Mumbai /Bombay/Mumbadevi -, A-Z of all cuisines. Options

[anil]

My impressions of restaurants in Mumbai in the recent past- [2000-2005]

The Patio Recently (last year) the Gajalli folks (who ran an excellent malvani/seafood place in Vileparle (E) opened Patio in JVPD, on the first floor above a small shopping mall. It is slightly upscale from the original, but the food is just the same. Patio serves a full compliment of liquor/bar and has seperate S/NS sections.

[arnab]

anil, you say "a-z" but only give us one entry under "p". so much for bombay being the best city in india for eating...

[anil]

Olive Pali Hill, Bandra.

This Italian restaurant had recently opened when I was taken there by the locals who live around the corner from Olive. The place then was and still is an average italian that one would find in any neighborhood in the five boroughs of NYC. But in Mumbai is has a very high degree of buzz -It is infested by Bollywood and models and starlets wanna be - eyecandy all around.

People praise their Ceaser Salad - I wonder where they get the anchovies if any The locals I talked to this time confirmed the high-profile celebs hangout and subsequent drop in quality.
They did have Jamesons though

[anil]

Rajdhani Near Crawford Market:


This is a really tiny with extremely tight seating veg. Thali place. But fresh as it get, this is abong the very best places for a thali - For rs 160 a special thahi puts so much food that if one does not watch out, getting overstuffed is bound to occur.

[anil]

Maroush previously known as Cedars of Lebanon ?? ITC Grand Maratha Sheraton:

I used to patronize the starwoods properties a lot - If anything that turned my off, it was ITC Grand Maratha Sheraton - I was put up there when it was not even fully complete - they, ITC had started putting guests - and not ramped up on the service. With that as a background, I invited a few friends to Cedars of Lebanon, now renamed Maroush. It had an overweight woman jiggling her bellydance and the restaurant served a so-so mediterreanian dishes from a mishmash of places. A tad extra lemony in some of the dishes. Though the hummus and falelafels were quite good.

I wonder sometime if the '70s style cabaret places shutdown in Mumbai; because this place was packed then and I hear, packed even now. The only attraction for eating overpriced average mid-eastern food has to be something other than decor and meals

This post has been edited by anil: Mar 6 2005, 08:41 AM

[Sue Darlow]

Is this Sheraton at Juhu?

[anil]

[anil]

Lotus Cafe JWM, Juhu

Lotus, is essentially JW MArriott's 24-hr Coffee Shop. It also serves as complimentary breakfast location for the guests. Lotus cafe is also known amongst the 5star hotels for a fairly decent buffet brunch on Sundays. Even though buffet is available everyday; Sunday is what people rave about. Last year I invited a few folks over for Sunday brunch and dip in the pool. here is a dish from nearly most regions of India included in the buffet.

Lotus is also known to be an after-hours hangout place for famous and infamous of the movie business. A day before the Oscare was the Annual Filmfare awards. The lobby was jam packed with filmi folks wanting to party after the awards - an obscene display of gaudy outfits

Desserts: Some people swear by the desserts but I find it just an average selection.

[anil]

Ideal Corner, Fort

While Jimmy Boy's, Britannia are more well known parsi restaurants; Ideal Corner is better [full disclosure: I know someone from the owner's family]

Rickety, and faded, cash only, non-AC - what else to dissuade a casual tourist Food - Just pick the Daily menu and yuo will never go wrong, and wrap it with Lagan nu Custard. If Khigdi (sp?) is in the daily menu - I'd avoid it and order something else (because I do not like khigdi)

[Sue Darlow]

Piccolo

In Fort, just around the corner from Central Bank, opposite the Tata building, serves, what else, Parsi food from the RTI (Ratan Tata Industrial Insititute)

It is rather small and basic, but AC, and serves various hot dishes as well as cakes and stuff.

Sue

[anil]

Mahesh Lunch Home Fort & Juhu

In the realm of seafood and other malvani & Konkan cuisine, Mahesh Lunch Home is among the top-three or four in the city. I have eaten in both the locations - Last two in Juhu. Though it says lunch home, I have not seen the one in Juhu open for lunch.

Known for is Pepper prawn as well as garlic prawn as well as rawas gassi. There version of Crabs Masala is also worth trying.

If you want a simple plate - Try Fish curry over rice. Needless to say it carries a full complement of alcoholic drinks.

[anil]

Saffron JWM,Juhu

In a semi open kitchen, this indian restaurnt attached to JWMarriott in Juhu serves up mostly northern and mughlai fare. It's main clientele are guests and a few outsiders who have an affection to its under-rated but above grade cooking. It was one of those person's who suggested we just eat at the hotel.

Kebabs,Dal makhni,Pindi Chole and Rogan Josh wsa shared amongs ttwo of us. If you are staying at JWM or live closeby, be it a try - Not really worth driving for an hour or so

[anil]

Gajalee Sea Food Vile Parle (E)

Ever since I was taken there for garlic crabs; Gajalee had become for a few years, the dinner I had before hopping onto a plane. In a no-nonsense plain Udipi-style decor, Gajalee serves up excellent Bombay Duck,Ravas,Pompret along with Jhinga,Crabs and fresh and soft neer dosa, and excellent coconut curry as an accompanyment

[anil]

Mocha Bandra (W)

A coffee place that serves brownies,cakes,sandwiches,soft drinks,wine spritsers and sangria. Also a place for looking at lots of Eyecandy.

[self-disclosure: My cousins have financial interests in this particular operation]

[armagod]

[solzaire]

warning: shameless self-promotion follows.
A few of us have been putting together this site over the past month. The intention of this site is exactly the title of this thread. SigFood - for off-track and some of the usually reviewed eating places in the city. Specifically, the Mumbai section. anil - do consider contributing - none of us lukkhas have the money to go to the 5-stars you mention

[arnab]

solzaire,

do feel free to share in the opposite direction as well...

arnab

[Rushina]

Solzaire, please do educate us on some of your favourites. What Solzaire is not sharing in his post is that he has cased out a major part of the budgets eateries in Bombay. So what are your favourites?

Anil, I love Ideal too.

I also like Tunga International, been going there for ages now! They do awesome Hot and Sour soup. The other places I like are Mahesh for seafood, Chinese room and 5 spice for Chinese, I used to like China Garden in the old avatar, but have not been to the new one. I was not impressed with Gajali at all, I will not be going there again.

Been writting for Rashmi Uday Singhs upcoming Good food guide off late, and found some interesting place to try out in tha so will keep you all posted !

Rushina

[solzaire]

Apologies folks if it appears like I am just posting links and not contributing. Here are my Mumbai favourites in abridged form:

Seafood:
Saaybaa - outside Bandra Stn (W). - excellent small affordable eatery
Gajalee - Rushina sorry you don't like this - I adore it for it's repeat value
Bharat Lunch Home/Excellensea - near RBI Fort - cheap thali version and elite dining restaurant both share the kitchen - so the choice is quite clear
Mahesh, Apoorva - decent but too popular and crowded these days
Priya Lunch Home - Vikhroli stn (W) - my current favourite - cheap Malvani style non-veg thalis
Malvan Samudra - Vikhroli stn (W) - end of rick stand - cheap thali style again
Sion Lunch home - sion cicle near station - very good prawns - take any simple dish
Anantashram - an institution in Girgaon - off JSRoad in Khotachiwadi - affordable, very good, extremely limited seating, owner with an attitude of shooing away reporters
Sion Koliwada - Small hotels like Hazara, Mini Punjab etc in taxi-land - these places invented 'prawns koliwada'.
Highway Gomantak - below Bandra flyover

Continental types:
Churchill, Mocambo - 150-200 per person range - very good food in my opinion
Pepper Corn - tiny place in Galleria food court - not in any way authentic - but extremely well made, tasty, desiised continental food - attn. rushina

Iranis:
Koolar and company - Matunga circle - great omelettes and grilled sandwiches
We all know the Metro ones closed down
Cafe Excelsior - opposite New Excelsior theatre - mutton dishes

Enough for one post - more later.

This post has been edited by solzaire: Apr 4 2005, 02:51 PM

[solzaire]

Favourite Bombay eateries contd.:
Parsi/Goan:
New Martin's - cheapest great non-veg food - in a bylane off Colaba causeway - after Gables/petrol pump
Cafe Paradise - same corner as above - renovated elitist-looking now - still same good Parsi food
Mocambo - Churchill managed one
(no, I don't like Sassannian Boulangerie - they gave me Mutton roast in chinese schezwan sauce)

Steaks:
Cafe Royal - oppo Regal - not a budget eatery at all - steaks at 300-450 - excellent steaks - but these days i don't think the price is justified
Kobe - chain at Sakinaka, Girgaon, Phoenix, Andheri - decent ~250 garlic/pepper steaks
Alps - cheapest good steaks - behing Bagdadi and Taj - smoky beer joint

Chaat:
Against popular opinion - Girgaon chowpatty doesn't serve the best chaat in town. Neither do the couple of shops in Khau Galli. Good places are:
Five Gardens - Matunga college area - great sev puris, ragda etc.
Wadala - lane opposite stn (W) has two great stalls for Samosa ragda
Karachi sweets - great paani puri - Waroda road - behind St.Stanislaus on Hill road, Bandra
Puja Bengali - lane opposite IIT middle gate - Powai - very good chaat
Couple of very good gaadis for chaat under Dadar TT (E) flyover, Parel flyover - but these guys are kicked out often so can't pinpoint

Pyaali - a friend of ours introduced us to this unique Bombay street food - found in Muslim dominated areas on M.Ali road, Bohri mohalla etc. It seems to be chana and very close to ragda but is different and in a variety of spices. There are non-veg versions with mutton liver, kidney etc. Yummy sub-10 Rupee snack on roadsides in these areas. Rushina's finer sense of ingredients will give us a better idea about this.

This post has been edited by solzaire: Apr 4 2005, 02:59 PM

[vikdoc]

Here's a list I keep on hand for people who want to know where to eat. Not comprehensive, obviously, but there are mostly decent places:

Bombay eating

Mangalorean (seafood, all downtown)
· Trishna
· Mahesh
· Apoorva
· Excellensea

Malvani
· Anantashram
· Saayba (Bandra)
· Sushegad Gomantak (Mahim)
· Gajalee (Vile Parle East)
· Jai Hind
· Sindhudurg (Dadar)
· Konkan Cafe - five star hotel style (Hotel President)
· Highway Gomantak

Gujarati
· Rajdhani
· Friends Union Joshi Club
· Panchavati Gaur

Bengali
· Howrah
· Oh Calcutta

Tamil (generally really Mysore Tamil/Udipi)
· Udipi Shree Ramanayaka (Matunga East)
· couple of more places, some possibly more typically Tamil in that area - Madras Cafe, Amba Bhavan
· Dakshin - five star hotel style (Grand Maratha), all South Indian regions, far out near airport

Parsi/Irani
· Britannia
· Jimmy Boys

Muslim (Chillia)
· Olympia

Muslim (Mughlai/Lucknowi)
· Shalimar
· Sarvi
· all the small places near Minara Masjid
· Dum Pukht - five star hotel style (Grand Maratha), for the Lucknowi dum pukt (closed cooking) style, far out near airport

Punjabi/Frontier (tandoori)
· Crystal (Girgaum Chowpatty)
· National (near Bandra station)
· Peshawari - five star hotel style (Grand Maratha), far out near airport

Goan/East Indian
· Martin’s

Sindhi
· Kailash Parbat

Malayali
· Rice Boats

General
· Swati Snacks
· Indigo
· Da Vinci's
· Don Giovanni
· Tea Centre
· Prithvi Cafe (Juhu)
· Samovar

[Sue Darlow]

The legend (myth?) of Samovar lives on, I see. It must be the location and the artsiness, it can't surely be the food?

I think I had the worst ever potato chips there. Rubbery, starchy, greasy disgusting things. Probably made days before and then dipped in tepid fat again.... or something

Sue

[ajit]

[anil]

[Sue Darlow]

[anil]

[arnab]

[ajit]

Is Anantashram Malvani ? More generally is 'Gomantak' food the same as 'Malvani' ?

I have had difficulty getting an answer to this simple question from family members. I do feel the fish curries at Gomantak restaurants are quite distinct from those originating around Vengurla/Malvan etc.

[loislane]

[anil]