Dishes from Mumbai’s Bhendi Bazaar find a home in this Bengaluru restaurant

Arpitha Rai and Rehana Contractor started the new restaurant The Bombay Chapter 003 as an ode to the streets of Bhendi Bazaar and Mohammed Ali Road in Mumbai. These historic streets, which come alive during ramzan, are home to street food from the Bohri Muslim community, that live in the area. The Bombay Chapter 003 (named after the pin code of the area) is a casual dining restaurant, bringing that iconic cuisine to Bengaluru. The duo says it is not a reinvention. They are not here to elevate or refine the cuisine, but they want to simply translate it to a new city.

Mutton baida roti

The restaurant is located inside the premises of Uru Brewpark and Thelagram. The ambience is straightforward and plain, in an open-air setting. We take seats and pore over the menu, that has sections such as tawa specials, small plates, large plates and biryanis. The duo has brought ustad karigars (masterchefs) from Mumbai to design the menu. Although it is meat heavy, there is a decent selection for vegetarians as well.

A number of the appetisers are brought to the table. The presentation is simple, par for course for the casual ambience. We have the famous baida roti. An egg paratha stuffed with slow cooked mutton and spices, which is then tawa fried. The paratha is golden brown and flakey, and the stuffing is flavourful.

Next, we have the mushroom galouti kebab, one for the vegetarians. The kebabs are melt-in-the-mouth, and mildly spiced. The hungama kebab is made of spicy chicken kheema, which is shaped like a lollipop and then deep fried. It is fun and textural. We wash all these down with Mumbai’s famous Pallonji soda, in flavours of raspberry, lemonade (my pick from the lot), and ice cream.

Bohri mutton dumm biryani

Main course is another round of classic dishes. We have a mutton biryani, and the nalli nihari. The nihari is silky. It is cooked overnight in a marrow-rich broth. The dish is served with sheermal pav, a soft saffron-infused flatbread. The Bombay-style dum biryani is made of long-grain basmati rice and mutton marinated in Kacchi style spices. The Bohri masalas are key to the flavour.

We round off the meal with a light caramel custard.

The Bombay Chapter 003 does justice to the cuisine of the iconic area. Good for a quick bite, especially if you are in the area.

Cost for two ₹1,100. At JP Nagar. For more details, call 9353562796