London's oldest Indian food restaurant, Veeraswamy may be forced to shut down in its 99th year just a few months short of its centenary.

The restaurant which won a Michelin star in 2016 offers a menu that it boasts, "journeys through the Hyderabadi and Mughal history of its founding days," combined with, "contemporary expertise".

The Crown Estate which owns Victory House in which Veeraswamy is located, has refused to renew the lease. The restaurant has a prime location on London’s famous Regent Street and its owners insist it will be tough to find new premises before the June deadline, which the Crown Estate is insisting on.

Winston Churchill and actor Marlon Brando. (Wikipedia pictures)

Veeraswamy has, over the decades, served celebrity guests including Winston Churchill and actor Marlon Brando.

It was first launched in 1926 by an Anglo-Indian former army officer Edward Palmer who claimed descent from a British general and an Indian princess. Veeraswamy was said to be his mother's family name. In its early years the restaurant served what was termed Anglo-Indian cuisine.

Since 1997 it has been run by the successful MW Eats which owns other award-winning restaurants like Chutney Mary and Amaya. MW Eats is owned by former banker Ranjit Mathrani, his wife Namita Panjabi and her sister Camelia Panjabi. The group also owns the mid-market Masala Zone chain.

MW Eats first asked for time to find new premises and when that was refused has now taken the Crown Estate to court.

Ranjit Mathrani told The Times, London that the notice to vacate, "came out of the blue". He said the Crown Estate had offered him more space last year but he wasn't sure he could fill extra tables.

"I think they've come to the view that's it's too tiresome to have a restaurant there, they want it to be all offices," Mathrani told The Times. He added, "they don't give a bugger for history." He also accused the Crown Estate of destroying, "A major London institution."

Mathrani insisted he wants two years to find a suitable new location so that he doesn't have to shut down even for a short time. "We're open to moving, because we accept the inevitability that, sooner or later, they will be able to turf us out," he said.

Veeraswamy. (Wikipedia picture)

The Indian restaurant business is different from the 1920s when Veeraswamy was almost the only one of its kind serving an upmarket clientele.

Today, it's estimated there are around 3,600 Indian restaurants in London alone. There are thought to be around 8,000 Indian restaurants spread out across the UK. The Indian restaurant business is now competitive.

In the early 1950s and 1960s almost all of London's Indian restaurants were family-run, mid-market establishments. But in the 1990s a new breed of upmarket restaurants emerged that catered to more affluent diners.

Amongst the offerings on the Veeraswamy Indian Royal Recipes are 'Princess Noorani Lamb Chops' and 'Patiala Shahi Raan Encroute'.

The very first Indian restaurant in London is said to have been started in 1810 by Sake Dean Mahomed but it shut down two years later. Mahomed is described as a soldier, traveller, surgeon and entrepreneur.