My Temple, Our God

C’s Non-Street Food Diary: 1. Theobroma

If it were up to me, this would be the first post. But for reasons sentimental and for chronicling accuracy purposes, it’s the second.

Okay, first off, time from plan to actual visit was 2.5 YEARS!! I kid you not!! T was the last of my friends to come to this place with me. I mean I’ve taken relative strangers to this place before her! Not that I didn’t want her to come but it just never worked out.

Secondly, I have to inform you about my feelings for this place…yes! I’m serious…FEELINGS!!

Theobroma is MY TEMPLE. It’s a tribute to the Chocolate God. I know you think I’m crazy but you have to experience it to believe it. Had I been living in South Bombay, my folks would be bankrupt by now and the Uncle and Aunty who own this place would have bought out the Taj Group of Hotels….all because of me!!

Okay…now onto the place, the story and of course the food.

Theobroma literally means “Food of the Gods” (which I have no doubt IT IS!!). It also is the name of a genus of the plant kingdom (sorry T, it’s the nerd in me waking up I guess :-) One of the major plants included in this genus is the cacao plant, source of cocoa and chocolate.

It is located at Colaba Causeway in Mumbai and can be very easily missed. Owned by an old Parsi couple, this 3-year old place is quaint and homely. On the inside, it’s got red brick walls with shelves of their wares on display. The place is a little small…I’ve waited for a table about 20 minutes once, which is a lot for a bakery cum coffee shop.

As I’ve already mentioned, I had been trying to take T to this place for really long. The day we did go will always be etched in my memory. It was the day that T interviewed for her first job (which she got, btw). We left in the afternoon, got to Colaba Causeway and entered Theo’s. I still remember the expression on her face when we entered. Complete bliss is what it showed….even before we sat down. Now onto what we had…

Veggie Sandwich with Arabiatta

Veggie Sandwich with Pesto

Mango iced tea

Cold coffee

Caramel Pudding

Chocolate Chip Brownie

(another cake which I don’t remember)

Needless to say, we were stuffed. The sandwiches were out-of-this-world, one of the best concoctions of pesto I’ve had. The mango iced tea was unique and I quite enjoyed it. The caramel pudding was a little too eggy. The chocolate chip brownie needs special mention here. It’s the BEST in Mumbai. However narcissistic it may sound, that’s the certificate I have given it. All my friends know how much I love brownies and am always on the look-out for the perfect one. THIS IS IT!!!

We left satiated. It took us 3 hours in rush hour traffic to get back. I was a little annoyed about not taking the right road, etc. but still enjoyed it. The conversation flowed, the leg-pulling happened….one of the best evenings T and I spent.

We of course had to go back, which we did, TWICE!!

The second time we went there, T had a chocolate and orange cake (not my kinda combination, but she liked it) and I ordered Chocoholic. It is this 3-layered, eggless, cheese-cake kind of dessert. The notable thing, other than it being delicious and all, is its texture. It’s smooth and really silky at that. Completely melt-in-the-mouth kinds.

The third trip was most noteworthy. T was compiling a goody bag for one of her friend’s birthdays. We had 2 hours to go to Theo’s, eat, shop and get back (impossible feat btw). So we rushed. I was so distracted by the desserts on display that I couldn’t help her pick out the chocolates :P We didn’t have time to sit and eat so we picked up a Hazelnut mousse cake and a Tiramisu for the road. We opened the box in the train’s second-class compartment after a sprint which left us both breathless (remember the fact that you were more out-of-shape than me, T ;) We got a lot of stares from people. Coz the only thing that we were saying was AAHHH!!! We lucked out when we picked our desserts. I rate these two as the Best of Theo’s. The tiramisu especially….again the best of Mumbai. We decided that the impromptu trip would happen again…hasn’t happened yet but I’m hopeful…it’ll be one of our plans which’ll probably take a REALLLLY long time.

ENOUGH SAID :P

T’s Pages: Chapter 2

Two and A Half Years!!! It took us two and a half years to get to the “promised land” (actually just me, he’d been here loads of times before and managed to convert himself and many others before). That’s the longest. Our career best to Theo’s and back (from SantaCruz) is Two and A Half HOURS.

Anyways, the baap of all long pending plans finally happened, I was almost kidnapped and re-introduced to the world of chocolate (imagine what that can do to a girl!) and I was hooked! One of the best brownies in the city (he’s going kill me for not saying they’re the best), especially the Chocolate Chip Brownie, really yummy Pesto Sandwiches, and Mango Iced Tea (!) was part of my first rendezvous with Theobroma. I also tried the Caramel Pudding, which wasn’t the best I’ve had, but better than most. Very good texture but the flavor needs improvement. Well, the chocolate got us buzzing and we had some great conversation on the 3 hour drive back home. In fact we dint mind the traffic one bit, so chocolate happy were we!

To be honest, inspite of C’s superlative reviews, I wasn’t really expecting such awesome dessert, and least of all snack time junk. But I’ll give to you C, what a find! This exactly where I’m going after my shopping sprees right across the road at Colaba Causeway. It almost justifies C’s decision to worship chocolate and call Theo’s his temple. Well, almost. I still thinks its unnatural. :-p

Our next trip here was a binge fest to release my GD/PI session stress, and I ate this girly looking ( it had chocolate hearts on it, what else am I supposed to call it ) chocolate pastry flavoured with cherry and oranges with a hint of rum. Quite nice and fruity. We also had an awesome chocolate cheesecake, Chocoholic, which has three layers of chocolate, milk, white and coffee flavoured, and it was pretty good.

But if you really want to try Theo’s best, try their Tiramisu…it mind blowing!!!!! We picked it up (quite randomly that too, cause I was busy picking out chocolates for a friend and since their display was well stocked that day, C was bedazzled) in a hurry, and ooohed and aaahed our way through it in a 2^nd class compartment of Bombay’s local train at 9.30 p.m. The Hazelnut Mousse Cake, our other pick for that evening, was also the cream of what Theo’s has to offer. C tells me their Devil’s Mousse Cake is also of the same category, but I have yet to try it. Theo’s is also quite famous for its regular cheesecake, but honestly, I find the non-standard stuff there much better. Also on my things-to-try-next list is Chilli Vodka Cheesecake. Will apprise the audience on that experience as and when.

By the way, friend who got chocolates from Theo’s in giftbag ( let’s call her S1, cause I’m sure she’ll be part of this blog pretty often now on ) absolutely loved them, and as a thank you, she did give me an entire piece, and finished the rest in one night. Must say they’re really nice, and the price is pretty much the market average, unlike your regular Theo’s stuff. Two trips in a month can send your monthly budget for a toss. As they say, quality at a price. Just have to add, critic that I am, the service here is as bad as superlative the food here is.

Anyhoo, needless to say, I’ve been converted too.

T

It all started with Pao Bhaji.....

T 's Pages: Chapter 1

It was a long pending plan.

Before I go ahead with our first story let me give you a small background check…In our long years of knowing each other, we made plans and wishlists, things we’d love to do and places we’d long to visit. The only obstacle was the mismatch in our lives. If I was free for a month, he’d be poring his head into books for upcoming exams and when he’d call to ask if I wanted to try out a new restaurant he’d heard of, I’d be too busy with some submission or viva to go ahead. But this we knew, the other person would the love the new place each was trying out. Hence we had a mental checklist (which almost got transferred onto paper, courtesy a nerd I know ;-) ) of places we wanted to go eat at with each other. And the end of his 5 year long course gave us the green flag. We were set loose.

So back to our long pending plan, well because this guy is a doctor and everything, I was sure he’d turn up his nose at this place I was suggesting, a street side pao bhaji place- "Maruti", very famous in Vile Parle-Andheri-Juhu, for its “different” version of the notoriously popular Mumbai dish. Its run by an old uncle who's been doing this for years now.

Because it was close to my college, I’d been here loads of times. The guy comes in at about 8 pm and you just can’t wait for him to finish setting up, even if you’re in the building across the road. The aroma is just irresistible.The bhaji here is completely different from anything you’ve ever tasted. For starters, it’s BLACK. And then it has this melt in the mouth kind of texture. And to top it off, it’s SPICY!!! Spicy like nothing you’ve ever had before. Spicy that doesn’t make you want to stop eating, it makes you want to eat more. And if you’re one of those who like leftovers, this bhaji tastes even better the next day. Its when the spices have actually kicked in. It’s served piping hot in old style ceramic plates with generously sprinkled butter and coriander, a side dish of spiced onions and tomatoes, and heavily buttered hot pao.

Hmm well, that basically covered the basics of our first food outing, which ended with a nice big slice of Mocha’s Vertigo, which C was generous enough to share (he was curbing his appetite then you see) and an almost invisible dent on our pockets.

We both went home well stuffed and satiated, unbeknownst to the fact that we had embarked on this whole crazy journey, complete with drama, hysterics, cover-ups and mauling…basically the works.

C's Street Food Diary: 1. Maruti Pao Bhaji

Hmmm…Pao Bhaji from the street?!! Although I agreed in a jiffy when she asked me, I must admit that I was apprehensive. Never done it before, had never heard of this joint before but decided to go with it anyway. A million more micro-organisms wouldn’t make too much difference to my alimentary tract.

And it was a decision well made. I was in heaven. The dollop of butter, the flavor, the aroma…all mesmerizing to the senses. It’s called “Black pao bhaji”…and it really was darker than any concoction of the famous bhaji that I had ever had.

Ok…at this point I have to describe what the guy does on the pan. He takes pre-prepared bhaji, adds heaps of coriander and butter to it (which I love) and mixes it all up together. What comes off the pan is fabulous. It’s spicy…though not too much…just right. The pao is also heated on the pan with butter and oil and served piping hot.

Then of course came the eating bit. …I can still taste it. The various flavours just came together so harmoniously. There was a zing to it which I don’t think I have experienced in pao bhaji made by anyone else. Of course, we gobbled it up within minutes. :-)

Then came the Masala Pao. Now this fellow does Masala Pao differently. He doesn’t take the normal bhaji, dry it a bit and coat the pao with it, he doesn’t use the bhaji at all in fact. Instead, he uses garam masala, lal mirchi powder, coriander leaves and loads of butter on the pao and serves it as is. It’s a brilliant idea…because it works so well!!! It’s almost melt-in-the-mouth!

At 35 bucks a pop for Pao Bhaji, it’s a great meal.

All in all, a great experience. One that I’m sure will remain with me for a long time. Thank you T :-)

P.S. There was no craziness, no drama, no story with this outing…but believe you me, as we go along, the stories and the drama happen and just keep getting better. Both of us are drama magnets. Not a day goes by that something extraordinary doesn’t happen. Keep visiting…..