The storefront
Gold letters over glass
Bold 3D gold letters over full-height glass, double glass doors with a frosted name band, a black menu lectern at the door and one stone step up — a narrow frontage that cannot be missed on Lê Lợi.
The house sits at 72b Lê Lợi, Bến Thành ward, District 1 — a narrow street-front shophouse. Bold 3D gold “GUJARAT INDIAN RESTAURANT” letters stand over the full-height glass facade; double glass doors carry a frosted name band, a black menu lectern stands at the door, and one stone step leads in. Inside is a narrow dining room of rows of four-tops, white marble-pattern and floral table covers, dark ladder-back chairs with black padded seats.
Light and colour shape the house: by day daylight through the front glass fills the dining room; woven rattan dome pendants and recessed spots cast warm light over warm white-cream walls and a light wood-look tile floor. A painted Mughal-style arch of dandiya dancers in chaniya cholis and turbans, lettered “Gujarat Indian Restaurant”, brightens the zone of patterned blue tablecloths. On the stair wall hangs a Ganesha and temple art panel; on the vertical-wood-slat counter stand small Ganesha figurines and Indian flags, beside an “Indian Restaurant” sign.
The recorded menu lists 12 composition-described items, all unpriced — ask at the restaurant when you arrive rather than guessing a price. Start with a steel thali, a basket of papad and rotis, samosas with tamarind and mint chutneys, then chana masala and a creamy orange curry. This is a lively, bustling room for families and groups of friends — Indian and international diners, staff in white shirts.
