Three Rooms in Bedford offers a fine dining experience that draws on India’s rich heritage
Three Rooms is no ordinary Indian restaurant. Located in Bedford’s town centre, the restaurant aims to provide customers with a multi-sensory, fine dining experience, with dishes inspired by Mughlai cuisine, whose roots date back to the royal kitchens of India.
The restaurant’s dishes include specials such as the Bengal Haandi Curry, with pieces of lamb or chicken cooked with fresh herbs in a medium, spiced sauce and oven cooked with pastry, helping to seal the aroma and the flavour. There’s also Three Rooms King Prawn, with shell-on king prawn cooked with green and red pepper and infused herbs and spices in an aromatic sauce, and the fiery Desi Naga chilli. Diners can also choose from Jaipuri Duck, featuring cumin, fennel and cinnamon, Hyderabadi Shanks, with lamb shanks in a sauce seasoned with cinnamon, cardamon, cloves, ginger and garlic and Chicken Khumbi, cooked with mushrooms, onions and ginger. There are also classic Indian dishes on the menu and they too aim to embody the essence of traditional Mughlai cuisine.
Tradition and innovation
The idea behind these dishes is to offer diners authentic, tasty cuisine drawing on recipes that date back hundreds of years, a reminder of India’s rich and storied past. Mughlai cuisine reflects the romance and splendour of an era long gone; dishes from the time were meticulously prepared with a commitment to authenticity and dedication to flavour and it’s this experience that Three Rooms seeks to replicate. With such attention to detail in the restaurant’s cuisine, it’s not surprising that owner Mohammed Shohel Miah, has long had a passion for the food industry.
“My family has been in the trade since the 1970s and I became involved in the 1980s at the age of 17,” he says. “I’ve since had decades of experience within the food sector and have previously owned my own business.”
Shohel, who is Bedford born and raised, says he took a risk opening Three Rooms nine years ago. The name – not a typical one for an Indian restaurant, simply refers to the three rooms on the premises, the main/front room, a snug room and a party room; the restaurant has seated capacity for up to 120, while its largest table seats up to 34 guests. It’s the perfect spot for a private dining event and there is also an inviting terrace for alfresco dining.
“Having been involved with various roles within my own community across different organisations, I decided to pursue a career in it and open a restaurant,” he explains. “It’s a trade where I have vast experience and ensuring customers are satisfied is a very fulfilling job. A lot of hard work, grit and determination has gone into this establishment. As a result, I have proudly built a well known restaurant with a loyal customer base. We are recognised for our exceptional customer service and unique take on Indian cuisine.”
Shohel’s dedication spans every aspect of the restaurant. Having hired designers for the space, he wasn’t happy with the suggested design so decided to do it all himself. The result is the 120-seat restaurant with a terrace, boasting a contemporary look and an elegant, warm ambience, reflecting what Three Rooms is aiming to do with its food.
“British curry houses really came on the scene in the 1950s and 1960s, but of course Indian food is from long before then, “ says Shohel. “Our aim is to keep this authenticity in the present time. We’ve taken on the responsibility of preserving this heritage, presenting it in a manner that’s both true to its origins and appealing to modern palates.”
It takes two
Shohel also credits his business partner and cousin Mohammed S Ali, who is also the head chef, with the success of the restaurant.
“I look after the front of house and he keeps the kitchen in order,” says Shohel. “My business partner has been with me since day one and the majority of our other staff have been with us over the years.”
The partnership is clearly reaping dividends with repeat customers making up around 85% of the restaurant’s clientele. Introducing new dishes on a regular basis and promoting these through social media is key – Three Rooms outsources its digital marketing, ensuring channels such as Facebook and Instagram, alongside the restaurant’s website, are updated and refreshed in line with the restaurant’s offerings.
“Digital marketing is really important – it enables us to stay on top of the game and we can promote our new dishes,” says Shohel. “I’ve been here for close to a decade and while we have plenty of repeat customers who know what they like to eat, sometimes they get bored of having the same dishes and they want to try something new.”
Living the dream
Even with a long list of satisfied customers who keep coming back for more, Three Rooms has not been immune from recent economic challenges, with rising costs being one of the biggest challenges it has faced in recent years.
“In the last 18 months or so, the cost of ingredients has gone up by 30% to 35% – even 40% in some cases – for items such as oil and chicken,” explains Shohel. “All of sudden you have to look at how you price your menu and what you can do to cater for these higher costs – you can’t increase prices by the same margin.”
Three Rooms increased its menu prices gradually, but even then, Shohel says balancing the books continues to be a challenge, as profit margins and percentages pre-Covid are very different to what they are today.
“We’re still working on that, trying to balance our costs so as not to hurt the customers’ pockets”, says Shohel. “but at the same time you want to sustain and run your business, paying the overheads and everything else. Nine years on though, here we are. I am living my absolute dream and strive to improve every single night we are open.”
