On a gloomy evening in London, after a relentless day at the Silk Street law firm where I worked, I was in desperate need of some food. Scurrying across a rainswept street looking for a quick bite, I passed the giant glass-and-metal façade of Wagamama, a place I’d only heard about till then. I slowed down at the glimpse of a young girl, plugged into her iPod, slurping away a steaming bowl of noodle soup. After discreetly asking the server what she was having, I ordered a bowl of tantanmen beef brisket ramen, unaware that over the next couple of weeks, this would become my daily moment of warmth–a hug in broth form.
A diner at a Wagamama outlet in Queensway,United Kingdom. Photo: Pictures/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
That was 15 years ago. In 2025, it’s another rain-soaked evening, this time in Mumbai, and I find myself, once again, at a Wagamama. Only now, it’s their very first outpost in India. Tucked on the first floor of the streamlined and storied Cumbata Building across Oval Maidan (same building as Eros Cinema), the space feels uncannily familiar. The same sleek, blond-wood communal tables stretch across the floor. Origami-style pendant lamps hover above geometric-lined black metal partitions that subtly divide the room without breaking its rhythm. It’s almost identical, down to the steam curling from the open kitchen and orders curiously being scribbled on the table mats. For a moment, I’m back in London. Cold fingers wrapped around a warm bowl; and the quiet comfort of knowing exactly what to order.
The space
Born in London in 1992, Wagamama redefined casual dining in the UK with its ramen bars, brisk yet approachable service and atmosphere, and communal benches—offering fast, flavourful pan-Asian meals without the frills. It wasn’t fine dining, but it was a food revolution of sorts: quick, honest, and quietly cool.
In Mumbai too, Wagamama’s signature design is instantly recognisable with its architecture of transparency: floor-to-ceiling glass and dark metal panels that blur the lines between street and restaurant, pulling you in. While the Mumbai outpost doesn’t spill out onto a bustling pavement, it hovers just above it overlooking the expanse of Oval Maidan, and the Victorian Gothic ensemble of Rajabai Clock Tower and the High Court beyond. Incidentally, the space once belonged to Umame—a buzzy fine-dining spot when it opened over a decade ago, serving a mix of pan-Asian dishes to Mumbai’s swish set. Today, Wagamama’s version of Asian cuisine is less show, more soul—and fittingly more democratic.
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