Mumbai food: Best pocket-friendly eateries around college campuses

CAMPUS WITH THE BEST STREET FOODDhaval Desai at Amar Juice Centre Vile Parle PicsTehniyat FatimaMithibai College Vile ParleAmar Juice Centre is the thirstquencher for Mukesh Patel Engineering and MBA College DJ Sanghvi and Bhagubai College Mithibai and NM Colleges Dhaval Desai 19 says for years the joke has been that these colleges donrsquot have a campus but the road makes up for it ldquoBut the area has the best street eatsrdquo The DJ Sanghvi student says Rs 100 will serve you the whole day And you wonrsquot be strapped for variety either Desai recommendsPizza French FriesVJ Cafeacute on Second Road serves French fries that come in flavours like chipotle Rs 100 pizza Rs 130 and chilli cheese Rs 100 ldquoWe usually share the food so R50 per head is a cheap dealrdquo says Desai popping a cheesy fry into his mouth AT VJ Cafe Shree Nataraj Building NS Road No 2 JVPD lane Vile Parle WestTIMINGS 10 AM ndash 11 PMCALL 9833391625ICE PAANThe trail Desai tells us is incomplete without ice paan Rs 25 The extralarge sized paan topped with gulkand comes to us in a paper plate We bite into it and the ice crushes between our molars as the cool ingredients take over the senses PerfectoAT Brijwasi Paan Bhandar opposite Sahakari Bhandar VM Road JVPD Scheme JuhuPav BhajiWe are a democratic country and the butter floats freely with all its might The steamy pav drip yellow and the bhaji is spicy and generous in portion The steam idli and pav sandwich also fly off the shelves here AT Amar Juice Centre next to Cooper Hospital Road No 1 Vile Parle WestTIMINGS 10 AM ndash 1 AMCALL 23642205Onion and cheese kulcha Wersquove heard of stuffed parathas but the proposition of stuffed kulchas sounds tempting too The hot onion and cheese kulcha Rs 160 comes with black dal chole and pickle The naan tears easily revealing a mixture of onion and cheese The topping of coriander and dill lifts the taste We gobble this with a lemon iced tea Rs 80 a fresher version of those available at coffee shopsAT WTF opposite Sahakari Bhandar VM Road JVPD Scheme Juhu TIMINGS 1030 AM ndash 1230 AMCALL 26247917Ferero Rocher MilkshakeKnown for its mushroom paneer and aloo wraps the bestseller here is the Ferero Rocher Milkshake R150 Itrsquos the perfect drink for a sunny day AT Ice lsquoNrsquo Rolls opposite Bhaidas Hall near Mithibai College Vile Parle WestTIMINGS 10 AM ndash 11 PMCALL 26175528NEW MEETS OLD BUT WITHIN BUDGETSIES College of Arts Science and Commerce SionWThirdyear undergrad friends Reeba George and Anmol Dutta have distinct palates and agree to disagree on the rest Together they point out the best of what the SIES College lane has to offer The area has a good mix of street staples such as cheap sandwiches and frankies There was a time when Guru Kripa famed for its samosas reigned supreme Fancier options serving Italian fare have opened now and smaller joints have improvised to cater to a clientele that likes to experimentRocket fries and red velvet ice creamLots of cosy couches means lots of students lazing around over milkshakes Their Italian menu and dessert counter rivals the Cafeacute Coffee Day outlet nearby which we are told is the nook for dates whereas gangs of friends hang out here ldquoIt has a wider selection than CCD and is a tad cheaper toordquo says Anmol adding that her goto item here is the exotic burger at Rs 100 ldquoI prefer this over the exotic pizza which at Rs 200 doesnrsquot fit my budgetrdquo she explains The rocket fries Rs 100 come with a generous shower of peri peri masala We wouldnrsquot mind a dollop of mayo either The red velvet ice cream does its trick too WHERE Cafeacute Istaa 12A1 New Sion CHS Ltd SionTIMINGS 10 AM ndash 11 PMCALL 24083376Gurukripa SandwichCheese and chocolate is the bottom line of the student appetite A sevenminute walk from SIES College stand a bunch of snack stalls where Reeba and Anmol pick their favourite combination Sandwiches from Gurukripa stall and juices and shakes from BM Juice Centre BM translates into Bharat Mata The chocolate sandwich went for a gooey overload which we liked and the chocolate milkshake was rich too WHERE Gurukripa Sandwich and BM Fresh Juice Centre TV Chidambaram Marg Sion CircleTIMINGS 9 AM ndash 9 PMCALL 9967542410Mayo FrankieSpicy packed with veggies and cheese and dollop of butter mayo frankie is a great hit Right across the college this is a hotspot to grab a quick bite and rush back to class or munch on a snack as you purchased stationery ldquoIt is easy on the pocket and the tummyrdquo says Anmol Other student favourites here are panneer chilly cheese frankie noodle frankie and manchurian frankie ldquoWe usually sit and eat by the compound wall of a playground nearbyrdquo says ReebaWHERE Jalaram Stores opposite SIES College Jain SocietyTIMINGS 8 AM ndash 8 PMLassi and samosa choleReeba says that since every dish here is modestly priced it works for students The lassi garnished with pistachios was tasty and mildly sweet The samosa chole is great comfort food perfect for the rainy season ldquoIf you want to hangout here you have to eat slowly but who cares Things are really cheap over hererdquo says ReebaWHERE Guru Kripa Hote SIES lane SionTIMINGS 8 AM ndash 11 PMCALL 24074188A saucy and tangy affairPicsSayyed Sameer AbediKC College ChurchgateHow do you decide on the best eatouts outside of college when your canteen is unbeatable Twentyyearold Punya Jain a finalyear BFM Bachelors of Finance Management student claims to have asked herself this question a time too many Then she stumbled on a few good eateries nearby and realised that the search for great food could never really end Punya follows a strict Jain diet and we thought it would clip her options But it is hardly an issueJain Pizza FriesAll you Frenchfries fans out there herersquos a quick suggestion Move on At The J Cafeacute banana fries is the inthing Custommade for Jains they are layered with pizza sauce Jain cheese sauce and mozzarella cheese The pizza fries R150 served hot in a cone are a winner from the word go Started by Jai Vaswani in 2012 The J draws students in throngs We got our order delivered in five minutes but during peak hours be prepared to wait For nonvegetarians there are some great sauces to be enjoyed with potato fries and smoked chicken sausage WHERE The J Vaswani Mansion Dinshaw Vacha Rd ChurchgateTIMINGS 9 AM ndash 12 PMCALL 22844650Pasta Cheese Roll Biting into a sandwich stuffed with pasta is a different joy altogether Prema who runs Raju Sandwich Stall is an experienced hand at sandwichmaking since 1978 Itrsquos his chutneys however that he is most proud of We were served the pasta cheese roll Rs 55 with green and red garlic chutney placed artfully on the paper plate The saucedup pasta was soft and melt in the mouths WHERE Raju Sandwich Stall Opposite KC College Dinshaw Vacha Rd ChurchgateTIMINGS 8 AM ndash 9 PMCALL 9930599195Food reinventedRamnarain Ruia College MatungaHunger pangs often take a beating in the scorching afternoon heat but when three enthusiastic girls from Ruia College show us around their favourite eating spots there was no stopping Anushka Raote and her friends Rishika Ghosh and Ruchi Balakrishna mdash all second year Bachelors of Arts students mdash donrsquot attend lectures as often as they step out of college for some grub ldquoWe are hardcore foodiesrdquo Raote explains promising to take us beyond the evergreen pav bhaji at DP Durga ParmeshwariPaani puri shots and Fruit beer ldquoIf yoursquore at Ruiarsquos and havenrsquot visited DPrsquos then you probably have missed the bestrdquo says Raote We step into the Udipi joint and see pav bhaji flying off the kitchen shelves But Raote and friends opt for the paani puri shots R35 and fruit beer Rs 25 The paani puri was served in a shot glass and the girls enjoyed shooting it down one shot at a time The fruit beer only made everything seem like one big lsquoinnocentrsquo party WHERE DPrsquos Fast Food 153 Nanda Deep Building Lakhamsi Nappu Road Opposite Ruia College Matunga CentralTIMINGS 8 AM ndash 1130 PMCALL 2414532Chocolate sandwich Subhash Sandwich Stallrsquos triplelayered chocolate sandwich Rs 80 is mindbogglingly good Each bread slice is layered butter chunks of cooking chocolate and Hersheyrsquos syrup The sandwich is then toasted and served hot heaped with a layer of chocolate shavings We were licking our fingers even after we had moved to the next stopWHERE Subhash sandwich stall Advocate TV Parameswaran Marg MatungaTIMINGS 9 AM ndash 6 PMCALL 9867837622Low variety great valueNATIONAL COLLEGE Bandra WestBandra houses some of the cityrsquos most exciting eating joints And when we say this aloud the two SYBCom students whorsquove joined us for a food tour react contrary to our expectations There are fewer options for students like us who are always low on cash say Murtuza Najib and Priyance Kothari But millennials being millennials they have managed to snuff out some eateries that are as good on the tummy as they are on the pocketCHILLY CHEESE TOASTJay sandwich occupies the sidewalk outside the college but according to our fellow foodies the joint is so popular that it has become a landmark in the area It sees crowds at all hours and according to signboards all customers are accorded equal status It reads lsquowe will not serve you in your car You will need to get out of your car and come to the counterrsquo Set up in 1986 by Jay Patil the twofeet square stall boasts an extensive menu right from the original sada sandwich to a studentsrsquo favourite masala toast On the suggestion of Kothari and Najib who are regulars here we order a regular squaresized chilli cheese toast For Rs 90 Gulp Patil offers an explanation ldquoIt used to be about R40 but the price of vegetables has soared But it hasnrsquot affected the flow of studentsrdquo he says The sandwich has a generous amount of grated cheese on top and between slices which are slathered with delicious mint chutney and butter Itrsquos on the spicer side but take one bite and yoursquore guaranteed to get a sense of why Jay sandwich is what it is WHERE Near National College 32nd Road off Linking Road Linking Road Bandra WestTIMINGS 830 AM ndash 830 PMCALL 26058493COMBINATION FRIED RICE Just 50 metres away is Ravi Rice Set up in 2001 by Ravi Jadhav a local from Pali village Ravi Rice has been around longer than most students and staff Najib tells us that he found out about the eatery from his elder brother who used to study at Raheja College and would come here for a pocketfriendly meal The stall serves Chinese right off the wok with rice noodles or a combination of both ranging from R4080 It also allows the quintessential lsquoonebytworsquo lessening the cut into onersquos pockets We order a half plate of combination rice fierylooking schezwan rice with chunks of chicken and egg for R40 The portion is unexpectedly large and can be easily shared by two WHERE Next to MMK College Linking Road Bandra WestTIMING 930 AM ndash 830 PMPANEER SHWARMA Our next stop is further down near Rizvi College If yoursquore looking to venture beyond Linking Road we suggest you take a short rickshaw ride to Yummies off Carter Road Nestled in a quiet corner beyond Salman Khan inspired Bhaijaanz Yummies has a varied clientele right from college students to TV actors and Bollywood celebrities like Salman Khan and John Abraham ldquoWhile John likes the iced tea Salman likes the schezwan ricerdquo says Elton Fernandes who runs the shop with his brother Maldin We order a Paneer Shwarma for R100 which is stuffed with schezwan gravy and generous chunks of paneer Try it if you dig spicy fareWHERE 36A Rajan off Cater Road Rizvi Complex Bandra WestTIMING 10 AM ndash 11 PMCALL 26040040The road to temptationKPB Hinduja College Charni RoadThere is something for every appetite on the Girgaum and Charni Road stretch Walk down the road beyond Saifee Hospital and every lane cuts to a different surprise and new treat Nimai Gandhi a finalyear BCom student converted into a ldquofoodierdquo after he joined college ldquoThere is so much out here you canrsquot resist the temptationrdquo he says Indifferent to the extra calories he could be piling Gandhi has to bite into the masala toast each morning ending the day with his favourite milkshake We couldnrsquot resist the binge either But before you head here be warned mdash almost every eatery owner is either christened Raju or has named his stall after the popular nameChocolate milkshake At the entrance of Khau Galli is Shalimar unarguably Girgaumrsquos most popular juice centre While fresh fruits hang from the stall it is the chocolate drink that draws most of its patrons By night Shalimar has over 10 service boys serving the cold milkshake to people who line up outside It is sold at R50 but you can always split it with two friends and still enjoy a glass just as full Sprinkled with chocolate chips and confetti itrsquos served cold with iceWHERE Shalimar Juice Centre Khau Galli Tata Road No 2 Charni RoadTIMINGS 9 AM to 1 PMCALL 9769432671Sev KhamaniThis dish is sweet tangy and as simple as food could get Sold for just R10 a plate Gandhi and his friends usually walk that extra distance from college to Khau Galli in Girgaum to gorge on it Its owner mdash another Raju bhai mdash specially procures the khamani made from dhokla from Surat It is fried with oil rye mustard seeds hing asafetida and curry leaves and served hot with sev and fried chilis WHERE Sainath Roxy Snack Khau Galli Tata Road No 2 Charni RoadTIMINGS 730 AM ndash 6 PMCALL 7506807034Masala toast sandwich The masala toast at Raju Sandwich is lsquoout of this worldrsquo says Gandhi Just take a bite and let the aloo stuffing do the talking The stall run by Raju Deval has been in business for over 25 years Though he sells over 13 different kinds of sandwiches it is the masala toast R25 that leaves people wanting more Each sandwich is layered with the special lsquoRaju potato stuffingrsquo fresh cabbage onion capsicum and tomato slices before it is toasted and served with red garlic chutney WHERE Raju Sandwich KPB Hinduja College lane 315 New Charni RoadTIMINGS 8 AM ndash 1030 PMCALL 9821766799