Bombay Restaurant Restaurateur Receives The Flavours Of Asia Award As His Signature Sea Bass Is Named Among The 2026 Best Of Taste Asia

Iftehar Ahmed Featured on Taste Asia Magazine Cover as Bombay Restaurant Earns 2026 Culinary Recognition

Leamington Spa Restaurateur Receives Flavours Of Asia Award As Bombay’s Signature Sea Bass Is Selected For The 2026 Best Of Taste Asia

LONDON, United Kingdom — August 31, 2026 — Restaurateur Iftehar Ahmed has been featured on the cover of the sixth issue of Taste Asia magazine, marking more than four decades of his family’s involvement with Bombay Restaurant in Leamington Spa.

The issue includes an exclusive interview with Ahmed examining the restaurant’s 45-year history, the changing face of British Indian dining and the challenge of preserving a family business while preparing it for another generation.

The cover feature coincides with two further distinctions. Ahmed has received the Taste Asia Flavours of Asia Award, while Bombay Restaurant’s Signature Sea Bass has been selected for The 2026 Best of Taste Asia.

Bombay Restaurant was founded in 1980 by Ahmed’s father and uncle. Ahmed began working there as a teenager before joining the business full-time and gradually taking greater responsibility for its development.

During his interview, Ahmed reflects on how dramatically the restaurant industry has changed, from an era when curry houses regularly served customers into the early hours to today’s greater emphasis on complete dining experiences, online visibility, service and atmosphere.

“You have to keep the tradition, but you also need innovation,” Ahmed says. “The important thing is finding the right balance.”

That philosophy is reflected in Bombay’s Signature Sea Bass.

The dish combines crisp sea bass with a subtle mustard marinade, accompanied by a fresh salsa of apple, pear and peach and balanced with balsamic acidity.

Taste Asia selected the dish for its originality, accomplished preparation and combination of contrasting flavours.

Ahmed also discusses his approach to Indian cuisine, arguing that successful dishes should allow diners to distinguish individual ingredients and spices rather than relying principally on heat.

“For me, good Indian food is about balance,” he says.

The interview also revisits one of Ahmed’s most significant business decisions: expanding Bombay’s upstairs dining area during the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. The investment followed strong demand and the need for greater capacity once restaurants reopened.

Today, however, Ahmed’s focus is increasingly on succession rather than expansion.

His daughter and son-in-law are becoming more closely involved in Bombay, with Ahmed describing the continuation of the family business as one of his greatest priorities.

“At one stage, I thought about expanding much more and making the business considerably bigger,” he says. “But sometimes bigger is not necessarily better.”

The sixth issue of Taste Asia presents Ahmed’s story as one of endurance, adaptation and generational change — documenting how a restaurant established in 1980 has continued to evolve while maintaining the family identity at its centre.

About Bombay Restaurant

Bombay Restaurant is a family-run Indian restaurant in Leamington Spa established in 1980. The restaurant combines traditional Indian cooking with contemporary menu development, fresh ingredients and a strong emphasis on hospitality and consistency.

About Taste Asia Magazine

Taste Asia is a food and lifestyle publication covering Asian cuisine, chefs, restaurants and hospitality personalities through interviews, reviews, editorial features and culinary recognition.

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The magazine is available in print across more than 190 countries and through over 40,000 retailers and platforms worldwide, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Waterstones and Blackwell’s.

Media Contact
Taste Asia Editorial Desk
London, United Kingdom

editor@tasteasia.co.uk