Mumbai food: New eatery in Worli offers lunch options at pocket-friendly prices

Chicken and nippat bunwich

Whenever we hear of 'rice plate' or 'half plate', we get nostalgic about the good old days when Mumbaikars could tuck into a full meal at a price less than the service charge you cough up these days. So when we come across special half plate prices on a menu, that too in the high-rise lined neighbourhood of Worli, we don't waste a day to place an order at Worli Kanteen.

The menu manages to intrigue us beyond the pricing. In addition to canteen-style food favourites rajma chawal and matar paneer, there are a few not-so-commonly-available dishes too.

Sindhi mutton curry

We place an order that can easily feed four hungry souls, and our total bill adds up to '900. We start with the lapeti roti (Rs 100) as the juices have leaked out of the container. This on-the-go delight is a wrap stuffed with spicy grilled mixed vegetables and a cheesy sauce, and is a meal on its own for most light eaters. The bunwich is the kind of sandwich that you would make in a jiffy if out of bread. Both the chicken (Rs 120) and nippat bunwich (Rs 100) have a little extra carrot for our liking, but the crispy nippat (a savoury rice flour pancake from Karnataka) and fried chicken filling make both dishes work.

Paneer gutchi with kali miri laccha paratha

The kheema pav (Rs 200) has just the right kick of green chilli to balance the spices, so you're not hit by a post-lunch acidity attack. We pick half portions for our next dishes since we are nearly stuffed - Sindhi mutton curry (Rs 170) and paneer gutchi (Rs 110) - and are pleasantly surprised by the hearty portion sizes. The curry offers heady aromas; sadly the meat is undercooked. We skip this and lap up the curry instead. If you aren't a fan of greasy food, as can be the case with many traditional Sindhi dishes, skip it.

kheema pav

The laccha paratha (Rs 50) is an apt accompaniment to the simple paneer and mushroom gravy, which tastes similar to the versions available at no-frills restaurants. For a sweet trip, the gulab rabdi (Rs 90) is the only dish that pinches on portion size. Even the consistency of the rabdi doesn't impress us. Barring a few glitches, Worli Kanteen's tasty, familiar flavours at low prices mean that it can be your go-to haunt when your wallet dries up.

Time: 11 am to 11 pm
At: Manjrekar Compound, Dr E Moses Road, Worli.
Call: 9930116868

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