Panki At Swati Snacks And More: Indian Accent's Chef Picks His Favourites

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From Daulat ki chaat to Duck Cornetto, the chef fed us well at his first pop-up in the city. But what do his taste buds crave when he’s in the city? He lists a few mouth-watering recommendations. We’d blindly trust him, for he spent eight years at the Institute of Hotel Management in Dadar as a culinary student in the nineties.

The Table

What he loves: the boneless chicken wings and zucchini spaghetti. Mehrotra says that at least  two private parties at the Ambanis bring him to Mumbai twice a year, and he hates to leave the city without digging into the zucchini spaghetti, which is tossed with almonds and butter and dusted with parmesan, as well as a side of the boneless chicken.

Swati Snacks

What he loves: the panki. As Navratri festivities set in, make room for some Gujarati panki, which is a rice flour dish steamed in banana leaves. According to the chef, the taste has not changed since the first time he had it.

Another restaurant on his list is Soam. Even though he’s only been there once, he says that the wholesome Kathiawadi food deserves another visit.

Cafe Leopold

What he loves: The beer. This place takes him back to his college days, when he used to hail a lift from Dadar college to town for his internship at the Taj. Never a Mondegar guy, the chef says that he loves that if you sit in Mondegar for three hours, you’ll hear Hotel California four times, so he will pass on that.

Kailash Parbat

What he loves: the aloo palak sabzi and and patli chapatti. This is his go-to place for a simple and hearty meal. The palak is not fully churned but steamed, and the thin, soft rotis are the perfect accompaniment.

Laxmi Vilas

What he loves: the medu vada. From the udipis that surround Sena Bhavan to this one behind Leopold’s, as a college student, Mehrotra visited them all with of his friends. The medu vada is crispy, and the pleasure of dunking it in sambar is awesome. Mehrotra also indulged in beef kebabs, which cost INR 10 at the time in Mahim.