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Best Dishes You Should Definitely Try in Mumbai

Mumbai is a city of beguiling mélange. It is beautiful, yet somewhat puzzling. The food which is the most reflective element of a city’s distinctiveness is a proof of Mumbai’s bewitching characteristic. There are so many food items that everyone should try once they land in this magical city; here are our suggestions:

Bombay Sandwich

Bombay Sandwich

The Bombay Sandwich is also invented at the streets of the city. When some of the completely unlikely ingredients are made to combine altogether under the wrapper of butter toasted bread slices, Bombay Sandwich takes birth! 

In a single sentence, a Bombay Sandwich is nothing but some boiled potatoes, Onion shredded or rings, cucumber, tomato slices, beetroot rings-all spiced up with chat masala and layered on butter and green chutney bathed bread slices.

Akuri on Toast

Akuri

Mumbai is truly a cosmopolitan city. It has long been embracing different communities, different culture, and different cuisine with same appreciation towards all. 

Parsis are one of these different communities that Bombay (Mumbai) has espoused centuries ago; and since then the city has become almost synonymous with the Parsi culture and food.

The dish is just a english scrambled egg with lot more Asia spices like turmeric powder, coriander powder, green chillies, chopped onion and tomatoes and ginger-garlic paste and garnished with a handful of coriander leaves.

Bheja Fry

Bheja Fry

Bheja Fry is literally the fried brain of Goats fried in butter and tossed with chopped onions, tomatoes, spice powders, green chilies, and lots of chopped fresh coriander leaves.  Bheja Fry has its Muslim origin but is tremendously popular among the meat lovers across the city.

Batata Vada

Batata Vada

This iconic Mumbai food is an unassuming yet delicious snack which can be taken anytime in a day. Batata Vada is made with mashed boiled potato, chopped green chili, shredded ginger and garlic, coriander leaves, lime juice, salt and turmeric powder and then dipped in besan (powdered Bengal gram flour) batter and finally deep fried till golden brown. They are served hot with the tangy green chutney.

Pav Bhaji

Pav Bhaji

Pav Baji is the most popular street food not only in Mumbai, but all over India. The Bhaji is made of assorted vegetable fried with chopped onion, tomatoes, green chilies, ginger-garlic paste and slightly curried in spices and lemon juice. This Bhaji then is served with butter toasted soft Pav (bread buns) and green chutney and onion-tomato salad.

Vada Pav

Vada Pav

Vada Pav is simply the Mumbai version of Vegetable Burger. A Vada Pav is consists of onion or potato Vada( fried dumpling) inserted into a half-cut and buttered Pav (bread bun) and served with green chutney.

Bhel Puri

Bhel Puri

This cold, crisp, chatpata sweet and sour mix of puffed rice, chopped onion, tomatoes and boiled potato, green chilies sev, spices and red tamarind chutney can beat the heat of Mumbai, anytime, any day.   

Bombil Fry

Bombil Fry

Bombil or Bombay duck, bombil is a fish and not a duck which is almost synonymous with the sea food items in Mumbai. The crunchy crust of the outside may confuse you with its soft and succulent part from the inside.

Frankie

Frankie

Frankie is what Kathi Roll is for Kolkata, but with a difference, it is made off naan! Every Frankie would come with different feelings of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian stuffs, amount of sauces and spice-all on your demand. 

Keema Pav

Kheema Pav

Keema Pav is another popular choice mostly taken as a breakfast item in Mumbai restaurants.  Keema or the minced mutton cooked in lots of hot spices and chopped onions, ginger, garlic and green chilies and then served with butter toasted buns and sometimes with poached egg. Keema Pav is mostly available at any Parsi Café in Mumbai.

Kanda Poha

Kanda Poha

Poha (flattend rice) is a popular breakfast item in the western coastal belt in India. Kenda (onion in Marathi) Poha is the Marathi version of Poha prepared with abundance of sliced onions and fried potato cubes and served with chopped coriander leaves and scrapped coconut. 

Mutton Dhansak

Mutton Dhansak

Mutton Dhansak is one of those Parsi dishes that you will regret if not tasted at least once in your lifetime! Tenderly done mutton pieces cooked in assorted spices and served with brown rice and mutton kebabs topped with chopped onion and tomatoes - Mutton Dhansak is all about soul food satisfying your gastronomic quest. 

Patra ni Machchhi

Patrani

Patra ni Machchhi or the spice marinated Pomfret fish fillet wrapped in banana leaves and steamed to perfection. It resembles the iconic Bengali dish Machher Paturi but has its own uniqueness of taste.   

Puran Poli

Puran Poli

Puan Poli is a festival food in Maharashtra mostly made during Holi and Dussera and can be eaten only at the Marathi households. Puan Poli is made by simmering gram flour with jaggery or sugar and cardamom and nutmeg powder until dry. 

The small balls of this dough are then filled with sweetened wheat flour stuffing and then are rolled out like chapatis and roasted in ghee. 

Ragda Patties

Ragda

Yet another popular street food of Mumbai, Ragda Patties are the one-pot meal that completes in itself. Ragda or the boiled and mashed white chickpeas are mixed with boiled potatos, spices, tamarind pulp and jiggery and then small cutlets are made and deep fried. These patties are tempered with some typical whole spices and served with assorted chutney and chopped onions. 

Bun Maska and Irani Chai

Burn Maska

Probably the oldest part of the city and all the Irani cafes would remind you of an old bygone era. Parsi cuisine and its everlasting love affair with the breads and butter are quintessentially reflected on Bun Maska.

A wholesome dollop of butter on a pair of bread buns (almost similar to those French buns) is popularly believed to be the great great-grandfather of Mumbai’s Vada Pav. Burn Maska is often accompanied with the famous Irani chai or the thick creamy masala Tea only available at the Irani cafes.

Samosa Pav

Samosa

Samosa is a triangular shaped vegetable patti deep and it is also a popular street food in India. In Mumbai, the city’s love for Pav (bread) is seen almost in every street food. So, here is the Samosa Pav, a samosa pressed and stuffed inside a butter toasted bun and served with green chutney and salad.

Baida Roti

Baida oti

Baida Roti is one of the most famous and royal street foods in Mumbai. It is Bade Miya which has made Baida Roti a global name. This scrumptious food is a roti made with flour and stuffed with minced meat and egg and fried in ghee. 

Dhokla

Dhoklas

The Spongy snack from the neighbouring state of Gujarat somehow managed to ensconce itself permanently here in Mumbai also and became a household name in Mumbai food culture. Dhoklas are made by steaming the spiced up besan batter and are served best with green and tamarind chutney. 

Prawns Koliwada

Prawn

This dish was invented at the Sion fishing Village or Koliwada by not a Marathi, but a north Indian Punjabi immigrant! Since then, Prawns Koliwada is a signature dish of Mumbai. 

Prawns are marinated in a batter consisting ginger-garlic and red chili paste and flour and a bit of red colour and then deep fried till crispy. 

Butter Garlic Crab

Butter Garlic Crab

The buttery affair of Bombay (Mumbai) goes hands in hands in this key dish. When a big crab is bathed in butter-garlic sauce, it creates a magic in your taste buds and thus Butter Garlic Crab easily becomes a must-try dish in Mumbai.

Sabudana Khichdi & Vada

Saboodana

Sabudana Khichdi is a traditional fasting menu for Indians, especially at the Konkan belt. But, both sabudana khichdi and sabudana vada crossed the restricted borders of fasting foods and have become two of the most popular dishes in Mumbai.  

Pork Vindaloo

Pork Vindaloo

Pork Vindaloo is a Goan specialty famous both in Goa and Mumbai. Meat lovers in Mumbai just swear by Pork Vindaloo. 

Mughlai Foods at Mohammad Ali

Mughlai

From Biriyani to Mutton, from Kebabs to sweet Phirni- Mohammad Ali Road in Mumbai has everything Mughlai you can ask for. It would be a poor-miss if some of the tastiest Mughlai dishes are left not-tried here at this place in Mumbai. 

Chicken Sukka

Chicken

Chicken Sukka is a Mangalore specialty which has gained tremendous popularity in Mumbai. The dry Chicken preparation is robust in flavor and tastes completely out of the world. 

Mutton Gassi

Mutton Gassi

Gassi is the basic meat gravy preparation prepared with coconut paste with all other basic spice mixes and tastes just yum! Gassi is the contribution of the South Indian (mostly Mangalorean) communities residing in Mumbai for eon.  

Varan Bhaat

Varan

This traditional Maharashtrian pure vegetarian meal consists of boiled rice accompanied by toor daal (split pigeon peas), cooked in mild spices and sugar or jiggery and topped with a dollop of clarified butter.  It is an everyday meal in any Marathi household and carries the basic essence of Marathi food. 

Misal Pav

Misal

Misal is a mixture of boiled sprouted lentils, chopped onion, tomato and green chilies, cubed boiled potato, sev, crispy poha (flattened rice flakes), lemon juice and sweet and sour spices and is eaten with the Pav.

Usal Pav

Usal

In this dish, Usal or the dried peas are cooked with sliced onions, tomatoes and other spices and served with toasted Buns. We told you, Mumbai knows countless ways of eating Pav!

Kolhapuri Mutton

Kolhapuri

Kolhapuri Mutton has its origin at Kolhapur, Maharashtra yet is too popular among the carnivorous of Mumbai. 

This is s coconut based mutton gravy that comes with two variations, the Tambda Rassa or the red chili spiced gravy and the Pandhara Rassa or the Cashewnut, yogurt and other mild spiced laden gravy.

Fish and Prawn Curry

Fish n Prawn

The famous curry is prepared with coconut milk and assorted mild spices in which the fish fillets and prawns simply cooked to perfection. This is best served with boiled rice.

Modak

Modak

It is a sweet made with uniquely designed flour dumplings stuffed with coconut and jiggery. Undoubtedly, modak is the best dessert item Maharashtra has given to the world.

Also See: Best places to enjoy breakfast in Mumbai | Some offbeat restaurants to try in Mumbai | The best food joints for college students in Mumbai

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