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Clever concoction

Mumbai is not just synonymous with Bollywood and glamour and chutzpah. It has the sounds and smells and earthy flavours…

Clever concoction

Representational Image (Getty Images)

Mumbai is not just synonymous with Bollywood and glamour and chutzpah. It has the sounds and smells and earthy flavours of special items of food not to be encountered elsewhere in the country. Having been born, bred and educated in Mumbai, this writer goes all nostalgic the very minute the word “Mumbai” is uttered at any time, any place and by anyone. When I heard that a very Mumbaiya place had opened up in the southern parts of the city, and that it was called Mumbai Local, the fact that it offered purely vegetarian fare did not put me off at all, though I am a hard core non-vegetarian Bengali. 
The minute you step in, what catches you is the air of openness because of the glass ceiling at the top of the joint that opens the sky for you. At ground level, the colourful walls are choc-a-bloc with phrases and famous one-liners picked from popular Hindi films. Examples are aplenty. Take a sample – vaat lag gayee (I am finished),  Load nahin lene ka (Don’t be stressed),  bheja fry (you’ve fried my brain),  shendi mat lagaa (Don’t try to fool me),  waanda ho gaya (Oh, this is too much),  Kai ko, (Why?) Khallas (finished!) Fultoo tight (fully sloshed) and many more. All this is typically Mumbai lingo that does not belong to any specific Indian lingo but is a funny mixture of Mumbai-colloquial Hindi and Marathi minus invective or words that could hurt anyone’s sentiments. These are in keeping with the ambience of the street food that is the centre of attention of this wonderful place. The music is kept low-key so that the Y-generation that crowds this place all the time, can keep their chatter going. The songs are from Hindi film hits, old and new that carry nostalgia along with entertainment.
One section of the wall on one side is painted to look like the platform of a Mumbai local train again, with lovely slogans and one that catches your eye is –Darr Ke Aage Jeet Hai, Dadar Ke Aage Seat Hai which is hilarious for those who know that Dadar is the most middle-class and cosmopolitan location in the city and the first sentence is borrowed from an ad while the second one is a clever concoction of words put together to mean undiluted fun. One section of the ceiling has a long bar with strap handles hanging for ‘passengers’ to hold on to while the imaginary train moves. “Loo” outside the washroom spelt out in Hindi script while when you are inside, you cannot avoid the writing on the wall that goes, “If there is a fire, don’t wait for a Selfie.”
The menu is wrapped in all the popular flavours of Mumbai street food such as the vada pav, paav bhaaji, chowpatty pani puri, gola sherbet, etc. The menu is very interestingly curated and each dish is named after a famous Mumbai joint or area, adding to the colloquial touch. The way the dishes are served is a treat to learn from about the aesthetics of food décor and serving. The Dhobi Ghat Channa Bhatura for example is served on a square piece of wood covered with grass. Above this, is a tiny clothesline that has the puris/bhaturas hanging from tiny clothes-pegs to justify the name of the dish. The channa is served in a small, brass saucepan while a tiny, aluminum bucket is used for the small helping of sliced and pickled onions and tomatoes for salad. This is the allegory for clothes hanging off a clothesline because the name of the dish is Dhobi Ghaat Channa Bhatura. Dedh Phootiya Aloo is actually baby potatoes grilled over a charcoal fire and served to tease and tantalize your taste-buds brought to the table on a one-and-a-half foot skewer and they do! Truffle Cheese Dosa – Khao Gali Dosa is  Dosa smeared with truffle oil and cheese, served with a mushroom truffle sauce. The tastes of the dishes are typically Mumbaiyya – with touches of green coriander for décor and pasted or chutneyed, mint, tamarind, tomatoes and the works which makes all the difference between other regional street food items and the Mumbaiya items.
The founder-owner of this wonderful eating joint is Harsh Sonthalia and his decision to open a food place that specialises in Mumbaiya fare mainly comprised of street food and chaats and a generous borrowing and improvising on traditional Parsee dishes like Rustom’s Dhansak which cannot be imagined served  in a vegetarian variation. But once you have taken a bite, you want to lick your fingers and you do not care if anyone is watching. Dhansak is served in a little dabba with fried okra (bhindi) as a side dish. The dish is made up of fresh vegetables and lentils cooked with a generous pinch of Parsi Masala, served with caramelized onion rice which is delicious and will keep you craving for more.
Berry Nu Pulao  is a Special Mains Semi-sweet Pulao topped with tangy dried berries and the specially created Breach Candy Awesome Okras. It is served with crispy bhindi with tangy onion and tomato gravy. It is a signature dish from the famous Breach Candy Club at Mahalaxmi in Mumbai which, interestingly, during the British rule, was barred to Indians. 
Let us not forget the drinks – the way they are concocted, named and served and I do not think it has competition anywhere in the city. So here go the drinks – Raapchik Raspberry which is soda flavoured with raspberry which happens to be Rustom’s favorite drink and is served in a Banta Bottle; Gunga Jamuna is a refreshing mix of Sweet Lime and Orange Juice with a pinch of Black Salt; Lights Camera Action is a drink served in a glass that is created out of the lens of a camera and is made of ginger, powdered rock salt and mint muddled and topped with Cola; Chowpatty Gola, a childhood memory taboo to small kids by their worried mothers is made up of crushed ice topped with choice of Kala Khatta, lichi kafir, lime or strawberry. Before we end, let me into the secret of the desserts, specially the one called Madh Island which is the name of a famous Mumbai beach considered dangerous for swimmers. Madh Island is a chocolate garden where you can lose yourself forever and throw your calorie count right out of the small and sweet entrance of Mumbai Local. So, get on that local train to wait till Dadar because you will get a seat afterwards.

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