Working in South Bombay has its pains and its perks. Commuting time is long
given its location at one end of the city. The rise of Lower Parel and BKC has
made its office spaces less sought after. Having said that, 'Town' as it is
popularly known, still retains a certain charm. Its British era buildings and
heritage quarters make it a prettier part of the city than its northern
counterparts. Several bars and pubs provide it with plenty of after-work
entertainment options. It also has, in my opinion - and with that we come to
the point - the best eating places in the city.
Town has always been home to a large number of restaurants. Many of these came into existence to cater to the needs of people working in its many offices. While these served staples, many others focused on fine dining given that South Bombay is also home to famously affluent residents called 'townies'. In recent times, some locations in the suburbs - Bandra in particular - have challenged South Bombay's undisputed title of the city's premier food district. Bandra has matched, and in some cases surpassed Town in bringing new cuisines and trendy eating places to the city. But when it comes to restaurants that deserve to be called 'institutions' - ones that serve faultlessly authentic cuisines at affordable prices and have stood the test of time (some are a century old) - Town wins hands down. Its countless hole-in-the-wall eateries serve cuisines as varied as Mughlai, Parsi and Keralite at affordable prices and definitely tip the scales in favor of South Bombay.
I have been working at Nariman Point for the past year and a half. Needless to say then that I've made full use of the opportunity to tick a lot off my bucket list. The list however is quite long and there are still some 'hidden gems' yet to be uncovered. But while the quest is on, I've covered enough to feature the best in a series of posts. I'm calling these 'The gems of South Bombay' and they are mostly blink-and-miss restaurants in the bylanes of Fort, Colaba, Kalbadevi and beyond. I've tried to cover various cuisines and restaurants in different parts of Town.
First on the list is a tiny restaurant in Fort called Pradeep Gomantak Bhojanalay. Gomantak cuisine is poorly understood, despite being fairly popular in Bombay. It is often described as having origins in coastal Maharashtra and is confused with Malvani cuisine. Let me set the record straight. Gomantak food comes from Goa and is the cuisine of the state's Hindu community. It differs from the more famous Goan Catholic cuisine in its use of tamarind and Kokum instead of vinegar and the absence of pork and beef among other things. Being a Goan Hindu myself, this is comfort food for me. In fact this blog was started after a particularly memorable visit to the legendary 'Anantashram Uphaar Griha', a Gomantak restaurant which unfortunately no longer exists.
Gomantak eateries were once very common in several neighborhoods of Bombay. They typically seat less than 30 people and the look is characterized by marble-top tables and menus scribbled on chalkboards. Meals are served on stainless steel plates and the Thali called 'Taat' in Konkani is the most common order. Over the years, many Gomantak restaurants (Anantashram being the prime example) have shut down for reasons like rising costs and shortage of suitable labor, while others like Highway Gomantak and Dadar Gomantak have been forced to adapt to changing times and in the process have ended up losing some of their authenticity. Few that remain offer the quintessential Gomantak canteen experience. Pradeep Gomantak Bhojanalay, situated in a small lane in Fort, is one of these. Started more than forty years back to cater to the then rapidly growing office crowd, the tiny restaurant has stood the test of time. Owned and operated by Mr. Amonkar and his family, the place sees long queues for weekday lunches, partly because of its limited seating capacity, but also due to its well-deserved popularity. So if you don't fancy waiting in a queue for an hour, its best to visit for dinner or on the weekend. This is what I did when I got there for dinner on a Monday night. As far as restaurants are concerned, Pradeep Gomantak defines the word small. It has barely six tables and can squeeze in a maximum of 30 people with great effort. The decor (or lack of it) has 'Gomantak Khanaval' written all over it! From the folding wooden door at the entrance and the sunmica topped tables to the open kitchen and the small wash basin in the corner, the look and feel of the place is as authentic as it gets.
As expected, dinner time was more relaxed at Mr. Amonkar's restaurant and I had only three other people for company. Gomantak eateries are known for their meat as well as fish preparations. While the norm is to order the Thali, individual portions of meat curry and fried/curried fish are also served. The menu in true Khanaval (traditional canteen) style, was scribbled on a chalkboard.
One look at the prices and you know that you have to eat at a place like this to realize how countless other restaurants in the city cheat you when it comes to serving fish.
I wanted to try fish as well as meat, so I ordered the Mutton Thali and a portion of fried pomfret. The Thali arrived quickly and was the typical Gomantak 'Taat'. It had two small mounds of rice, a mutton curry, two chapatis, green chutney with chopped onions and lemon, a plain curry to go with the rice and a bowl of the customary Solkadi. This is what it looked like.
The mutton was cooked to perfection and had meat, fat and bone in perfect proportion. The curry for the rice is a common feature in the Gomantak Thali and is typically called Surva. The version served at Pradeep Gomantak is special because, while it is not served with fish, fish skin and bones are used to make it. This may not sound very appetizing, but it does give the curry a great flavor and you realize this when the first morsel mixed with rice goes down.
The pomfret arrived when I was half done with the Thali and was medium sized and fried whole.
There was something I had learned while eating at Anantashram once and it came in handy here. I had not touched the chutney, onions and lemon and had saved these for the pomfret. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the onions and squeeze the lemon in. This and the green chutney is the perfect accompaniment for Goan style fried fish. The pomfret was super fresh, certainly better than what is served at most self-proclaimed 'seafood restaurants' that use the tag to rip a hole in your pocket. Finshing the meal with the Solkadi, I burped with satisfaction only a hearty meal like this can bring.
With very few of its kind surviving in Bombay, Pradeep Gomantak Bhojanalay is doing a great job of keeping the cuisine alive in the city and ensuring that the Gomantak Khanaval tradition survives. It is especially important for us Goenkaars, for whom its victuals are comfort food. I hope the Amonkar family keeps the restaurant going in its current authentic and undiluted form for many generations to come. Kudos!
If you find yourself in the Fort area close to mealtime, make sure you drop in. Here is its listing on Zomato for the address, additional information and reviews.
http://www.zomato.com/mumbai/pradeep-gomantak-bhojanalaya-fort
For more gems from South Bombay, watch this space!
Town has always been home to a large number of restaurants. Many of these came into existence to cater to the needs of people working in its many offices. While these served staples, many others focused on fine dining given that South Bombay is also home to famously affluent residents called 'townies'. In recent times, some locations in the suburbs - Bandra in particular - have challenged South Bombay's undisputed title of the city's premier food district. Bandra has matched, and in some cases surpassed Town in bringing new cuisines and trendy eating places to the city. But when it comes to restaurants that deserve to be called 'institutions' - ones that serve faultlessly authentic cuisines at affordable prices and have stood the test of time (some are a century old) - Town wins hands down. Its countless hole-in-the-wall eateries serve cuisines as varied as Mughlai, Parsi and Keralite at affordable prices and definitely tip the scales in favor of South Bombay.
I have been working at Nariman Point for the past year and a half. Needless to say then that I've made full use of the opportunity to tick a lot off my bucket list. The list however is quite long and there are still some 'hidden gems' yet to be uncovered. But while the quest is on, I've covered enough to feature the best in a series of posts. I'm calling these 'The gems of South Bombay' and they are mostly blink-and-miss restaurants in the bylanes of Fort, Colaba, Kalbadevi and beyond. I've tried to cover various cuisines and restaurants in different parts of Town.
First on the list is a tiny restaurant in Fort called Pradeep Gomantak Bhojanalay. Gomantak cuisine is poorly understood, despite being fairly popular in Bombay. It is often described as having origins in coastal Maharashtra and is confused with Malvani cuisine. Let me set the record straight. Gomantak food comes from Goa and is the cuisine of the state's Hindu community. It differs from the more famous Goan Catholic cuisine in its use of tamarind and Kokum instead of vinegar and the absence of pork and beef among other things. Being a Goan Hindu myself, this is comfort food for me. In fact this blog was started after a particularly memorable visit to the legendary 'Anantashram Uphaar Griha', a Gomantak restaurant which unfortunately no longer exists.
Gomantak eateries were once very common in several neighborhoods of Bombay. They typically seat less than 30 people and the look is characterized by marble-top tables and menus scribbled on chalkboards. Meals are served on stainless steel plates and the Thali called 'Taat' in Konkani is the most common order. Over the years, many Gomantak restaurants (Anantashram being the prime example) have shut down for reasons like rising costs and shortage of suitable labor, while others like Highway Gomantak and Dadar Gomantak have been forced to adapt to changing times and in the process have ended up losing some of their authenticity. Few that remain offer the quintessential Gomantak canteen experience. Pradeep Gomantak Bhojanalay, situated in a small lane in Fort, is one of these. Started more than forty years back to cater to the then rapidly growing office crowd, the tiny restaurant has stood the test of time. Owned and operated by Mr. Amonkar and his family, the place sees long queues for weekday lunches, partly because of its limited seating capacity, but also due to its well-deserved popularity. So if you don't fancy waiting in a queue for an hour, its best to visit for dinner or on the weekend. This is what I did when I got there for dinner on a Monday night. As far as restaurants are concerned, Pradeep Gomantak defines the word small. It has barely six tables and can squeeze in a maximum of 30 people with great effort. The decor (or lack of it) has 'Gomantak Khanaval' written all over it! From the folding wooden door at the entrance and the sunmica topped tables to the open kitchen and the small wash basin in the corner, the look and feel of the place is as authentic as it gets.
As expected, dinner time was more relaxed at Mr. Amonkar's restaurant and I had only three other people for company. Gomantak eateries are known for their meat as well as fish preparations. While the norm is to order the Thali, individual portions of meat curry and fried/curried fish are also served. The menu in true Khanaval (traditional canteen) style, was scribbled on a chalkboard.
One look at the prices and you know that you have to eat at a place like this to realize how countless other restaurants in the city cheat you when it comes to serving fish.
I wanted to try fish as well as meat, so I ordered the Mutton Thali and a portion of fried pomfret. The Thali arrived quickly and was the typical Gomantak 'Taat'. It had two small mounds of rice, a mutton curry, two chapatis, green chutney with chopped onions and lemon, a plain curry to go with the rice and a bowl of the customary Solkadi. This is what it looked like.
The mutton was cooked to perfection and had meat, fat and bone in perfect proportion. The curry for the rice is a common feature in the Gomantak Thali and is typically called Surva. The version served at Pradeep Gomantak is special because, while it is not served with fish, fish skin and bones are used to make it. This may not sound very appetizing, but it does give the curry a great flavor and you realize this when the first morsel mixed with rice goes down.
The pomfret arrived when I was half done with the Thali and was medium sized and fried whole.
There was something I had learned while eating at Anantashram once and it came in handy here. I had not touched the chutney, onions and lemon and had saved these for the pomfret. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the onions and squeeze the lemon in. This and the green chutney is the perfect accompaniment for Goan style fried fish. The pomfret was super fresh, certainly better than what is served at most self-proclaimed 'seafood restaurants' that use the tag to rip a hole in your pocket. Finshing the meal with the Solkadi, I burped with satisfaction only a hearty meal like this can bring.
With very few of its kind surviving in Bombay, Pradeep Gomantak Bhojanalay is doing a great job of keeping the cuisine alive in the city and ensuring that the Gomantak Khanaval tradition survives. It is especially important for us Goenkaars, for whom its victuals are comfort food. I hope the Amonkar family keeps the restaurant going in its current authentic and undiluted form for many generations to come. Kudos!
If you find yourself in the Fort area close to mealtime, make sure you drop in. Here is its listing on Zomato for the address, additional information and reviews.
http://www.zomato.com/mumbai/pradeep-gomantak-bhojanalaya-fort
For more gems from South Bombay, watch this space!
