Just a few Sundays ago in October 2015 ,at the express desire of my adult nephew down from Toronto,my wife,adult son ,him and I sauntered in late afternoon at 2 pm to enjoy yet again a lovely Gujarati Thali at Kalbadevi’s (South Mumbai) legendary ShreeThaker Bhojanalay….it has no other branches….There were some large groups waiting as usual but as we were just four we got seating immediately…this is rare and possibly the rush was less because it was a really record hot Sunday and India was playing South Africa in a day night decider fifth ODI at Wankhede Stadium nearby so South Mumbaikars probably had stayed home…thankfully for us to get a place !
And Boy did we enjoy !….they keep serving faster than you can eat !….and do eat with your hands to relish it more !
For Rs 600 each for it’s Unlimited Sunday Thali we relished…actually devoured one helping after another ! that highlighted in Bold Green were my favourites while Family had others too !….Menu keeps changing every day :
Drink ~ Chaas (Buttermilk)
Sweets ~ Shira + Basundi + Bengali Sweet
Farsans ~ Moog dal Bhajias + Samosas + White Dhoklas ~ all served with standard & special chutneys
Salads ~ Tomato & Cucumber cut small + Raw Pumpkin
Curries ~ Gujarati Daal (Theeka or Sweet Variants) + Gujarati Kadhi ~ both normally had with plain rice and kadhi also with pulao
Rotis ~ Hot Fresh Rotis with Ghee Option + Bajra Rotla + Makkai Rotla + Hot Piping Puris
Rice ~ Pulao or Steam Rice served with ‘Lachko’ Daal ( Dry Mashed Toor Daal )
Others ~ Khichda Papads
Please be kind and not ask us how much we ate…overate !….cannot actually just eat here !…you have to overeat !…or else the servers and owners are not satisfied as they continue doing ‘aghre’ ( lovingly insisting you to have more helpings and even serving more of what you’re relishing despite your trying to tell them no !) serving us quickly and replenishing efficiently hot and piping food…in fact when i asked for a Makkai Rotla on his serving tray,the server insisted I eat a hotter one and went in to get it !
And the Purohit Family Owners of Shree Thaker Bhojanalay actually posed for us…the 94 year old strong Maganbhai Purohit who yet manages the Cash Counter & his smiling son Gautam.….as you can see we could barely carry ourselves out !…in fact nephew sat down at the building entrance and son bent over !…the Bhojnalay is on the first floor and is air conditioned
It’s a crowded locality even on Sundays and difficult to get parking and be prepared to wait an hour for seating on Sundays for lunch !….it’s closed Sunday Evenings…..Thali is cheaper on weekdays…..and don’t expect 5 star interiors….we go there only for the 5 Star Gujarat Thali !….it’s tucked away in a busy lane on the first floor (no lift) of an old and nondescript building that you may even miss walking or driving past !
Purohits keep taking a Bow ! ~ Poro Poro ! (‘serve me more and more ‘ in gujju) ~ for your Shree Thaker Bhojanalay remains a real Hit and we’ve been coming here for years and always will !
There are & will be other Gujarati Thali Eateries in South Mumbai,and we’ve had there too but there is & always will be Shree Thaker Bhojanalay !….want the best then go to the best and eat to your heart’s content !
Was wondering how valuable Shree Thaker Bhojanalay really is ! ~ what if it expands like many other Thali Joints have in setting up their Chain ~ Nah ! It’s Value is in it’s niche & remaining single and small and tops in quality of food and service offering best Value for Money ! …expansion would impact quality ~ All things of Value do not need an IPO and listing on BSE & NSE to unlock their potential !….However do note I’ve tagged this post in Investing Approaches & Themes too !
We grew up on a Thali away from the Thali at Home at Shree Thaker Bhojanalay and happy it’s been discovered in the past decade and bestowed with many accolades from the likes of Times Group,CNN and Tripadvisor
Just in case if you’re interested here are a few of my Food Blogposts in the past on my Blog
