U-Turn from Mohammed Ali Road

For those with zero patience for crowded lanes, chefs recommend similar food and vibes in the Jogeshwari-Mira Road and Bhiwandi belt

For many—irrespective of their faith—it’s a ritual to head to the lanes adjoining the beautiful Minara Masjid at Pydhonie during Ramzan. However, massive crowds and cacophony of shops, stalls and vendors, blending with the voices of self-proclaimed food bloggers who raid the area with a cameraperson or two in tow, is not for everyone. So if you’ve got kebabs, nihari, phirni and rabdi on your mind, turn back and let Chef Anees Khan and Chef Mohammed Danish take you on an iftar and after trail to Jogeshwari-Mira Road and Bhiwandi.

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Starting at Jogeshwari’s Sahakar road at 6 pm, Khan takes us through the labyrinth, and we stop at Amazekart for kheema maida roti (Rs 80). Swimming in a pool of oil, these crispy fried parathas are filled with minced meat and egg and are  an import from Surat. “This particular one is thinner than the regular baida roti, and a lot more flakier and crispier. I love the egg between the layers,” says Khan.

We then picked chicken tikka kandi (Rs 100) from this unnamed stall in front of Zam Zam sweets and packed some ragda (Rs 40) in a leaf . “You can taste the charred, smoked tikkas made with boneless leg. The flavours are really mild. The pattay walay ragda chacha has been setting up this Ramzan stall for years now, serving delicious ragda in a leaf. He makes his own spices to compliment the simple and delicious ragda. Besides the ragda, my favourite here is the masala khattay aloo from his stall which his wife serves with a lot of love,” adds Khan.

Coconut milk cream

Heading home for iftar with this, we started our trail again post namaz, heading straight to seekh paratha (Rs 60) at Farid Seekh Kabab Center, which Jogeshwari has become synonymous with. This small, not too jazzy place is crowded but clean and serves piping hot seekh parathas, a plate of chutney with a side of onions and mint leaves at lightning-fast speed. “Nominally priced, the best time to savour the seekh is around 7-8 pm to avoid the mad rush this place encounters,” says Khan.

Tikka all around. Chef Anees Khan picks the juiciest of the lot for breaking fast at his Andheri residence

On most days, Khan also enjoys a good plate of tunday kebabs and parathe (Rs 300) at Lucknowee Tunday Kebab on SV Road. “It’s the only place that serves tunday kebab with paratha in Jogeshwari. The kebabs are melt in the mouth with a hint of their secret spices. You must also try their iftar starters like Russian chicken kebab, schezwan chicken lolly pops and mutton kheema samosa,” recommends Khan.

Time for some sweet cravings, we went straight to have double malpua with rabdi (Rs 299) at Jaffer Bhai’s Delhi Darbar on SV Road. “They serve the best malpua and this place has been my family’s favourite for years now. The combination of malpua with rabri is a match made in heaven and can be had at iftar as well as at sehri time.  Another favourite is the falooda at Baba Falooda on SV Road, but we skipped it to avoid overindulgence,”  he admits.

Instead, we headed to have the mawa jalebi from JJ Jalebi (Rs 80), which tastes divine. Abu’s Cream’s coconut cream (Rs 150) is a new Ramzan favourite addition we are fond of. To wash all that guilt down, we had Irani black fruit and lemon tea. Made with black tea and infused with sabja seeds, pineapple cubes, mint leaves, lemon, and chaat masala, it is a great digestive. The tanginess of masala, the sweetness of fruits with the hint of lemon and a mouthful of soaked sabja seeds give this tea a burst of flavour and texture. We aren’t sure if the recipe is native to Iran or if it got ‘desified’ along the way.

Jaffer bhai’s Delhi Darbar is where Chef Danish prefers lazeez boti and tandoori raan; from where he usually heads to Hyderabad Express on Link Road for biryani, his favourite being Lucknowi mutton biryani or to Lazeez seekh kebab corner at Oshiwara for his malai seekh biryani. “This hopping from one place to another reminds me of my school days when I used to go to various food stalls with my friends after school hours—we had to have it all. Also, the mild flavours of these biryanis bring back memories of  home. And for once, I am not in the kitchen,” he laughs.

Streets were buzzing with food stalls offerings tikkas, kebabs, nans, baida rotis, ragdas, phirnis malpuas and more that we savoured during an iftar trail with chef Anees Khan

At Mira Road, Danish heads to Shaandar Zaika, Naya Nagar for nihari and khichda, a comfort food delicacy, usually made during moharram. There is also Zahra Lucknow Darbar in Mira Road East for the authentic taste of sheermal kebab and shahi tukda that he misses from his hometown. “These foods have their own charm in the holy month. Can’t explain, but dishes taste different maybe because you abstain from food the whole day and so you can appreciate the flavours better,” he adds.

Irani fruit tea, with its blend of tea, spices and fruits acts as a great digestive

Khan prefers going with his gang of boys for late-night meals to Sanaya Dhaba at Naigaon East, where they devour kali mirchi lamb chops, whole pomfret fry, gauran murgh curry and mutton mandi. “We often set out in search of good food and one of our recent finds has been Arabian Restro located on the second floor of the famous Fountain hotel on Godhbunder road on the way to Surat. This amazing place serves authentic Yemini, Turkish, Arabic and Egyptian Ramzan sehri delicacies such as Turkish sumac kebabs, adana kebab, mezze platters, Arabic lamb mandi and delicious kunafa to name a few. We wash it all of down with fruit champagne ,” he adds.

Farid Seekh Corner in Jogeshwari is a culinary gem known for the juiciest kebabs in town

For Biwandi, Chef Danish recommends Baradari restaurant, at Quresh Nagar for their chicken alishan and baradari special falooda. “The food town at Gokul Nagar has some great pahadi garlic bread, paan shots, and red fantasy drink.

At Rizwan Hotel, have the Kalyan-Bhiwandi special ghaula, a crepe made from a batter of malpua, stuffed with a special filling of inflation, rabri and lots of dry fruits. Their chicken panga and malpua are delicacies that remind me of my childhood and I savour every moment of it. We go to Bombay cream centre for the nariyal cream special drink, a Ramzan special made famous by Pappu Juice wala in town.”

Danish also has sehri recommendations in Bhiwandi, if you are game for a late night drive there. “We head to Ayyub Bhai Mithaiwale at Kesar Baugh. They are famous for their special kheema masala and phirni.

JJ Mawa Jalebi

The kheema recipe is said to be 100 years old and started by the current owner’s grandfather. People come from far-off places, just to have kheema among other meat delicacies,” he adds.

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