Living in a metropolitan like Mumbai sure has its advantages, especially if you’re a foodie. Here I get to feast my taste buds on the specialties of various areas without having to wait to personally visit them. So today I’m thinking about the abundance of specialty restaurants in the city and topping that list are the seafood places here – a personal favorite. The city gives you a chance to experience the best of coastal fare from across regions.
MumbaiMag picks out some of the celebrated places for seafood in the city and what is it that makes them so unique.
Trishna: Located at Fort, Trishna is one of the most popular places for seafood in the city. You will always find a steady stream of people – locals and tourists alike, lining up to taste their famous seafood. The cuisine is primarily Manglorean but they do have some Hyderabadi dishes as well. Whoever thought that Hyderabadi cuisine was all about the biryani and mutton need to try the Hyderabadi pomfret. Some of their most reputed dishes include butter pepper garlic king crab, the prawns koliwada, butter garlic squids, tandoori fish and rawas hyderabadi amongst others. It may be nestled in a small bylane but seafood lovers can easily find their way to this paradise.
Where: 7, Sai Baba Marg, Kala Ghoda, Fort, Mumbai
Contact: 022 22703213
Fresh Catch: If you’re looking for some home-style seafood delicacies, Fresh Catch at Mahim is the place to visit. As the name goes, Fresh Catch boasts of not just fresh seafood but also the ingredients that go into the making of the mouth-watering food. The place specializes in Karwari (Karwar is a small seaside town south of the Goa-Karnataka border) cuisine which is made using the owner, Francis Fernandes’, mother’s old recipes. Once here try the crispy fried bombil (Bombay Duck), the rossa and ambotic curries, prawns rechado, Konkan treasure prawns, calamari (squid) sukke or various crab preparations. The preparation is not very spicy nor greasy thus sticking to the promise of giving you a home-style meal. The place is a little small but the taste of the food compensates for it all.
Where: Lt Kotnis Marg, Near Fire Brigade, Off L J Road, Mahim West, Mumbai
Contact: 022 24448942
Oh! Calcutta: And while talking about seafood how can one not mention Bengali cuisine with its penchant for fish. Oh! Calcutta gives you a taste of authentic Bengali food including the delicious fresh water fish preparations. They have branches in Andheri and Tardeo that are frequented not just by Bengalis looking to get a taste of Kolkata but non-bengalis as well. Recommended here is the smoked hilsa, kakra chingri bhapa (prawn and crab meat cake steamed in banana leaves), chingri (prawn) cutlets, chingri malai curry (coconut milk based gravy) and maachher jhol (spicy fish stew) among other traditional dishes. The fish is especially flown in from Kolkata and the goodness of mustard can be felt in every dish. The food may be a little expensive but is worth every bit of it.
Where: Hotel Rosewood, Tulsiwadi Lane, Mahindra Heights, Tardeo, Mumbai
Contact: 022 23539114
Gajalee: Frequently voted as one of the best coastal food restaurants in Mumbai, Gajalee lives up to its repute with a lip-smacking menu. It has several branches in the city but Vile Parle houses the flagship outlet. Gajalee specializes in Malwani cuisine and perpetually witnesses throngs of seafood aficionados. Starting from the tandoori crabs to the baby sharks, butter garlic lobsters, clam koshimbir, clam masala, stuffed bombil and so on, every dish has its fan following. They also have a value-for-money fish thali which comprises a fish masala, bombil fry, sol kadi and one vegetable alongwith rice and rotis. It is one of those few restaurants that will seldom leave you disappointed and ensures repeated visits.
Where: Kadamgiri Complex, Hanuman Road, Vile Parle (E),Mumbai
Contact: 022 2616 6470
Mahesh Lunch Home: Mahesh Lunch Home is a name synonymous with Manglorean seafood in Mumbai. It is one of the prominent restaurants offering this cuisine in the city with the original outlet at Fort and branches at Juhu, Andheri and Thane as well. Cooked with traditional ingredients, the food here retains the taste and authenticity of Manglorean fare. It’s renowned for the gassis (prawn gassi is a favorite) with neer dosa, crabs in butter-pepper- garlic, clams sukka, squid koliwada, dakshin fried crab, tandoori pomfret, rawas tikka and fish balti and an array of other scrumptious dishes. They regularly have several seafood festivals focusing on delicacies from various coastal regions. Over the years Mahesh Lunch Home has attained a reputation for finger-licking seafood which it continues to live up to.
Where: Mahesh Lunch Home, 8-B, Cawasji Patel Street, Mumbai
Contact: 022 22870938
Highway Gomantak: Highway Gomantak is not just a restaurant but an institution of sorts. At this over 20-year old eatery, the ambience is non fussy and the focus is mainly on the food. Serving a mix of Goan and Konkani cuisine, the restaurant is known for the simple style of cooking and serving but there is no compromising when it comes to flavors. Try the pomfret green masala, kolambi (prawn) curry, bombil fry, mori (shark) masala, tisrya (shell fish) sukke and a variety of fried fish which include mandeli, bangda, gaboli, surmai and many others. Famous at Highway Gomantak are the range of thalis, from kolambi suke thali to pomfret curry thali, tisrya masala thali, kurlya (crab) masala thali and many others which make for a sumptuous meal.
Where: 44/2179, Gandhi Nagar, Behind Maratha Store, Service Road, Bandra East, Mumbai
Contact: 022 26409692
Excellensea: Also known as Bharat Excellensea, this eatery located at Fort may not be that well known, but those who have visited it swear by the seafood here. It is one of the oldest surviving seafood places and offers Manglorean style preparations which are top notch and good value for money. Dig in to their jumbo prawns or enjoy the prawn gassi with idlis, experiment with the pullimunchi (spicy & tangy) fish or settle in with the impeccable fried fish (Pomfret and Surmai are winners). Seldom will you find this place empty. Excellensea is definitely a discovery for seafoodies and a must try!
Where: Bharat House, 317,Sardar Bhagat Singh Road, Opp.Fort Market, Mumbai – 400038
Contact: 022 22618991
So the next time you feel like indulging yourself in some amazing seafood, do try out one of our recommendations.
Which is your favorite seafood restaurant in the city? Comment below or write in to us at story@mumbaimag.com