Rainy Day Take-Aways

Mutton biryani at Olympia

You’ve fixed all the leaks, sealed the windows and moved the clothesline indoors, but you aren’t quite monsoon-ready until you’ve sorted out take-away options. Here, five favourites within their localities, some old, some new but each of which delivers on taste, price, and most importantly, time.

OLYMPIA
Rahim Mansion No.1, S.B. Road, opposite Café Leopold, Colaba. Tel: 2204 5220
Timings: Saturday to Thursday noon to 3.30pm, 8pm to 11pm, Friday 2pm to 3.30pm, 8pm to 11pm
Delivery area: Colaba to Nariman Point
Meal for two: Rs200 approximately
Olympia is a grungy, old restaurant on Colaba Causeway that was established in 1918. It isn’t the best place to eat at but delivers food up to Nariman Point. We recommend the boneless mutton biryani—prepared with fragrant basmati rice, onions and assorted spices, it’s fluffy without being too greasy. Olympia’s meat fest of a menu is ideal for days when you fancy a guiltless pig-out.

THE BOMBAY KITCHEN
8/A Noor Mahal Building, Sir Ratan Tata Road, Tardeo. Tel: 2354 3399
Timings: Daily, 11am to 11.30pm
Delivery area: Tardeo to Churchgate in the south and up to Prabhadevi in the north
Meal for two: Rs500 approximately
Tardeo’s gourmet kitchen has a vast and varied menu. We skipped their extensive pan-Asian section that has Korean, Indonesian, Thai and Japanese fare and settled for a snack more suited to lunch. We liked the chicken shepherd’s pie (gratinated with a layer of creamy mashed potato), but loved their three-cheese grilled vegetable burger: herb-sautéed peppers and courgettes padded with a decadent three-cheese blend of emmental, cheddar and a soft cottage cheese patty.

KEBAB LUCKNOW WALE
Shop 11, Homelands, 55 Hill Road, opposite Bandra Medical, near Karachi Sweets, Bandra (West). Tel: 92235 55725
Timings: 5pm to 11pm on weekdays, noon to 11pm on weekends
Delivery area: Bandra to Khar
Meal for two: Rs350 approximately
Lucknow-inspired kebabs are the mainstay of this month-old delivery joint. They’ve nailed the mutton galouti kebab, Lucknow’s most popular street food. Though prepared with garam masala, the galouti isn’t overwhelmingly spicy, and literally dissolves in the mouth. Their chicken shami kebab, a well-balanced minced chicken and ground chickpeas patty, makes for a great snack and even a whole meal if teamed with a romali roti. We suggest ordering the home-style romali tikka rolls if the kebabs aren’t enough.

SIGDI
160/B, Abbas Compound, 29th Road, off Waterfield Road, Bandra (West). Tel: 2655 7907
Timings: Daily, 24 hours
Delivery area: Bandra to Juhu
Meal for two: Rs450 approximately
Verdict: Sigdi is an all-day restaurant that’s extremely popular with Bandra’s post-party crowd. The succulent tikka rolls are the best things on the menu, though the generous sprinkling of cinnamon powder might render them a tad sweet for your liking. Though greasy, their biryani and butter chicken are also worthy picks after a night of intoxication.

PIZZA ROMA
Shop No.16, next to Notandas Jewellers, Link Palace, Lokhandwala, Andheri (West). Tel: 4264 9995/96/97/98
Timings: Daily, noon to 12.30am
Delivery area: Andheri to Juhu
Meal for two: Rs350 approximately
Verdict: The eight-month-old Pizza Roma has become Andheri’s pizza delivery place of choice, and we presume that’s because of their perfect thin crust. It’s also one of the few restaurants (along with Ray’s Pizzeria in Bandra) that deliver pizza by the slice. From their impressive all-pizza menu, we recommend the jalapeno studded Roma chicken and the vegetarian Siciliana that has olives, capers, sundried tomatoes and artichokes as toppings.