From tikka to TikTok: the success of Urban Tandoor

On a recent afternoon at Urban Tandoor, owner Sujith D’amedia and a few of his staff members had just finished recording their latest TikTok video: something which the restaurant is today known for almost as much as its curries.

With restaurants located on Small Street in the Old City and Blackboy Hill in Clifton, Urban Tandoor has received global attention since opening in 2014 having gone viral on social media several times thanks to their fun-filled videos and winning a host of awards.

Their traditional Indian cuisine is often served in a party atmosphere.

The latest video from the Urban Tandoor team coincides with Red Nose Day on Friday:

Sujith arrived in the UK from Mumbai in 2004 and was a duty manager at the Grand Hotel on Broad Street before opening the first Urban Tandoor a decade later on the parallel road, in premises which have since more than doubled in size as the restaurant has become increasingly popular.

Forty-two-year-old Sujith told Bristol24/7 that he has always felt a particular connection to Bristol. “It’s very welcoming, warm and I didn’t feel like a foreigner. As a manager I won most of the awards working there (at the Grand), so I thought it’s time for me to start my own business.”

One of the most prestigious gongs in their groaning awards cabinet is the ‘most wanted restaurant of the year’ at the English Curry Awards 2019, but Sujith says that it was not initially easy as a first-time restaurateur.

What is today Urban Tandoor was previously two different restaurants: Spice of India and Friends Chinese Restaurant.

Urban Tandoor on Small Street has expanded into the next door premises since opening in 2014 – photo: Martin Booth

“This restaurant was considered an unlucky restaurant, it didn’t work for ages,” said Sijith. “Many people tried but they couldn’t get the success.

“It’s on 13 Small Street, 13 tables, our lease was signed in 2013, so everything that happened in this place, everything was unlucky 13. But for us it was a different story. For us it was very lucky.”

After first opening on Small Street, Sujith regularly used to take small pieces of chicken tikka with a toothpick and walk around the streets of the Old City wearing an apron with ‘keep calm & curry on’ in order to drum up custom.

“Now it’s a different story,” he said with a smile. “Now we are fully booked. Today the only time slot we have is 5pm or 9pm. So it’s changed a lot.”

So what is the key to the restaurant’s success according to Sujith?

“We try to do things in a different way. Guests are the centre of everything that we do, everything revolves around the guest. If there’s an occasion then we’ll celebrate it. We have 25 different cards for 25 different occasions for death, births, everything.”

Despite their impressive number of accolades, Sujith said that “awards are just for the wall. The best award is when the guest leaves with a smiling face. Those things just keep coming if you work hard.”

In the digital domain, it’s TikTok where Urban Tandoor has excelled over the last few years, jumping on many of the latest trends as well as creating videos in the style of East 17’s Stay Under Day, or Bring Another Tray in their version, to Lou Bega’s Mambo No. 5 called Naan Bread No. 5.

If you have TikTok, there’s a good chance that Urban Tandoor’s account will come up on your ‘for you’ page. Their most popular videos have millions of views, with their account becoming a big part of the business and the brand, with waiters and chefs all featuring in the skits.

They post several new videos each week, and Sujith admits that he employs an outside team to manage the account, although many of the ideas still come from him and the team in the restaurant.

Sujith said that it all started from humble beginnings with the simple aim of spreading a little bit of happiness. “During Covid, that’s when we started our TikTok because we saw that the world was so depressed during lockdown. We just had five or six followers – which could have just been my grandma, cousins and mum!”

But despite their fame spreading far beyond Bristol thanks to the global reach of social media, Sujith said that he has no plans to expand Urban Tandoor outside of the city.

“The main aim is to see people happy. It’s not just a business to make money. It’s about supporting the community, making sure everybody’s happy. The guests come here for food but leave with an experience.”

This feature was first published in Bristol24/7’s new quarterly magazine

Main photo: Stint

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