Priya Dutt and childhood family friend, Seema Sadequian, with roots in Iran, showcase an authentic hat tip to the country’s flavours
The tea is served black with saffron sugar sticks
Japanese outpost Izumi in Bandra has company, in the form of Covid baby - Cafe Mommy Joon. The Persian restaurant whose name means mother’s love [in Persian], is a venture by Priya Dutt and her friend, head chef Seema Sadequian. “The space was my father, Sunil Dutt’s office; later, it became my office during my political tenure,” Dutt tells us as we soak in the cloudy sky blue walls of the café, which have been designed by architect Sameep Padora.
ADVERTISEMENT
Seema and Priya
The ceiling beautifully breaks open to the sky in patches, elevating our mood. Wooden panels on the walls have niches of soothing yellow light that are an instant draw for our camera. The restaurant revolves around a giant library panel; all the contents have been sourced from Sunil Dutt’s private collection. We spot Bollywood titles, and Mohammed Ali’s biography on the wooden shelves. The décor, with its Persian knick-knacks of ceramic plates, turquoise blue intricate table tops, carpets and a huge samovar at the tea bar, teleports us to Iran. The café has organically gained momentum, as is typical of a Bandra opening, where word of mouth often does the trick.
Kabob Koobideh
As we chat, an attendant serves us black tea steeped in a gas samovar. The tea comes with saffron-flavoured sugar sticks that we dunk in the slim Persian tea cups. The kadak chai with the sweetness of sugar and fragrant saffron is refreshing. “Saffron,” Sadequian, who joins us for a chat, reveals, “Apart from adding colour and fragrance to the tea, makes the drinker happy. That is the main role of this royal ingredient.”
Al fresco section. Pics/Shadab Khan
Bandra girl, Sadequian’s family hails from Yazd in Iran. Iranis in Mumbai are primarily restaurateurs, and her family owns the popular Lucky Restaurant. “We slow-cook all our food on a low flame. It may sound tedious but when made with love, it is worth every effort,” she says, adding that food is never cooked in portions, and there is always enough for unexpected guests. It is a meat-forward cuisine and basic ingredients include salt, pepper, turmeric and herbs like dried rosemary, mint and dill leaves.
Ash-e-reshteh soups feature spinach, chickpeas and noodles
With Persian percussion music wafting in the background, we buckle up to be fed. Saffron-washed rice comes in the company of succulent kabob koobideh (R650) and boiled tomatoes which we sprinkle with salt on Sadequian’s instructions. The skewered mutton kebabs have been cooked on a flame as thin as a needle for six hours. The result is juicy, dense flavours of seekh. The side elements that come with Zereshk Polow and Chicken Leg (Rs 600) stand out, including a tangy walnut and zeresk chutney and chillies stuffed with dried herbs like rosemary and dry mint.
Stews and soups form a robust part of Persian dining tables. The one we try, Ash-e-reshteh (Rs 280), comes in a creamy and textured lentil, spinach and kashk (whey) broth with noodles, beans and herbs. We break a piece of barbari bread (Rs 80) and let the warmth nurse us. The berry pulao (Rs 600) is a generous celebration of berries and onions, and saffron rice. This dish is served with a rice and egg cake. We love the ghormeh sabzi (Rs 600), a tangy and thick red bean stew of braised lamb, and cooked in parsley, fenugreek and a special limu omani (Persian lime) to add zing.
For dessert, we relish two fat scoops of homemade kesar pista ice cream or Akbar Mashti (Rs 300). On it sit two rolls of honeyed baklava. “The ice cream reminds me of my granny,” we confide to Sadequian and she agrees. “All our grannies loved this nutty and kesari combination. It was the choice pick for ice cream before chocolate took over.”
With the entire menu inspired from family recipes, Sadequian pulls it off with warmth. Dutt reveals that last year, while planning the menu, they had invited chefs from Iran to elevate the selection. “Turned out, we loved Seema’s food more!”
At: Plot 458, Sunrise Building, 24th Road, near St Theresa Church, Linking Road, Bandra West
Time: 12 noon to 11 pm (all days)
Call: 8928638522, 9820281080
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
