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Tom Holland might spend a significant portion of his life saving the multiverse and charming international audiences, but there is one undeniable kryptonite he simply cannot resist. Fortunately, it is not a glowing green extraterrestrial rock. It is a hearty, deeply aromatic plate of Indian food. For an unassuming lad hailing from Kingston upon Thames, Tom has developed a surprisingly refined and fiercely passionate palate for regional desi flavours. The British connection to Indian cuisine is historically profound and culturally embedded, but Tom takes this appreciation lightyears beyond the standard Friday night takeaway order. Whether he is dropping into Mumbai for a high-profile movie premiere or casually sneaking into a Michelin-starred Indian restaurant in London for a late date night, the man navigates complex spices and rich gravies with absolute finesse. It requires a very special kind of superhero to brave the bustling, vibrant streets of Colaba for a quiet cup of tea, or to dive headfirst into a towering plate of butter garlic crab without ruining a pristine designer shirt. Yet, Tom executes these feats with the exact brand of awkward, endearing charm we have come to expect from him. His varied culinary adventures across India and the globe prove that he is not merely showing up for the aesthetic photo opportunities. He is genuinely, wholeheartedly here for the food. So, what exactly makes it to the very top of his elite culinary list? Let us break down the absolute favourite Indian dishes that have rightfully secured a permanent home in his heart.
The Classic Indian Meat Curry
Long before his cinematic Mumbai escapades made headlines, Tom was already a highly vocal advocate for a stellar Indian curry. During numerous global press tours and interviews, he has frequently named an authentic Indian curry as his ultimate comfort meal. In fact, following his heavily publicised trip to the grand cultural centre launch in India back in 2023, he and Zendaya were swiftly spotted back in the UK, enjoying a quiet date night at a remarkably luxurious, Michelin-starred Indian establishment.
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A proper meat curry is an absolute cornerstone of the British-Indian food scene, but Tom elevates his appreciation to a connoisseur level. He does not merely tolerate the heat; he actively seeks it out and holds a deep respect for the culinary craftsmanship required to achieve it. A masterful curry is profoundly complex, fiercely savoury, and layered with a multitude of spices that demand hours of slow, patient cooking to release their full aromatic potential. Whether he is indulging in a deeply rich lamb rogan josh, a fiercely vibrant chicken tikka masala, or a wonderfully comforting mutton bhuna, dipping a charred piece of garlic naan into a thick gravy is a ritual Tom clearly treasures. He even cheekily promised his Indian fans that he would visit the country primarily just to eat, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that his priorities are incredibly well sorted.
Iconic Bun Maska
Shifting our focus to a more recent and arguably much more relatable gastronomic moment, we look at his trip to Mumbai in July 2026. Arriving for the highly anticipated premiere of his film The Odyssey, Tom made a brilliant executive decision to completely ditch the sterile, fancy hotel buffets in favour of a slice of authentic local life. Accompanied by cinematic heavyweights Christopher Nolan and Matt Damon, he miraculously ended up at the century-old Olympia Coffee House in the heart of Colaba. And what does a globally recognised superstar order at a vintage Irani cafe? The legendary bun maska, naturally.
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There is something inherently poetic and wildly charming about a Hollywood A-lister sitting in an old-world Mumbai cafe, enthusiastically tearing into a soft, sweet bun slathered with a genuinely ungodly amount of butter. It is the ultimate, undisputed king of comfort food. The sheer, beautiful simplicity of bun maska clearly resonated with him because it strips away all the exhausting Hollywood glamour. It requires absolutely no cutlery, no fuss, and strictly no pretension. You simply dip, take a generous bite, and let the magnificent buttery goodness melt away the accumulated jet lag of a twelve-hour flight.
Authentic Irani Cutting Chai
You absolutely cannot consume a plate of bun maska without its designated soulmate, and Tom understood this cultural assignment perfectly. At that very same Olympia Coffee House, the eclectic trio of Hollywood royalty raised their glasses of steaming, perfectly brewed Irani-style cutting chai in a warm toast to the city of Mumbai. Mind you, this was not some severely watered-down, overpriced latte from a corporate coffee chain, nor was it a bland, uninspired herbal infusion. This was the authentic, undiluted real deal. Strong, wonderfully sweet, heavily milky, and brewed to absolute perfection with bruised cardamom and fiery ginger hitting the back of the throat.
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For a British gentleman, tea is essentially a solemn religion, but the Indian cutting chai exists in an entirely different, vastly superior cinematic universe. It packs a formidable punch that can successfully resurrect even the most exhausted actor enduring a relentless global press tour. Watching Tom sip his scorching chai out of a humble, thick glass tumbler, rather than a delicate, pretentious bone china cup, was a delightful cultural reset for his Indian fanbase.
Butter Pepper Garlic Crab
If the humble bun maska served as his gentle introduction to Mumbai street comfort, his subsequent dinner choice was a masterclass in wildly indulgent coastal dining. Directly following the glitzy movie premiere, the squad navigated their way to Trishna, the globally iconic Kala Ghoda establishment exclusively known for making fully grown adults weep actual tears of joy over fresh seafood. Trishna is not concerned with moody aesthetic lighting or minimalist, pretentious plating designed solely for social media clout. It is fundamentally about rolling up your sleeves, tying on a plastic bib, and fearlessly attacking a colossal crustacean.
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Reports from the evening enthusiastically confirm that the group indulged heavily in the Trishna specialities, and you absolutely know the legendary butter pepper garlic crab served as the undisputed star of the show. Imagine Tom Holland, the profoundly agile man who flawlessly executes backflips and superhuman stunts, intensely wrestling to crack open a giant, stubborn crab shell while glistening garlic butter drips down his chin. The butter garlic crab at Trishna is exceptionally rich, fiercely flavourful, and deeply satisfying, with the intense spice levels perfectly balanced by the naturally sweet, tender crab meat. It is precisely the kind of dish that completely ruins all other mediocre seafood for you forever.
Curated Indian Mithai
Naturally, no spectacular Indian feast is ever truly complete without a massive, celebratory sugar rush, and Tom managed to get his sweet fix in the most wholesome, endearing way possible. During a lively promotional interview for a recent massive Marvel project, a thoughtful Indian interviewer gifted Tom and his delighted co-stars a beautifully curated, heavily adorned box of premium mithai from the esteemed Mumbai-based Bombay Sweet Shop.
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The sheer, unadulterated excitement lighting up his face when presented with the colourful, festive sweets was genuinely heartwarming to witness. Authentic Indian mithai is notoriously rich, frequently packed to the brim with clarified ghee, slow-roasted nuts, fragrant green cardamom, and delicate decorative edible silver foil. It is a spectacular far cry from a standard, slightly depressing British digestive biscuit or a simple vanilla sponge cake. From decadent, milk-based pedas to dense, incredibly nutty barfis, these specific treats are little condensed bombs of pure joy that celebrate a festival of complex flavours. The sweetness successfully travelled across the globe, leaving Tom with a profound, newly discovered appreciation for exactly how Indians approach desserts with such unapologetic decadence.
