The Journey
Our first restaurant opened on Soho’s Romilly Street back in 2018. In the years since, we’ve achieved more than we ever thought possible: we’ve opened restaurants around the world, cooked at weddings for our community and collaborated with brands we love. But, we don’t always get to share these stories with you. So here’s some you might not have heard, and a few you probably have…
“Berenjak is much more than just a restaurant. It’s family and culture, past, present, and future.”
Kian Samyani – Founder
Our first year
- Date: 09. Oct. 2018
- Location: 27 Romilly St, London W1D 5AL
Back in October 2018, we opened the doors on 27 Romilly Street. But the Berenjak story takes roots many years before, in Kian’s childhood memories of Iran: the waiting for koobideh with bread in hand, the drive over snow capped mountains up to the Caspian sea, and the setting of the sofreh before every family meal - all of it left its mark.
But it wasn’t until Kian viewed a small site on a side street in Soho that a vision for Berenjak started to take form. The kabab shop two doors down from his grandfather's house in Tehran was suddenly at the forefront of his mind.
Our first few months were a venture into the unknown and we weren’t (and still aren’t) without our critics, but we soon found our feet and the restaurant started to gather momentum…
the Year of
REFINEMENT AND RECOGNITION
2019
Our first full year
AND A MICHELIN BIB GOURMAND
A SEAL OF APPROVAL
- Date: 04. Oct. 2019
- Location: 27 Romilly St, London W1D 5AL
We headed into 2019 still a very new team: but we were getting into our stride, building up regulars, regulars becoming friends, and feeling stronger and more confident than ever in our mission.
Then: the Michelin Guide recognised us with a Bib Gourmand, awarded for 'excellent cooking at a reasonable price'. It was something we'd never aimed for, so it came as a total surprise - but a very welcome one. We've retained it each year since and it's an achievement we're really proud of.
the Year of
KABAB KITS
2020
New creative challenges
and a global PANDEMIC
THE C-WORD
- Date: 23. Mar. 2020
- Location: 27 Romilly St, London W1D 5AL
2020 was a challenge, to say the least. And to say a little more, it was the most challenging time we, like many other people and businesses, had ever gone through. It was a time for needing to look after everyone to the very best of our ability, but also about how we could keep the restaurant alive.
Like many others, we turned to at-home meal kits: a way that our guests could re-create a little of the Berenjak experience at home, by sending them out the very same skewers we use in the restaurant for them to grill on their own barbecues. Furlough, social distancing, going takeaway-only, and packing enough boxes to fill our restaurants with cardboard a hundred times over - it's a year we'll never forget.
the Year of
FIRSTS
2021
Expanding our horizons
TAKING BERENJAK OFFSITE
New Relationships
- Date: 26. SEP. 2021
- Location: 27 Romilly St, London W1D 5AL
With the doors open again, we witnessed demand like we’d never experienced. New friends from all over the country came into the restaurant wanting to meet the people who packed their kabab kits.
It was also a year of firsts: the first time we catered a wedding, the first time we collaborated with Soho House, and the first time we turned the restaurant into a night-club.
Since the beginning, Sundays have been a “sacred” day off for our team, but in 2021 we also started using them as a platform to showcase their creativity with one-off events like ‘Meyhane’ -- a music and wine focused dinner-- lead by our chef, Shwan Baban.
the Year of
NEW OPPORTUNITies
2022
the Introduction of
the BERENJAK BOROUGH
Welcome to
the townhouse
- Date: 25. May. 2022
- Location: 1 Bedale St, London SE1 9AL
In 2022 a grade two listed building in Borough Market fell into our laps. From the first time we walked in, our minds were drawn to memories of the rural foothills of the Alborz Mountains and a vision for a Berenjak Townhouse began to take shape: regal yet homely, with ornate panelling, rich upholstery, and framed portraits of Qajar dynasty rulers.
Realising this vision posed a new set of challenges. How do you open more restaurants without losing your identity? How do you express the culture you’ve built through a brand new team? And most importantly, how do you manage the flow of food, drinks, guests and team all coming up and down a single antique spiral staircase? Opening Borough forced us to face these questions head on, questions we’re still answering today.
the Year of
PASSPORTS & VISAS
2023
Our first restaurant
OVERSEAS
DEJA VU
- Date: 27. Nov. 2023
- Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
In November 2023 we opened Berenjak Dubai.
Five years in, it felt like going back to the beginning… bringing a restaurant to life from scratch all over again: finding the right location, endless layout changes, building a team, and hounding hundreds of local suppliers for cold pressed rapeseed oil.
It was also a moment to take stock. Our culture and values were something we’d always passed on organically, but never stopped to define. Now we had to put that essence into words for the first time so we could impart it to our global family.
In the end all the hard work was worth it. Eight months later, Berenjak Dubai became our second restaurant to be awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand.
the Year of
CLOUD NINE
2024
Escaping to the country
and LANDING IN BROOKLYN
From Soho
to Soho House
- Date: 13. Apr. 2024
- Location: The Cotswolds to Brooklyn
One January morning we went to see the Little Bell in the courtyard of Soho Farmhouse and straight away we felt at home there. Before we knew it we were converting the grill into a Mangal, reupholstering the seats with persian carpets and by April 13th… we’d opened a kababi in the Cotswolds.
Little Berenjak was a hit, so much so that one day, feeling a bit cocky, we joked “where next?”. We weren’t really expecting an answer, but turns out there was one and that answer was DUMBO.
So, we did what we do best and jumped on a plane to JFK, then headed straight to Brooklyn to check out our new home-to-be. We mapped out the dining room, took a thousand photos of the kitchen and once again found ourselves searching for cold-pressed rapeseed oil.
On October 22nd we were standing in a candle-lit dining room looking out at views of the Manhattan bridge for the opening night of Berenjak DUMBO. It was all a bit surreal. Our friendship with Soho House has always been very organic, whether popping up at their festivals or by the pool at 180, but we never expected to open a restaurant in one of the houses… much less two in the same year.
Tomorrow
What’s
Next?
At Berenjak, the story we share is one of family and culture—a journey that honours the past while embracing the future. Each dish we serve carries the essence of tradition, lovingly reimagined for today, and the path forward is no different.
We are deeply grateful to those who have joined us on this journey: our team, who pour their heart into every detail; our guests, who bring the restaurant to life with their laughter and warmth; and the community that continues to inspire us.
As we look to tomorrow, we remain committed to crafting experiences that go beyond the table – celebrating not just food, but the connections and memories it creates. The future holds exciting new chapters, and we’re honoured to have you with us as we write them.