Nav Chaitanya — Restaurant in Mumbai

Mumbai. Friday through Sunday I was at my Alma matter S.P. SP Jain Institute of Management & Research (SPJIMR) For 20 years of foundation of my course Executive MBA. Saturday after the Alumni Meet was over I had spare evening. So I had to fend myself against my own hunger pangs by evening. So it was , Nav Chaitanya Andheri West

To me the sea food is all about fried fish or prawns, curries, plain rice , solkadhi and chapati or bhakari. Fortunately they had excellent menu. Though I was spoiled for a choice I stuck to my usual taste and ordered a Pomphret Thali with a bhakari made of the rice floor. As the food took time, I just threw casual glance around the place. It has good decor , even the facade actually gave me first a Goa like feeling. Something nostalgic. Interiors were all modern and quite a few good crowd. Families were streaming in at regular intervals.

It took ten to fifteen minutes or more. My guess is Rice Bhakri took time. Because usually Chapati is done quickly and could be fast moving item. Lots of guys were having Chicken with Konkani Vada too.

Thali arrived with the set items. A medium sized Fried Pomphret, Curry with tiny piece of Surmai, seer fish, Javala in a bowl, thickish gravy and a rice floor bhakari. They had also given green mint chutney and red chutney with fresh onion rings.

I first tried the gravy with a spoon thinking it was curry. However the thickness and taste was little odd for me. I moved on to Jawala, dried shrimp made into a side dish with little onion . I took a pinchful and tasted. Perfectly done. One of the best I ever had in the cities. Coastal areas you get better. But this was far better than what we get here in Pune. And the size of the bowl and amount served. It was at least twice what we get here in Pune or Pimpri Chinchwad.

I nibbled a bite of Bhakari,which was done well, no signs of raw flour , thin crepe like upper layer which I dipped in the Fish Curry and also tool off a bite of little fish steak. Fish was absolutely fresh , nice layers coming off and good firmness of flesh. Curry was good. Though thickish it had right spiciness and palatable to even kids. The mix of Bhakri, Fish and rice was simply out of the world. I took one more and then moved to the  pièce de résistance Fried Pomphret. Medium size , good bit of thickness around 10 mm or so and had minimalist coating of floor and masala.I picked the middle one the belly with bulge, no pun intended, with a fork and ate it as it was. Without any chutney. Superbly done fish. Fresh to the core , firm and fried well with little or no traces on oil whatsoever. Once I got assured about the frehdness of fish then I moved on to the green chutney and red chutney. Both had some tanginess as well as certain zing in it. Usually Mint chutneys go very well with the Kebabs. But recently I have noticed they are serving it every where. A good fish fry doesn't need any and we have been also influenced with western choices of Tartar sauce , but my opinion is nothing is needed. Just have it plain. Occasionally bite of the onion and sip the Solkadhi.

Solkadhi was served in tiny bowl to my surprise because Jawala was at least twice the amount you get in Pune. But the bowl had good solkahdi. Cool to sooth your digestive track , little spicy and the Kadhi will wash down the food and also balance the spices.

Without Solkadhi fish is something which you can't even imagine.

Now the stage was set for the fish curry , fish fry , bhakari , chutneys and Solkadhi.  It was one act gastronomic play where all these wonderful food fare played their roles together, solo, duels and took the show to climax which was very satiating.

I love Fish Thalis for simple reason, unlike veg Thalis they done come with unnecessary paraphernalia, all pomp but no substance. Fish thalis are minimalists dream. Have few items but at leisure!

That's a trick for happy evening for a soul without company. You don't need company all the time ,when good food is your company.

Hope I get to visit again....

Attributable to the diverse flavours from the coastal belt of Maharashtra featuring exquisite seafood dishes, loaded with fiery spices and and a coalescence of several culinary aspects, 'Nav Chaitanya' is one of the few places that amasses gastronomes and Malvani food enthusiasts. The restaurant has an honest-to-goodness decor, with traditional design elements and comfortable seating giving a cozy vibe to it. All these factors make it an amazing spot to be at with your family and friends. Dining here during peak hours, you'll see a lot of families visiting the place.

From a range of sections encompassing a plethora of delectable seafood, to sections offering a variety of chicken and mutton dishes along with a series of some of the finest sugarfixes I've ever come across, the menu is very elaborately detailed. In view of the spread of Malvani delicacies featured in the well tailored menu, it becomes an endless array choices when a diner has to order, such is the elegance of 'Nav Chaitanya'.

Starters & Seasonal Sherbat The dishes we ordered, owing to the oodles of flavourful elements they comprised of, were an exquisite treat to our taste palates. We also ordered "Kokam Sherbat" and "Khus Sherbat", two of the highly recommended options from the 'Seasonal Sherbat' section. The drinks go well with the starters, they're very refreshing and flavourful.

"Stuffed Pomfret" : Dining at a restaurant serving malvani food brimming with utmost authenticity and not trying fried fish seems unjust to the taste buds and the intrinsic nature of the cuisine itself, especially when you're a seafood lover. As the name suggests, this elegant delish is characterized by a fried pomfret stuffed with a flavorous coconut based filling. Coated in a crisp flavourful covering, it is an absolute delight to the taste buds. Even if you're not a seafood lover, it's one of those dishes that leave people hankering for more. "Prawns Butter Garlic" : It's not exactly a Maharashtrian dish, but it's sort of different from the butter garlic based dishes I've had at other places. The prawns are submerged in a savoury gravy which has a semi thick consistency. The ingredients blend really well and have a meld of flavours combined.

The other highly recommended options include, 'Bombil Shallow Fried', 'Tandoor Prawns', 'Tisrya Masala', 'Khekda Fry' and many more. They have plenty of vegetarian appetizers, widening the variety. The must try items are 'Batatyache Kaap', 'Vangyache Bharit', 'Kala Watana Usal' and many more.

Main Course They serve thalis and gravy delicacies that epitomizes all quintessential Malvani spices, these perfectly structured dishes should be in your order indubitably. For main course we ordered "Mori Masala' with rice bhakri and "Prawns Rice". The former dish, 'Mori Masala' is baby shark meat submerged in an extremely luscious gravy. It tastes amazing with the rice bhakri, one of the best combinations I've tried. The Prawns rice has a wide spectrum of flavors to offer. It's definitely one of their standout dishes. A vital part of a Malvani meal, 'Sol Kadhi' has a soothing flavour and has a blend of creaminess of coconut milk and the pleasantly sharp taste of kokam petals. It is absolutely reinvigorating and pleasing to the taste buds.

Desserts They serve some of the most engaging sweet treats which include authentic Maharashtrian sweets and a whole section dedicated to homemade ice creams. We had "Ukadiche Modak" and "Nachnicha Hakwa". The former, being a traditional sweet is among the popular ones in the menu. The stuffing of grated coconut and jaggery is heavenly. The latter, 'Nachnicha Halwa' is ambrosial. This Ragi and jaggery based sweet treat is a...

After a phenomenal success with their home outlet in Dadar this group opened their door for Malwani food lovers under this shade, Nav Chaitanya. Don't be surprised to see a waiting when you visit the waiting coz there are many people craving for their yumm food but I bet the wait is absolutely worth it. The traditional vada like ambience and walls and doors gives you an idea of the time you will experience with the food here.

We began our meal with our favorites bombil fry which we selected in deep shallow fried style. It was tawa fried to make it crispy and give it best of flavors.

Coolers: don't miss out on the coolers here like Kokam sharbat in soda or their favoured beers which went very nicely with our meal.

Kotimbir vadi which is a traditional dish of maharashtra goes well as a snack as well as side for a meal for again fried to crisp and served with a chutney (dip) made of jaggery n imli.

Surmai tawa fry: for those who believe fish fry is simply a slice cut fried in oil and served, needs to visit this place to understand the difference that's hard to explain. Right from the quality of fish, its preparation to its preparation everything makes a difference to your bite.

Thali :we opted for a special chicken thali which comes with a decent portion of chicken biryani which is cooked in Malwani style which is not something we find regularly and easily. Jowari roti makes sure your meal is not just delicious but also healthy and filling which goes really very well with the Malwani chicken masala served with enough of boneless chicken and mildly spicy gravy and also the egg bhurji that comes in the thali. The much loved in this thali was chicken sukka which is mix of bone and boneless chicken for you to enjoy it's sukka flavors. The preparation will make you want for more n more with every bite.

Other the same traditional desserts that we see at most of similar places, Nav Chaitanya offers home made ice cream which always came risk to me after such a delicious meal but we played ods this time by ordering Peru and tender coconut ice cream which were severed in slice form both separately. A meal couldn't have ended on better note for the flavors were so real and fresh unlike the added flavors you actually feel you are having a coconut or peru which is spiked with some red powered chilli. We stop couldn't stop until we completed both the slices.

The staff there is well trained and really helped us with everything from greeting to suggesting to serving with a smile and ensuring if we...