The food of Bombay

We spent 3 1/2 days in Bombay, and I ate like a glutton the entire time. This probably explains why my once-comfortable dark denim jeans can now barely fit around my waist. (Eating huge plates of rice for lunch at the ashram, and then falling asleep for two hours probably didn’t help either.)

But really: when was I going to be in Bombay again? It wasn’t even up to me. I had to have that crispy calamari with basil from Vong Wong. Had to try a few handfuls of the Indian-spiced snacks at the rooftop bar at Dome, while sipping my singapore sling. (A drink I’ve never ordered before, but hey, I was in Bombay.)

Check out the visual journey below. First up: idlis, fluffy, steamed cakes made from rice flour, and upma, a savory semolina porridge served with coconut chutney. Both came from Bombay’s Cafe Mysore.

One of my favorite activities was exploring Crawford Market, one of Bombay’s biggest mercados. It reminded me of something I’d see in Mexico City, except with a lot more spice stands, and men who carried baskets on their heads, so women didn’t have to lug around their own wares.

Have you had a custard apple before? They’re amazing. Taste just like the name.

By the way, as a sidenote for all you Mexicans and expats out there: chico zapote exists in India! It’s called “chikoo.” Didn’t get a pic of it, but just wanted to share. Here’s the custard apple… it’s hard not to gape at its luscious flesh.

Our second day in town, we stopped for a meal at Britannia & Co., one of Bombay’s Irani cafes. Irani cafes are a Bombay tradition, originally catering to Parsi immigrants who arrived in the city in the 19th century. Although the number of Parsis in Bombay has dwindled, a few of the cafes still exist, and they’re known for looking the same as they did 100 years ago. Food is basic and tasty: biryanis, chicken curries, bread and butter.

We ordered the sali chicken, a curry with garam masala, cinnamon, tumeric and crunchy fried potato strips…

And fish with parsi spices, and at my insistence, the bread with butter…

… And the queen of them all, Britannia’s mutton berry pulao. I would seriously perform Fear Factor-like acts for another taste of this mutton berry pulao. Look at those crunchy bits of rice.

Just before we left, we tried paan. It’s basically a mound of spices wrapped in a fresh, bright green betel leaf, and you put it in your mouth and chew it. Paan is very popular all over India, and you can get it with tobacco or sweet. We chose sweet.

It tasted immensely pepperminty, almost menthol-y, like swallowing a handful of Halls and a York peppermint patty.

Here’s the paan-wallah, doing his thing…