'Wich Craft: Mumbai's magical bread fillers
In a city where time equals bread and butter, it’s no wonder that a quick sandwich is being perfected to an art. From open-faced crostini served on good bone china to a street vendor’s cheese toast, we bring you the varied faces of 'wich craft in Mumbai.
Street food sandwich: Strictly for vegetarians
The sixty rupee Grilled Cheese Sandwich at Right Place is a simple medley of bread, Amul cheese (the tinned variety we've grown up on), green coriander and chilli chutney and sliced veggies. It shouldn’t taste this good, you think, as you gorge on the butter-soaked, crispy, juicy squares. But until we figure out their secret sauce, we’ll keep going back to this snack joint amidst one of Mumbai’s busiest shopping district, braving mobs of middle aged ladies and college kids, to get our weekly hit. Right Place, Warden Road, opposite Breach Candy Hospital, tel. +91 (0) 22 2368 3374
Take it up a notch and you find the Veggie Sandwich at Swastik Sandwizza. Bursting at the seams with beetroot, tomato, cucumbers, potato and onion, slathered with butter and coriander-mint chutney, this veggie sandwich is wildly popular amongst local students and tourists alike. But you'll have to elbow your way through the snacking swarm outside this tiny sandwich stall to be rewarded with this under fifty rupee Mumbai culinary legend. No exaggeration. The signature spicy Sandwich Masala of theirs now sells in labeled bottles. For a street stall that's a tall achievement. Swastik Sandwizza, Santacruz Market, Outside Friendship, Santacruz (W), shut on Thursdays.
Restaurant sandwich: A meat-eater's delight
The Roast Beef Sandwich at Colaba's Indigo Deli is quite likely the city’s brawniest sandwich. Pumped with onions, lettuce, Swiss cheese and a dab of horseradish mayo, it comes with the swanky restaurant’s wedge style home fries and makes for a deliciously, hearty dinner at Rs 390. Indigo Deli, Apollo Bandar, Colaba, tel. +91 (0) 22 6655 1010
For lunch though, the open-faced Smoked Salmon Sandwich at The Tasting Room gets our vote. For Rs 310 you’ll find dainty chives and pearly smoked salmon sitting pretty on an open-faced wholewheat tartine. For maximum impact, devour this bourgeois treat in tiny bites, punctuated by sips of wine, which, stylishly, is the only alcohol served. Tasting Room, 1st floor, Good Earth Building, Raghuvanshi Mills, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, tel. +91 (0) 22 6528 5284
Delicatessen sandwich: Where Mumbai meets Europe
At Sandwich & Co do-it-yourself sandwich culture is catching on.
For a sandwich at any time of day (except Sundays when it's closed) Sante is Bandra's number one choice. This delicatessen fuels Bandra's growing expat community with imported cold cuts and cheeses (not to mention coffee, divine cheesecake, dips and even baguettes frozen from France). Pick any sandwich (our favorite is the Ham and Brie sandwich) with a dash of French style mustard for Rs 295 each. Sante, 1 Shahina Apartments, opposite Soul Fry, Pali Mala Road, Bandra (W); tel.+91 (0) 22 6452 2544
Mumbai's newest bread on the block called Sandwich & Co is another make-your-own situation with takes a page from the same book with an extensive choice of international cheeses
and meats, manned by well-informed attendants. Try their Country Club -- ham, smoked chicken,
egg salad, garden greens, tomatoes, grilled onions, cheddar and mayo. But beware, it's tempting to go overboard here and the sandwich of your dreams could cost up to Rs 700. Sandwich & Co, Shop No. 2, Ground Floor, Perry Cross Road, ahead of Turquoise store, Bandra (W), tel. +91 (0) 22 2655 3366
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