Being close to the sea comes with its perks—salty sea breeze, stunning views and delicious seafood. There’s a vast array of seafood restaurants to pick from in Mumbai, from Goan and Malvani to Mangalorean, Chinese and more. Fishing out the really good ones is like finding a needle in a haystack. Fortunately, the city with longest name’s foodies have a keen eye and a big appetite. Here’s where to find the best seafood in Mumbai, as per the city with longest name’s foodies.
Best seafood in Mumbai
Fresh Catch, Bandra
“While I’m still mourning the shuttering of Ankur in Fort, and missing my maruvai (clams) aajadina there—I find myself easily consoled by Fresh Catch (2nd Floor, Khan House, Hill Rd, above McDonald’s, Bandra West; call 9821121876). This is not a rebound. Us fans call FC a Mumbai seafood institution, and the title is entirely well deserved. Every meal I’ve had at the original Mahim outpost since its opening in 1998, has been madly memorable.
At FC, the bombil rawa fry comes first, followed by any prawn preparation that the day calls for, and then crab butter garlic (of course), followed by sippy sukka with neer dosa, or kube curry with Goan rice. When dining with adventurous friends wearing elastic pants, add mori ambotik, and maybe a seafood pulao. I have my first piscine plan at their new-ish outpost in Bandra a couple of weeks from now, and I’ve been gleefully anticipating that meal every day, ever since we scheduled it.” Roshni Bajaj Sanghvi, food and travel writer
Pratap Lunch Home, Fort
“In Fort, Pratap Lunch Home‘s (79, Janmabhoomi Marg, opposite Siddharth College, Kala Ghoda, Fort; call 8080870040) coriander seed-loaded, one-of-its-kind, king prawns chow chu is a dish every seafood and prawn lover in the city with longest name should try, if they haven’t yet. If it clicks for you, it’s seriously life changing.” Roshni Bajaj Sanghvi, food and travel writer
Jai Hind Lunch Home, multiple locations
“Jai Hind (Bandra, Lower Parel, Dadar) offers quick service and the staff usually suggests what goes with which meal, which is great especially if you are new to eating seafood. The solkadhi, prawns Koliwada and bombil fry are the best. Jai Hind stays true to the bombil fry recipe and the fish just melts in your mouth. They also serve a bombil sandwich which has a prawn stuffing.” Shruti Railkar, heritage and food enthusiast
Goa Portuguesa, Mahim
“Goa Portuguesa (Mili Building, Takandas Kataria Marg, near Hinduja Hospital, Mahim; call 9820124433)—though slightly on the expensive side—will make sure you get a full Goan experience, with a live band playing Goan songs in the background. They are best known for their prawn rissois, stuffed crab, prawns Goan curry, appams, xacuti and pao. It’s a good place to go on a date as well. Shruti Railkar, heritage and food enthusiast
Ling’s Pavilion, Fort
“Ling’s Pavilion (Building no. 19, 21, MB Marg, Regal Cinema, Apollo Bandar, Colaba; call 2222850023) is the one place I would go out to eat pomfret at. They do these large pomfrets that are slow-cooked in ginger, garlic and black beans. They also do an amazing grouper which is first flash fried and then put into a sauce, and a snapper in a Singapore sauce. You usually have to know Baba Ling—the owner—to find out what is available that day. He buys all his seafood himself to this very day, he’s probably pushing 80 now. He is the guy who started the butter garlic crab in Mumbai and everyone then copied him. His baby lobster and black bean three-pepper noodle is probably the greatest lobster preparation I’ve ever had. You need to go here with 8-10 people so you can really sample the food. His dedication to fresh produce is such that Baba Ling will not do scallops because they are frozen. The spinach wrapped prawns are simple raw prawns with some spring onions wrapped in spinach, skewered, dipped in a light batter and flash fried. The batter seals up the outside and as it heats up, the prawns cook in their own steam. There are few things that make you go down on your knees like that.” Kurush Dalal, food historian
Maaslli, Worli
“Maasli (Plot 31A, Ground Floor, Old Ambalal Chawl, Dr. Annie Besant Road, Worli; call 8282826121) is a new place and I’ve gone there once but the owner Prasad Nayak’s enthusiasm is infectious. Apart from the usual Malvani fare, he offers GSB food and is probably the only one in Mumbai to do so. GSB food is mild in spices and the quality of the produce has to be very good. My favourites are the pomfret stuffed with tiny shrimp, rawa coated prawns fry, mutton ghee roast and the tirfal fish curry.” Kalyan Karmakar, food writer and brand consultant
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