A chef’s guide
AstoldtoJessicaRiggfor
TheLocalTongue. Formore
chef’sguidesfromaroundthe
world, seethelocaltongue.comClockwise,from
right:Beetroot,
verimasalaat
Masque;Chef
PrateekSadhu
andMasque
CEOAditiDugar;
Masque’sdining
room;Kalari,
ricepancake
atMasque.
Opposite:The
GatewayofIndia
arch-monument
in Mumbai.migrationfromcentralAsia.There
area lotofkebabsanda lotofrich
graviesandbiryanis.You’llfindreally
authenticflavourshere.Thisis one
restauranttravellersshouldvisitto
reallyunderstandthenuances of
classic Indian food.The Portuguesetouch
O PedrodoesmodernGoanfood
andis anotherrestaurantI reallylike.
Indiawasa BritishcolonybutGoa
wasoneoffewregionsruledbythe
Portuguese.Youcanstillseetheir
lastinginfluence.Goanfoodhas
homemadecheesesandChorizo-
stylesausagesthatwenowcall
Goansausages.Thecuisinealsohas
a lotofsourness,whichcomesfrom
the local toddy vinegar they use.Street food
Onethingthateverybodyneedsto
tryis vadapav.Vadapavis basically
a burgerandAshokVadaPavis the
bestplacetohaveit. Pavmeans
bread,andvadais thestuffing.It’s
madeofpotatoes,onions,curry
leaves,mustard,fresh green chillies
and mustard oil.Vegetarian snacks
SwatiSnacksis somewherepeople
needtogotoif they’reinMumbai.
It’sonehundredpercentvegetarian.
AnyonecomingtoMumbaineedsto
understandthatvegetarianfoodis in
ourDNA.It’snota fad.It’sjustnormal
andhowweeat.AndSwatiSnacks
is oneplacewhereyoucangoand
trysnacksfromtheregionofGujarat,
whichis thevegetarianstateofIndia.
Trythepanki– a typeofpancake
cooked between banana leaves.An American inMumbai
AlexSanchez,a cheffromSan
Francisco,hasbeenherefor 10
yearsandhasjustopeneda new
restaurantcalledAmericano.He
doesreallynewandreallyfun
modernAmerican– a littlelike
Californian-stylefood.Hispizzais
amazingandhealsodoesclassic
pastasliketortellinienbrodo.These
kindsoffoodsarereallygoodfor
the entire food culture of the city.Indian-Chinese
Indianfoodis themostpopular
foodinIndia,butthesecondmost
popularis Chinese.We’veadapted
Chinesefoodtoourowntaste,which
is spicyandsour.It’soneofthego-to
foodsforeverybody.Yauatchais one
ofthemostwell-knownrestaurants
servingCantonesefood;another
is Ling’sPavilion,which does more
Indian-Chinese.●Regional classics
BombayCanteenis anothergreat
restaurant.It focusesonregional
Indianfoodwithinfluencesfrom
alloverthecountry.Thereis a
duckcurryinspiredbythechef’s
grandmotherthatis servedwitha
beautifulappam(riceflourpancake).
Theyalsodoaneggdishcalled
eggkejriwal:there’stoastedbread,
a spicygreenchutney,melted
cheese,andthena friedeggontop.
It’sa reallyclassictakeonanegg
dish that’s quite popular in Mumbai.1900s.There’salwaysa bigqueue.
Myrecommendationis togoearly,
standinqueue,andjustordera
coupleofmyfavourites.Oneis the
podiupma,a semolinaporridge
withpodi,whichis a drychutney
madeofspicesandgroundlentils.
Thesecondis rawamasaladosa.
It’sreallycrispandcrunchy and
has everything.Indian-style kebabs
Oneoftherestaurantsthatpeople
don’treallytalkaboutis Peshawariin
theITCHotel.It specializesinNorth
Westfrontierfood.NorthernIndian
food has been influenced a lot byGOURMET TRAVELLER 119PHOTOGRAPHY ROHAN HANDE (PORTRAIT & MASQUE) & MAX VEENHUYZEN (GATEWAY).