When Shapur Phirozmand was a young boy, his father Rustom would pay him four annas and ten paise for sitting at the counter of their shop, Sun Shine Bakery at Thakurdwar. Back then, it had some of the best watermelon juice, custard, pudding, and cakes. He’d rush there after tuition classes and man the counter for a few hours. He’d pick up his earnings and head to Byramjee school a few blocks away to exercise. “It’s the fondest memory I have from my childhood,” says 75-year-old Phirozmand from his home in California, where he is currently residing, in an exclusive phone call to mid-day. 

The 100-year-old Sun Shine Restaurant, Bakery and Beer Bar, a landmark at Thakurdwar, has been served notice to vacate the space since the building is in a dilapidated state. When Phirozmand’s grandfather, Ardeshir came down from Iran, he started this restaurant and ran it for a few years before handing it over to his son, aged only 18. Rustom ran it till his last breath in 2003, waking up every day at 4.30 am to open the place by 5 am. Phirozmand, who had been living abroad, wasn’t keen on running it until his mother insisted that he step in.