It was going to happen one day or another. And it has happened now. Starbucks outlets are now selling vada pav, keema and bhaji pav! When McDonald’s, Burger King, Starbucks and KFC opened their outlets, there was genuine fear that they might dislodge our local vada pav, etc. Mercifully that has not happened. Instead a global brand like Starbucks had to bow down before our desi dishes. Which is a good thing. How much of these burgers and croissants can you eat? They simply do not tickle our tastebuds the way our streetside pav bhaji or batata vada do. It won’t in the least be surprising if in the near future McDonald’s introduce McIdli or McDosa!
New dosa outlet at Fort
Talking of dosa, a new outlet called Prakash Dosa has opened in Chemco House opposite the Khadi Bandar stop on DN Road in Fort. Earlier the area had quite a few outlets like Suvidha justly known for its rava idli, West Coast for its rava masala dosa and Anand Bhavan for its sevai and puliyodharai. Unfortunately all of them shut down. Now this Prakash Dosa, which is popular in Parel, has opened a branch. It has zero seating and you have to eat the snacks sitting on plastic stools placed on the footpath or from stands screwed to the wall. How the BMC gave it permission is a mystery. It boasts of Gini dosa and stuff like that, which are perfectly avoidable. I would any day prefer Pancham puri, Sai Pooja or Shivala nearby.
Sea transport need of the hour
The civic administration is breaking its head to find a solution to the parking nightmare. It is said that it is easier to find God in Mumbai than a parking slot. The best solution is to introduce an efficient sea transport from Nariman Point to Virar with halts at Girgaum, Worli, Dadar, Mahim, Bandra, Versova, etc. Motorists would prefer to travel in speed boats than get stuck in traffic for hours and struggle to find a parking place. The coastal road and metro trains can make only a limited dent on the problem. The crying need is for sea transport.
Tailpiece
Said a post on the social media: L&T now means Loose Talk.
(Compiled by S Balakrishnan)