The team behind Fairfax City’s Bollywood Bistro is working on a new restaurant that they hope will transport diners in more ways than one.
Upon entering Mumbai Central in Idylwood, customers will find themselves in a space resembling a train compartment, decked out with a destination board, a ticket counter and other paraphernalia that evoke the restaurant’s namesake train station.
“We thought it’s going to be something unique if we do a Mumbai Central and train-themed restaurant,” owner Sunil Bastola told FFXnow. “It’s a fine-dining, upscale restaurant, not casual dining.”
According to Bastola, the food will be as adventurous as the restaurant’s design, featuring dishes from across India instead of focusing only on a particular region or on northern or southern cuisine. Among other offerings, the menu will include tandoori items, chicken tikka, lamb chops and grilled salmon.
Located in Idylwood Plaza at 7505 Leesburg Pike, where it’s taking the former Jason’s Deli spot, Mumbai Central will seat more than 100 people in a 4,600-square-foot space with a full bar and lounge. The restaurant has applied for an outdoor dining permit that will add more seating, though the patio isn’t likely to be available until the fall.
The decision to try a new concept emerged not long after Bastola and his fellow Bollywood Bistro partners — Pankaj Sharma, Karpik Sharma and chef Anil Gaha — expanded the Old Town Fairfax restaurant’s space at 3955 Chain Bridge Road in early 2023.
For Mumbai Central, the team was drawn to Idylwood Plaza because of its location right on Route 7, making it accessible to a wide range of neighborhoods, Bastola says.
“It covers Falls Church, Vienna, Dunn Loring, Fairfax, Tysons, McLean,” he said. “If you go to the right side, it’s Falls Church, left is Tysons Corner [and to] the back is Dunn Loring and Vienna. It’s a central location, so we can cater to all types of people there.”
Nailing down an opening date has been a challenge. Bastola says they had aimed for a launch in May, but a final inspection of the buildout by Fairfax County got delayed, bumping a potential soft opening to late June.
Bastola is confident that the wait will be worthwhile for local patrons, who currently have to head north to Tysons or south to Falls Church to find Indian food.
“We’re trying to make it a little bit upscale and a good dining spot. We’re expecting very positive feedback from our community, definitely,” Bastola said. “… We’re not new guys. I have 25 years of experience. My partner has 30, 40 years of experience. We all are industry veterans, so hopefully, everything will work out very well.”
Idylwood Plaza currently has a number of dining options, including the recently opened Kajiken and First Watch. The fast-casual eatery Quickway Hibachi is expected to open sometime this summer, and the shopping center’s owner announced last month that Lidl will take over part of the vacant Whole Foods space in late 2026.
