Leopold Cafe

The Leopold Cafe is a large and popular restaurant and bar on Colaba Causeway, in the Colaba area of Mumbai, India, located across from the Colaba Police station.

It was one of the first sites attacked during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks. The cafe was also mentioned extensively in the novel Shantaram and it's sequel The Mountain Shadow.

History

Founded in 1871 by Iranis, it first started out as a wholesale oil store and over the years has variously been a restaurant, store and pharmacy.

November 2008 terror attacks

The cafe was an early site of gunfire and grenade explosions during the 2008 Mumbai attacks by terrorists. The restaurant was extensively damaged during the attacks. Gunmen sprayed the restaurant with bullets and there were blood stains on the floor and shoes left by fleeing customers.Sourav Mishra, a Reuters reporter and one of the first media witnesses of the attack, suffered severe bullet injuries. The cafe reopened four days after the attack, but was reclosed by the police as a safety measure after two hours because of the unexpected size of crowds gathering there.