PRAKASH SHAKAHARI UPAHAR KENDRA PART-1

Sameep Karve hunts for some Authentic Maharashtrian Food.

It was a Sunday morning and had a week off in office so as usual didnt had to follow the strict timings. Mumbai was greeted by heavy rains previous day i.e Saturday. It rained for almost entire day and the streets of Mumbai were wet with water and also water logging at some of the places. The weather was pleasant and cool and this would pamper your taste buds to indulge into some hot savouries which are an all time hit on streets of Mumbai. As last week had gobbled some idlys, wadas, dosas so was not planning to have South Indian food. Hence today I was craving to have some authentic Maharashtrian food and when you think of Maharashtrian food you have to head to Dadar which is a Shrine for some culinary delicacies of Mumbai. Dadar has still preserved the culinary roots of Mumbai's Marathi culture and if you are Purists for food then Dadar will treat you well as many Iconic eateries are located here. Here you shall get authentic breakfast items like Misal, Batata wada, Kothimbir wadi, Sabudana wada, Thalipeeth etc....Just having a feel of all these yummy food items in my mind started my 2.5 Kms walk from Wadala to Shivaji Park, Dadar. This walk help to burn my some calories so that it can be replenished by hogging up some of the delicacies.

So just off Shivaji Park and opposite  Shiv Sena bhavan, Dadar you have loads of options to choose from. If you are looking for Maharashtrian heavy breakfast/lunch you can choose from the stylish,AC cooled Aaswad or the bench styled Prakash Uphar Gruh. I chose the later as already had tried at Aaswad. As far as Marathi eating houses go this one should certainly be on your bucket list!

HISTORY!!!!
When Indian broke the shackles of bondage and gained independence from the British, Shri Shivram Govind Joglekar left his native village in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra for Mumbai. After a few odd jobs here and there, he was determined to establish himself in the food business. Thus in 1947 was born Prakash Dugdha Mandir at Girgaom, the then hub of Mumbai. The Dadar branch was started 24 years later in 1971.
The food hub @ Dadar branch was renamed as "Prakash Shakahari Upahar Kendra". 

The restaurant is very basic, despite the makeover it received some years back. Contrary to the food, the interiors and the ambiance (there’s no AC section and the place is crammed with tables) are not worth writing about. But considering their food prices, one simply shouldn’t complain. The clientele ranges from executives in suits to daily wage laborers. Spot a seat and grab it before its gone! Its drab no-frills interiors are the epitome of form and function; whirring ceiling fans on top and uniformed waiters whizzing about with Germanic efficiency.

 The Menu card is laminated one to protect the same from spillage and is kept on the table. Some of the regular patrons of this restaurant dont even gaze at Menu card and order their preferred dishes. The waiter rattles out the order to the open kitchen and within a few minutes, slam dunks the order down to your table.

Now coming to the food I placed my order for Mattha Misal. It is simple misal as we have anywhere else served in tiny dish and filled up to the brim of the bowl. Misal here has tiny crunches of some farsan, jheeni sev, topped on the spicy curied lentils which are cooked to perfection and are soft to chew and it also has some Poha and Mashed Potato added to it to make it more soft. The tenderness of Lentils and Poha is perfectly balanced with Crunchier bits of Farsan and they add whisking curd(Mattha) on the top to have a  hint of tang in the flavour.Here they dont offer Pav with Misal.

After relishing Hot Misal thought to give a sweet treat to my taste buds and so ordered my all time favourite Shrikhand Puri. Puris were fresh served hot right from the Kadhai and were soft as made from Whole wheat flour. Maida is not used here and hence they are not chewy. Shrikhand was a Kesari shrikhand( A sweet Yoghurt which has flavour of saffron and zing of cardamom). They serve 4 hot Puris along with the Shrikhand and this combo is all time favourite of many Maharashtrians.

After having this brunch walked out of the Hotel with sweet smile on my face showing sign of satisfaction and my total bill was Rs.109/-.