Lazeez Desi Khaana – Mumbai

OR Tasty Indian Food.

And boy was there a lot of it!

This post’s all about the food I sampled in Mumbai – where there are umpteen eateries in every type of cuisine available these days. What leaps at one’s senses however, are the Maharashtrian and Konkan cuisines (especially, vegetarian and seafood) which are undoubtedly soul food.

I got to indulge in these on my first night out with my girlfriends at Gajalee at Phoenix Mills where you are served seafood bursting with local flavours and great seasoning.

Clockwise: Wine & a mocktail, saunf, garlic buttered prawns, khasta roti, the remnants of a stuffed Bombay Duck (click to enlarge)

Of course, there’s the street food that Mumbai’s so famous for as well, but which I had to be cautious with for the very first time. As a result, I didn’t get to eat much of it or click any mouth-watering photos of the fare either. Next time perhaps, when I’m prepared to fortify my stomach better. *wink*

As I said, you get to taste a bit of everything in Mumbai these days and I was particularly delighted to savour the famed burgers and hot dogs at Gostana – a small café that serves the most delicious and healthy snacks I have ever had in Bandra. If you are of a mind to grab a quick bite without emptying your pockets overmuch, this little café is the place to run to.

Another fun place I would absolutely recommend in Mumbai is Wah! Bollywood, situated off Carter Road in Bandra West. The place is pure Bollywood kitsch with large film posters on the walls and place mats with quirky one-liners delivered by caricatured actors. The food is a mix of Italian, Chinese and Indian (eclectic, I know!) and is generous and delicious. Their Drums of Heaven especially, are to_die_for.

At the corner of the junction at Turner Road and Pali Naka is Lemongrass, an old favourite I got to revisit this time and just like the crowd-pleaser, 5-Spice, it didn’t fail to deliver. These two establishments are utterly in favour of all of us who look for terrific Asian food in Mumbai that won’t make our wallets weep.

Clockwise: Chocolate muffin with whipped cream at Bru World Cafe, sizzling brownie at Mocha Mojo, the sauce and appetizer selection at 5-Spice, battered prawns with wasabi-garlic sauce at the Bandra Wine Tasting Festival, pollo con ajos y blanco and drums of heaven at Wah! Bollywood, steamed dimsums at Lemongrass, burgers and hot dogs at Gostana, macarons from Le 15 Patisserie (click to enlarge)

Surprise discoveries during my trip were the macarons from Le 15 Patisserie (such legit marzipan, I say!), a café chain called Bru World Cafe that not only has a relaxing and unpretentious ambience but also whips up some good coffee and tea and the staggering number of wineries in India (realised at the Bandra Wine Tasting Festival).

Oh the Bandra Wine Tasting Festival. What do I say about it that won’t make me sound like a smitten (drunken) kitten! The next time it comes around folks, do pay a visit. A few hundreds are small deal when faced with the prospect of sampling some of the best that the Indian wine scene has to offer. I must have tasted more than a dozen varieties of wine that day and in all guzzled more than a gallon of wine. ALL. GOOD.

And to wrap that, here’s a picture to show you exactly how pleased I was with the food and drink in Mumbai (clicked at the wine tasting, of course).