The Hindu Business Line : Eating out, myriad ways

EATING out in Mumbai means different things. It can be a quick snack on the move, munching a corn on the cob while gazing at the sea, a long slow dinner in one of the city's myriad restaurants or any other option that suits the need of the moment.

Food is something the Mumbaikar savours. The more the variety, the more curious the Mumbaikar gets. While fine dining establishments and `hottals', as the smaller hotels are referred to, are quite popular, street food is the trademark of the city.

Scenes like this are typical to Mumbai.

Lunch time in the heart of the business district and someone cries out, "Bolo, bolo, kya chahiye - chinismughlaicondinendal - jaldi bolo - do minit me tayar karega."

As you recover from the rapid fire offer of Chinese, Moghlai and Continental cuisine, which promise to be ready in a minute, another tout down the pavement, while brushing clean his rusty, teetering stools, yells out the fare available in his cart, "Idlidosauttapa". The aroma of dosas made in butter wafts around mingles with car exhausts and the smell of sweat from those wearing synthetic clothes even in the heat. .

It's a momentarily surreal experience but one that won't turn the head of a Mumbaikar. Eating on the streets is a completely non-self conscious act for everyone here and the rush and crush of an everyday street is not a deterrent.

Breakfast near the Share Bazaar — homemade dhoklas, theplas and khandvisare — are sold as soon as they're laid out. And it's not bought by the predominantly Gujarati crowd alone but by everyone who knows the sumptuousness of these Gujarati snacks.

Likewise, teatime on any pavement in the city — people standing around wadapao stalls, biting into the spicy potato patties wrapped in soft buns, sipping ginger tea.

Dinner time too is popular. Once the traffic has cleared, especially in the business districts, a team of cooks and their paraphernalia come out. Large mats are spread out on the side of the road and soon the regulars appear. They could be anyone from the watchmen from nearby buildings or the hawkers who have closed their own stalls.

It's a quiet contemplative scene unlike the bustle of the day. And the clientele comprises mostly migrants for whom this last meal of the day is perhaps the closest reminder of home.

Street food, which started off as a necessity to cater to a clientele on the move, has evolved into an integral part of Mumbai's ethos. The city thrives on it.

One of the most common job options to a poor newcomer is setting up a teashop. A teetering wooden crate, a second hand kerosene stove, a few pans and small chai glasses are all he needs to be in business. And, of course, a little money to buy his space from the local dada.

The obsession with quick, tasty food has proved to be especially good for women entrepreneurs. Rows of women on pavements, their saris tucked in their waists, selling simple home cooked meals is a common sight in Mumbai.

So integral is street food to the Mumbaikar that a recent drive by the municipality to clear the pavements was not greeted with the usual support that Corporation clean-ups get. Instead, voices were raised about finding a median way.

One option was to allot food hawkers space and hold them responsible for keeping the area clean and their food hygienic. But even as the idea remains in cold storage (since every inch of the city is premium real estate, there is understandable opposition to the idea) street food continues to flourish.

It's heartening that the boundaries of snobbery and class are thrown to the winds in search of the ideal kabab or fish slice roasted to perfection or the chutney that reminds you of mother's kitchen.

Mercedes of the high and mighty are parked alongside the small fish stalls in the not so desirable areas of Sion Koliwada. During Ramzan, the lanes at Mohammed Ali Road are crammed with the sort of people who would normally hold handkerchiefs to their noses to get away from the stench of open drains. The gutters continue to run at night but the aroma of freshly baked bread and spicy meats prove too tempting.

The vast migrant population here ensures that a diverse cuisine has become an integral part of the city. This is the place where north Indian cuisine, in which firmly the dal should be spicy, meets Gujarati cuisine, in which the dal is incomplete without the obligatory pinch of sugar. Places like Swati Snacks at Nana Chowk have successfully bridged all divide by serving new dishes kneaded out of Mexican, middle-Eastern and far Eastern dishes to create what can only be described as a culinary version of Hinglish.

Food is big business in Mumbai, both literally and figuratively. It's a style statement to open a restaurant and while this ensures that Mumbaikars have a steady stream of new places to visit, it also results in summary closures. Theme restaurants were the flavour of the day, but, thankfully, that was a brief bad dream and now most concentrate on facing competition through culinary creativity.

Mid to high range restaurants include Indigo, Olive, Shatranj, Moshe's, Nosh, Rain and a score of others.

Changing social trends are reflected in the eating out scene. There was a time when eating out in Mumbai was reserved for special occasions and apart from clubs and five star hotels, there were few restaurants. It was a time when only the host's menu showed the prices and the guests were free to make genuine choices unencumbered by the cost of a dish. It was also a time when people fell into the categories of those who ate out and those who didn't. Communities like the Gujaratis and the Jains were known to shun restaurants because of dietary restrictions as well and the fact that they were extremely particular about the quality of food.

But Changing social trends have altered this and their finicky attitude has become something of a barometer. A popular Mumbai joke says the measure of a good restaurant is based on the number of Gujaratis waiting to get in.

On the whole, Mumbaikars aren't perturbed by a lack of atmosphere or even a dingy decor if the food is right. Thus, Mumbaikars who would normally not view the Sion Koliwada area as desirable, would have no problem flocking to eat the special fried fish made in some very down market restaurant. They would also haunt Martin's at Colaba, which is too small to accommodate more than a couple of tables, but where the food is wildly desirable. Mumbaikars compromise and send their drivers to pick up food.

Snobbery has, however, inevitably crept in. It's fashionable to "discover" a new eating-place. Never mind that Mama Kane's at Dadar railway station has existed for close to 100 years. It's now "discovered" by food hunters who arrive there in droves, over tipping bewildered waiters and unsettling the regulars who scowl down at their usal pao, a dish whose excellence they take for granted and would not presume to comment on — to do so would be an insult to the proprietor.

The newcomers, unaware of such unwritten codes, squawk over the authenticity of each dish. This brigade however gets a short shrift at Anant Ashram in Girgaon Khotachiwadi

"No joining" says a stern board on the wall referring to the individual marble slabs that serve as tables for individuals and are not allowed to be shifted an inch from their pre-ordained spots. Or a stone-faced "All over" from the proprietor to patrons who arrive after 1.30.

Plastic is a no-no in this Malvani establishment. You have to bring your own vessels for take-away orders and they better not be plastic ones. It's not so much environmental consciousness as an unwavering belief that plastic spoils the taste of the food.

So, gear up for Brun pao breakfasts at Kyani, champagne brunches at Indigo, rasta sandwiches, Rama Naik thalis, Batchelor's ginger ice-cream or Moshe's almond and poached pear tart. To paraphrase the late Behram Contactor, better known as `Busybee', ``If you haven't tried eating out in Mumbai, you haven't lived."

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