BackHunger Games | Mahim’s latest Goan fix
Soul Fry’s casual, mid-range eatery Grub Shup is a new mid-week favourite
Premium(The menu was a fuss-free mix of sandwiches, burgers, paratha rolls, classic continental mains like Chicken Stroganoff, Coq Au Vin Fish & Chips and a few Goan dishes)
To make up for skipping my annual monsoon getaway to Goa, I’ve been overcompensating by eating at two of my favourite Goan restaurants at least once a week this past month: Soul Fry in Bandra and Fresh Catch in Mahim. If I’m in South Mumbai, I pop into the password-protected bar The Local without fail for their excellent Anglo-Indian Railway Mutton with Country Bread. One weekend, when I knew there was no chance of scoring a table at The Local or Soul Fry, I decided to check out Soul Fry chef and restaurateur Meldan D’Cunha’s Mahim eatery, Grub Shup.
When D’Cunha launched Grub Shup this April, he hoped the space, in a ground-floor apartment right opposite Mahim Station, would serve as a quick-service coffee shop for the neighbourhood he grew up in. The menu was a fuss-free mix of sandwiches, burgers, paratha rolls, classic continental mains like Chicken Stroganoff, Coq Au Vin Fish & Chips and a few Goan dishes. Soon, patrons started raving about the authentic home-style Goan fare and demanded for more on the restaurant’s Facebook page. Daily specials have now turned into permanent fixtures and I’ve finally found another place to get my fix of Ambotik (see D’Cunha’s recipe below), Balchao, Cafreal, Sorpotel, Vindaloo and Xacuti.
D’Cunha, a graduate of the Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition, Mumbai (also known as Dadar Catering College), began his career as a trainee chef with the Oberoi Hotels and Resorts Group. He left as an executive sous chef a decade later to work on the Carnival Cruise Lines. The money from working on the cruise later helped lay the foundation for his restaurant business in Mumbai. Over the years, D’Cunha gave the city restaurants like Sol Kaddi, Soul Fry Casa, Out Of The Blue, Tavira-Spice Village and Trafalgar Chowk. Karaoke Nights, every Monday, at Soul Fry on Pali Mala Road have enjoyed a cult following since they were introduced 13 years ago.
With every new venture, including Grub Shup, D’Cunha says he tries to experiment with new cuisines and innovative dishes but never manages to shake off his Goan connect. “When Out Of The Blue opened in Bandra, it was one of the first few places, outside of 5-star hotels to serve fondue," says D’Cunha. “I don’t want my restaurants to be known as just Goan restaurants, I never wanted to get stereotyped. But if you look at Soul Fry, I can’t even manage to change the menu because the regulars and the staff simply won’t allow it."
D’Cunha continues to scour the local fish markets, meat and mutton shops as well as Crawford market regularly to come up with new dishes. He can always be spotted sampling dishes and mingling with regulars at his restaurants. “I’ve always said my food should be tasty. I like to innovate but I’ve never thought of myself as one of those Michelin-starred chefs or the chefs on MasterChef," says D’Cunha. “I’m more like the Eat Street guys. I would love to do food like the burgers with fried eggs that drip all the way down to your elbows."
Calamari Ambotik
Serves 4
Ingredients
½ kg squid
1 tomato, diced
1 onion, chopped
2 green chillies, chopped
1 cup water
Oil to sauté
Salt to taste
Sugar to taste
Vinegar to taste
For the ambotik masala paste
10 dried Kashmiri red chillies
6 garlic flakes
¼ tsp cumin seeds
¼ tsp turmeric powder
¼ tsp black pepper corns
½ inch of ginger
1 tblsp tamarind pulp
Method
Clean and slice the calamari into rings, apply salt and leave aside. For the masala, grind all the ingredients to a smooth paste. Sauté onions, tomatoes and green chillies for a few minutes and then add the ground masala paste. Cook until the smell of raw masala disappears. Add a cup of water and bring to a boil. Add the calamari and simmer for a few minutes. Adjust salt, sugar and vinegar to taste.
(Recipe and image courtesy Grub Shup)
Grub Shup, 57, Ram Mahal, Ground Floor, opposite Mahim Station, Mahim (West) (2446 4306). A meal for two is under Rs600.
This weekly series, which appears on Tuesdays, looks at what’s new with food and drink, and how we are interacting with it.
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!
