”

Naz and Praveen brought the crowds to their new home for more fabulous food and entertainment. In its full glory, as a duo Nayaab became a success with food being delivered across Fulham and Chelsea and diners filling up seats 7 days a week. Praveen continued to run Nayaab alone from 1997 and has since been delivering and serving up authentic, innovative and freshly cooked Punjabi, Northern Indian cuisine alongside favourite British Classics. Nayaab has certainly stood the test of time and they will be celebrating 40 years in November. Praveen told Urban Village LDN “Nayaab is a Persian word which means unique. Subtly, I wanted to find a way to bridge the gap and divide between religious sects and divisions in Indian society and culture. With the name Nayaab, those who knew it as derivative of Arabic would feel welcomed, as would those who understood it to be a typically Indian restaurant. More importantly, it was also a tribute to the influences of Persian culture in Indian food. Going it alone for so long and losing touch with, not being able to grasp the modern way of doing things” has been a challenge for Paveen and that’s where Yazmin comes in following her return to the UK from Thailand in 2018.

“My Father’s love and passion is still behind Nayaab, but he has recently taken a back seat after suffering from a stroke in June. We want to get him in good shape for Nayaab’s 40th birthday, when we will be filling up the place with love and laughter as per his fond memories. He’s been through massive health implications and it was a lot for him to deal with. He wasn’t about to let go of Nayaab so we had to get the place back firmly on its feet! I mean, I could comprehend that out of all his restaurants this was his baby, his most precious and he could not let her down. As a duo, we cleaned up the place, redecorated, had a massive clear out and reorganisation and rolled on with a new menu, great food and a new start. I decided I would help out for 6 months and of course I’m still here! It was not enough for me to redecorate and go and I felt like there was so much more this place could give Fulham - and should give Fulham!”

Naayab hasn’t thrown the baby out with the bath water, traditional authentic recipes are still central to their offer but they’ve innovated and modernised the menu with food that focuses on Indian flavours and encompasses British cuisine too. Yasmin told us “Mum always put down classic roast dinners, but the addition of bloomed chillies to French trimmed beans, or the burnt garlic and cumin tadka over our roast potatoes; the complexities of authentic Indian cuisine simplified and served moderately alongside our favoured British choices. The one that always got me the most - the mince in Mum’s shepherd’s pie would lightly transcend flavours of India with the rest of the dish as per it’s usual traditional form. I’m excited to open up Nayaab as a more adaptable space, fueled by good food, drinks all day and always a warm, cosy and friendly atmosphere, as per true Indian hospitality”.

We’re looking forward to visiting, taking a seat at their bar which now opens onto the New King’s Road and trying an artisanal Indian inspired cocktail or two. From this month Nayaab will be opening up it’s day time offerings with a weekend brunch menu and new bar nibbles menu. Their dining room is available for private hire and it’s separate entrance means that it can be turned into an exclusive spot! Author Johnny Stonborough, a customer since the early Park Walk days, sums up the vibe at Naayab “We have a tradition at our house. We say ‘let’s do a Nayab!’ It’s family shorthand for delicious interesting food, conjured by delightful people who we have known for over 30 years. First Praveen Rai and now his lovely daughter Yasmin who carries on their family tradition”.