Dishoom →
Be Our Guest

We'll be walking you through the process that allowed us to translate a world-class physical experience into an industry-leading digital estate.

In this instalment, we’ll be spotlighting how we ensured Dishoom's ethos of Seva enriched the guest's user experience.

Generosity is at the very heart of Dishoom. It’s seen in their curated environment, the depth of their menu, their attentive, personal approach to hospitality. And arguably, in our team's expanding waistlines since we kicked off this project over 12 months ago. They attribute this to the practice of Seva; defined as genuine and selfless giving. It’s a devotion that grounds their values of ‘big-hearted’ and ‘first-class’ service — and now, their digital ethos, too.

Creating a ‘guest-first’ experience was the central requirement behind every touchpoint of the website. This meant decompartmentalising the traditional website model — creating a free-flowing data ecosystem that fulfils needs whilst encouraging exploration. To do this, we used the foundational pillars of imagination, enrichment and grace to find the balance between function and stimulation; maintaining an identity in line with their maximist values that was equally intuitive to use.

This guest-first ethos meant prioritising the mobile experience — choosing not to settle on a simplified vertical stack for convenience, but fully committing to full-bleed video and animation at every opportunity. This was supported through a data structure API called MUX which assisted in maximising speed and quality in video. This helped do justice to the rich bank of content we developed whilst preserving the immersive experience regardless of device or orientation.

We also strove to push typically static modules to their limits — allowing for cross-pollination in content wherever possible and building unique interactions that stand alone. A simple example of this is our recipe pages — once relegated as ‘blog’ benchwarmers, we bolstered Dishoom’s indulgent recipes with interactive ‘ingredients’ checklists and in-built servings calculators to heighten form and function in one.

We could go on and on. But the big-hearted alternative would be letting you see it for yourself. Be our guest. Or even better, be Dishoom’s and book here.

We’ll see you in the next instalment, where we offer a glimpse into designing Dishoom’s transportative, slightly-barmy worldview for the screen.