Udaan actor Rajat Barmecha and his director-brother Vicky might be the poster boys of the new family-run café, but at the Andheri outpost, it’s their mother who is the star
Rajat Barmecha and brother Vicky launched the cafe to fulfil their mother, Shanti’s wish. Pics/Shadab Khan
The Barmecha House is a 20-seater cafe nestled between a chemist and an ATM. The yellow and grey board stands out, and a glass door with a wooden frame opens into an indoor seating for 10, where patrons are greeted to a tempting display of cakes, fresh bakes, and European food being whipped in the kitchen. A bare brick wall holds family pictures in bright yellow frames, and bookshelves show off an interesting reading list. In a corner, a handmade plaque has a quote from the film, Into the Wild: “Society you’re a crazy breed. I hope you are not lonely without me.”
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In March last year, smack in the middle of the second lockdown, brothers Vicky and Rajat Barmecha gave in to their mother, Shanti’s pressing wish—to open a cafe in Mumbai. Rajat, 32, who made his debut as an actor with the 2010 film Udaan, says, “This is my mom’s dream project which turned her into an entrepreneur at 56. She is the real owner, we are just extras,” Rajat jokes as he slides into a seat next to his mother, who is looking resplendent in a red saree. “It’s her first interview!” he announces to regular customers as he gives her an encouraging hug. Shanti was born in Bidasar, a small village in Rajasthan, and moved to Ladnun after her wedding. “Having lived in Kathmandu and Delhi, my husband and I moved to Mumbai eight years ago to be closer to our sons,” says Shanti, whose culinary expertise was, until now, limited to making Indian and traditional Rajasthani fare at home. “I am learning to bake, and for the first time, I started using the coffee machine,” she says.
The banana and mulberry smoothie
Rajat moved to Mumbai in 2007 to make his career in Bollywood. He was soon joined by Vicky, who is a director and works with Anurag Kashyap. “It all started here for me. A year after I moved to the city, I used to frequent this area for auditions, and today I have a cafe on the same street!” says Rajat. Their elder sister Ritu and her husband Sumit run June 16, a cafe in Bir Biling, Himachal Pradesh. “We call it the parent cafe,” says Vicky, who spent time learning the ropes at the cafe in the hills. “Until three years ago, Vicky and I were on the same page with cooking. Now, he is our master chef,” says Rajat.
The hands-on experience gave Vicky the confidence to experiment. “Once you start cooking, variations and flavours come [to you] organically. You have to understand the basic taste and you take off from there. We’re doing a vegetarian plus egg menu comprising sandwiches, smoothies, fresh bakes; I’d say our pancakes are the best. The menu is on the blackboard, because I change it every day. I decide what to make, and try new things, too.”
The carrot cake which has natural sweetness of the root vegetable
Rajat says most regulars know each other, and have been warm and encouraging to his mother. “They stop by to chat with her. And, when she isn’t in town, they’ll ask on her return: “Aunty aap kahaan chale gaye the?” While I am the face of the cafe and Vicky mans the backend, mom, we believe, is the heart of this establishment,” Rajat tells us.
On our earlier visit, we stopped by for a coffee and cake session with a friend at sundown. The carrot cake was moist and our Americano on point. This time, Vicky has made us a smoothie that he has christened Happy. It has banana and mulberries. The latter reminds us of childhood, when we plucked the wild berry and popped them by the dozen. From here, we dig into a warm pesto sandwich (Rs 240) which has multi-grain bread holding tomatoes, jalapenos and basil. The addition of cheddar makes it filling. We wash it down with a Vietnamese cold coffee (Rs 190). Made with condensed milk, dark coffee and water, it plays the perfect palate cleanser. It is bittersweet, in the right proportion. To indulge the sweet tooth, we try the brioche (Rs 270) which comes with a side of fresh cream and blueberry compote. The buttered brioche is rich and sloppy making it a rich serve for one. We will go back for this and savour it as a meal. The food stands out for its fresh preparation, and it’s the moving menu that keeps the curiosity intact.
The pesto sandwich made with multi-grain bread, tomatoes, jalapenos and basil
The idea to start the cafe was to create a vibe, the founders insist. “We wanted to create a nook that mirrored how we are as a family. It wasn’t about money. It should feel as if you are coming over to our house. When we were looking for a name, I knew we had to call it the Barmecha House. This is what we would tell our friends: See you at the Barmecha’s. Our regular customers call it the Central Perk of the neighbourhood,” says Rajat.
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