Statutory warning: Do not read this post in an empty stomach
In our early days in Bombay I still remember running around with my brother to buy red rice for mom and finally calling up my dear friend Arun to bail me out. Incidentally he had just completed his weekly shopping at the hypermarket. He had gone back in only on my request,while he was at the cash counter getting the rice billed a lady came and enrolled him for a lucky draw. Thanks to his good heart he won the contest and along with Shilpa they went on a trip to Pondicherry.
Bombay was where I was exposed to some of the best street foods in the entire country. Vada Pav and Pav bhaji weren't very appealing to me because of my inherent dislike for potatoes. But I loved bhaji pav(palak deep fried with batter), I would even say that I was sort of addicted to the snack. While in office I would religiously visit the roadside stall which served piping hot Bhajiya and pav. People who wanted to smoke used to accompany me on short breaks while I was on the way for my daily fix.
During my time in Bombay I was also exposed to a variety of Gujarathi dishes. I loved Kachori and theplas out of the lot. Chaat was also something that I loved. For some odd reason I am fixated to fried and spicy stuff. Quite often people have a sweet tooth,on the contrary I have a spicy tooth. Towards the end of my stay in Bombay I came across a place in Kandivali East which offered the best Missal Pav. You have an option to customise the offering as to how spicy you want it to be.Being someone who craved for such kind of food even I couldn’t handle the spicy version of the dish.The rasam which was extremely spicy was a strict no no during summers because even during winters you would sweat just by eating it.Bhajiya pav and Misal pav occupied the second and third place in my list of all time favourite foods. No prize for guessing what occupied the first place
By the time of my marriage I had totally given up on eating rice and was content to eat roti, daal and bhaji(vegetable) 3 times a day. Jeslin was appalled by this fact and was wondering as to how I could put up with such monotony. Ignoring my protests within an iron hand she introduced a bit of a variety in my eating habits. Puttu,dosa,rice etc slowly made a re-entry into my life post marriage. I still remembered the excitement of Jeslin when for the first time she prepared butter chicken at home. Until then I never knew that making the dish was so much work.
Jeslin is an avid foodie; she loves trying out new recipes be it cooking or eating out. Her quest for good food coupled with our love for beef took us to the neighbouring state known for its great beaches. Goa,was a whiff of fresh air in comparison to the din and fury of Bombay .Even before the trip Jeslin would diligently prepare a detailed itinerary of the must visit food joints during our 2-3 days visit. Our days over there would be planned in such a way that we hit all the spots with some sight seeing squeezed in between.This was a far cry from a visit with my mother and brother a few years back. Then it was an itinerary of churches to visit that was prepared every day. Throughout the day we would set upon taking mom to different churches while me and my brother would be chilling out. This time around most often we would be hitting a patisserie(thanks to her sweet tooth) or a restaurant.Brittos at Baga beach and Aunty Maria in Panjim would be our picks because we visited these 2 places religiously every time we were there.(Our goa trips would definitely be a topic of one of my blog posts soon)
Aunty Maria
Brittos
Brittos platter
Our trip to Hongkong went a long way to satiate our craving for beef since beef was sort of unavailable in Bombay at that point of time. For the first time in our lives we ate a subway sandwich with beef in it, same was applicable to the fare of Mcdonalds as well.Visiting the Haagen dazs outlet at Victoria Peak in HK was quite memorable.There is an amusing reason as to why I remember my maiden visit to Haagen dazs outlet in Hiranandani back in Bombay. As usual it was Jeslin’s idea to go there until then I never knew about this premium ice cream brand. For the first time in my life I realised that ice creams could also be so expensive. What is more I had an upset stomach the next day.That was my body rejecting insanely expensive stuff. I am happy living my life with my bhajiya pav and missal pav.
Bombay was a foodie paradise of sorts I still remember when we used to take off for South Mumbai during the weekends. The day started off with a brunch either at Cafe Mondengar or Leopold. After roaming around for a good part of the day we would grab a meal from one of the Malayali restaurants.The rest of the evening would be spent at Nariman point and Marine Drive. The day would end with a topping of ice cream from Natural’s before heading back to our place somewhere close to midnight. Candies in Pali Hill for its rustic charm Jimmi’s for the best burger in town, Martin’s for its authentic goan dishes,Bade Miyan’s for its Mughalai dishes were places frequented by us among many others.
Candies
In my early days for my trips to Bombay after my vacation in Trivandrum there is a special reason as to why I prefer the Netravathi express even though there are alternate faster trains in the same route. After your brief stay in your hometown you are already depressed going back to business. The train journeys are always melancholic and reflective. Quite often I settle down with a book or just go and stand near the door. It is very much soothing during the monsoons to watch the greenery of the Konkan whiz past you. To make your loneliness more bearable you turn to the best South Indian food on offer during your travel. You could gorge into the piping hot Parippu vada(dal vada) and Pazham pori(banana fry). Not to forget the Chicken biryani with fried chicken, which is like a last hooray to ease yourself into the hustle and bustle of Bombay. My brother would take it to the next level. He would always ensure to drop me off at LTT Terminal for the onward journey so that he could get hold of some South Indian goodies from the train pantry.
During the last drive out of Bombay literally wrapping up my life in the maximum city after 8 years,we stopped at the Misal pav place in Kandivali for breakfast one last time. My brother who had left the city a few years prior to me had come specifically so that we could drive back to Trivandrum (a distance of close to 2000 kms) in my very own Maruti Swift.Exactly a decade back we had come to the city for the very first time for his Law College admission. At that time with great difficulty we found a place to eat some overpriced idlis just for the heck of it. Today there was an idli guy just adjacent to the Misal pav guy but we chose to ignore him and eat a Marathi dish over a south indian dish. Life indeed had come a full circle for us; we came here as Malayalis but are taking back with us a part of the Marathi cuisine in our hearts. This is exactly what you mean by ‘Unity in Diversity’.
P.S: Idli is no more considered a south Indian dish. I had a Gujarati friend of mine who prepared and served idlis on the occasion of her daughter’s birthday party.Alternatively, you can also find a guy doing brisk business selling Chaat in front of the Olive Eva hotel which is a stone’s throw away from Infopark, Cochin.
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