Last weekend I struck gold. Where, you ask? Let me direct you to Mumbai’s fabled Mohammed Ali Road, which steps into its festive best every Ramadan. Iftar spreads (the meal eaten by the Muslim community at sunset after they break their day-long fast) colour the alleyways of the Bohri Mohalla, which gets its name from the Dawoodi Bohra community that migrated here from Gujarat and parts of Yemen in the 20th century.
Time has turned the neighbourhood into a poster child of the Ramadan zeitgeist.
Peppered along its lanes you’ll find time-tested eateries, where feasts brew. And behind their doors, I discovered treasure. Come with me and I’ll show you. But I feel compelled to warn you of the sensory overload that will hit you the moment you set foot here. Flavours, aromas, and the sounds of deep-frying will compete for your attention from all sides. It can be baffling.
So we turn to Aditya Lakshay (30), of Khaki Tours, whose experience has made him adept at weaving his way through these khau gallis (food streets). The weekends see Aditya lead heritage walks across the city. He loves garnishing his history anecdotes with interesting trivia.
Explaining the eclectic curation of stops along the Ramadan walk, he says, “We visit around 12 places, alternating between sweet and savoury flavours at each.”
The first stop is Nawab Seekh Corner, where you’ll be feasting on seekh (minced meat that is cooked on skewers) hugged by a paratha (Indian flatbread). This is followed by a surprise at J J Jalebi started by Haji Chhote Khan from Kanpur. Since 1947, they have been serving a hickory-coloured dessert whose name cons guests into believing it’s the jalebi (spiral, crispy orange dessert). But it isn’t.
Clearing the confusion, Aditya says, “These are spiral versions of the gulab jamun (brown-coloured Indian confectionery). They even taste like it.” He adds that the dessert is a cult classic in Burhanpur, Madhya Pradesh. “This is where Mumtaz Mahal’s tomb once lay until it was transferred to Agra. In an ideal world, this is also where the Taj Mahal would have been built if not for the shortage of marble in the area.” Told you Aditya loves his trivia.
While J J Jalebi can be identified by the crowds obscuring its counter, a similar chaos plays out when trying to get a seat at Salman Pulao, the next stop. Started by a family from Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, the place puts out a feast, with the menu favourites being chicken pulao, beef pulao, and zarda (a traditional boiled dish of sweet rice).
Don’t forget to ask them for their spices and masalas; they add an extra zing to the dish. “What is the difference between pulao and biryani in terms of how it is cooked?” Aditya asks his audience. While they think of the answer, he guides them to the next stop, Chor Bazaar.
Take a break from the culinary revelry and look around. Have you ever wondered where the bazaar got its name? “There are two theories,” Aditya points out. “One is that it was called ‘Shor Bazaar’ because of the noise. The name eventually became ‘Chor Bazaar’. The other is that Queen Victoria, on her visit to India, spotted her stolen violin here.” Considering that Queen Victoria never visited India, the latter doesn’t have merit.
Remember the pseudo jalebis that you feasted on a while back? Turns out they were not the only impersonators on the tour. You’ll find a similar crook at Imam Sharbathwala where the popular watermelon milk sharbat is dressed in bright orange hues. Dating back to 1925, the outlet has moved multiple times, before returning to its current address.
We hope you aren’t calorie-conscious because the next place won’t take too kindly to that. At the 68-year-old Diamond Samosa, you’ll be asked to choose from kheema samosa (minced meat rolled into a triangular savoury pasty), samosa pattis, spring rolls, patti wonton and patti crispy chicken thread. “The samosas here sell out very quickly,” Aditya shares.
As you weave your way to the next stop, Noor Sweets, to snack on some malai khaja (thin, crisp, flaky pastry) and sutarfeni (sweetened thread-like noodles spun together), Aditya’s favourite question to pose to his walkers is “From where did ‘Bhendi Bazaar’ get its name?”
Some theories say it is a colloquial version of ‘behind the bazaar’ (from what the Britishers referred to it as, implying it was the area behind Crawford Market), while others dispute that the name comes from bhindi (lady’s finger vegetable), which used to be unloaded here from sailboats that docked nearby.
The answer will thrill him, and he might even treat you to an extra helping of the chicken kastoori sandwich at the next stop, Jilani Fast Food Corner. “The main ingredient in the sandwich is kasoori methi, which comes from a region in Pakistan. It is bitter,” Aditya says. This and the chicken baida roti (Indian flatbread stuffed with chicken and an assortment of spices) are a must-have.
Hopefully, you aren’t full. Because what’s next requires an appetite. The Surti 12 Handi is quite the treat to watch, even if you aren’t planning on sampling all of the fare. Twelve masalas are deployed to cook the different parts of the animal, which Aditya tries to list out — paya (trotters), bhel (mix), pichota (tail), nihari (stomach), jubaan (tongue), adla (shoulder), gardan (neck), gurda (kidney), and bheja (brain). Pointing out an interesting anecdote, he says the 90-year-old eatery wields the dum style of cooking (slow-cooking food in a sealed pot to let the flavours infuse with the meats) to perfection.
After the meat-heavy feast, surprise your palate with some sugar. At the 1950s haunt Shabbir Tawakkal, Aditya and the group gorge on malpua (sweetened Indian pancakes) and phirni (a milk-based dessert made with ground rice flour). Then head to Firoz Farsan for some patrel chicken biryani (meat cooked with steamed colocasia leaves and served without rice); the patrel lends the dish a rooted regional flavour. Wash this down with variyali (an icy kiwi-green drink made of saunf or fennel) at Idris Cold Drinks.
The next stop isn’t just a test of your appetite but also your intrepidity. At Haji Tikka, a dish made of goat udders awaits. “You may either love the flavour or may not be a fan. There is no in-between,” Aditya points out.
If you don’t, there is always ice cream to compensate. Head to the last stop of the tour — the legendary Taj Ice Cream. A favourite of Madubala, the place has been around since 1887, when Valilji Jalaji, a gentleman from Kutch, Gujarat started it as a fruit shop.
The walls are now painted, and the ice cream is served in cute miniature cups. You could say modernity has gnawed at the shop, but the wooden barrel in the corner would beg to differ. “Our ice creams are still hand churned to achieve the creamy texture. The fruit mixed with cream is then poured into a sancha (copper canister) which dates back to Jalaji’s time,” explains Aamir Icecreamwala, the sixth-generation owner of the business.
Now that you’ve completed this walk with us virtually, why not experience the actual thing?
You can do that here. The walk isn’t limited to Ramadan though. You can join Khaki Tours on their rendezvous around the city and the Bohri Mohalla area any time of the year. Book here.
Edited by Khushi Arora
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