Mavshi’s Kitchen was started by Mithilesh Pradhan and his roomie when they moved into their Versova flat two months ago. Having employed an unassuming, kind lady “Mavshi” as a cook, they quickly discovered that although she was illiterate, she had a talent for SeaFood bordering on Magic! She made some prawns, crabs and Surmai for them, which they loved so much that they took some pics and shared them on FB. That post got about 30 Shares and several people writing in to see if they could order some food. Also, every time he had friends over for a party they would go gaga over the fish, they'd often ask her to make some fish and come by to his place and collect it.
“Mavshi”
As the story goes, they suggested to 'Mavshi', that she should start a tiffin service and helped her with her Facebook page and took some food pics for her. Mavshi's had a tough life, but she's a fighter with a million dollar smile. And she now has her first 10 happy customers! They're loving the food and are all repeat subscribers.
The foodies’ event was organized atop a building in the versova koli village and walking up 3 storeys of the building had built up quite an appetite for me. The hosts had taken great pains to decorate the terrace with sofas, mattresses and lights!
We started off the proceedings with a Kokam Sharbat & Dried Bombil Crispies. The dried fish had a sharp taste to it, which our host had warned us about. After two of these, I couldn't stand the saltiness & the intense flavor.
Sukkhad Bombil (Bombil Crispies)
Next up was Jumbo Prawns cooked in a dry paste. They were so yum and the prawns were so juicy. Apparently the head of the prawns is where much of the taste comes from and usually many people avoid eating it, but you should. In a matter of minutes the entire bowl was empty and Mithilesh walked in with another bowl of prawns starters. This one had a little more gravy to it and was best to eat with a spoon. The gravy was well balanced where you could easily make out the onions and the masalas. That too didn't last long!
Prawns Starter 1
Prawns Starter 2
Next up was the star of the show – the Stuffed Mud Crabs. The mud crabs are a dark shade when picked up from the sea, but when cooked, they turn crimson red! Since they were stuffed crabs, it was easy to pry them open and dig into the spicy masala and juicy crab meat! Things got a little messy but that’s the only way to eat a crab!
The Delicious Stuffed Mud Crab
There was Bombil Masala curry which was served with Bhakri. The fish was cooked in a light masala of chilli powder, koli masala, turmeric, cumin and green chillies, which added to the rich aroma of the curry. The fish was so fresh that it broke as I put them into the mouth! And then they brought out the Surmai Curry with Steamed rice, which was phenomenal. The Surmai fish was very fresh
Bombil Curry
Surmai Curry with Rice
For desserts they had a uniquely Koli dessert - sweet banana stuffed with coconut and cooked in milk, which marked the end of our dinner. It was a fitting end to our gastronomical journey to the homes & hearts of Koli people!
Sweet Bananas with Coconut
Total cost was 900/- all inclusive, which given the quantity & quality of the food, was too less!
Currently, Mavshi's Kitchen provides a Veg/Non Veg Lunch Tiffin Service daily on a monthly subscription basis and we highly recommend giving this a shot as the USP here is “Pyaar bhara ghar ka khaana and Koli style SeaFood
Check out their facebook page for their Meal Plans or call Mithilesh @8879377316.
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