The Cannon Pav Bhaji stall opposite the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, erstwhile Victoria Terminus Railway Station at Mumbai is one of the most famous eatery in the megapolis. This is the place to get the best pav bhaji in India. Of course, you cannot get any better pav bhaji outside India, for sure.
For those who do not know - Pav = Bread, Bhaji = Vegetable. But, to name it "Bread and Vegetable" is to commit a crime. It's best known as "Pav Bhaji".
Location address = Cannon Pav Bhaji Stall, Mahapalika Marg, Opp. Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai
You can also get a giant vada-pav, carrot halwa (gajar halwa), buttermilk and sabudana khichdi (on some days). There are variants to the pav bhaji itself - such as jain pav bhaji, cheese pav bhaji etc.
Most visitors to the Cannon Pav Bhaji stall for the first time, upon hearing it appreciated by others, get disappointed to see that it is just a pavement location, that there are crowds, and one has to push in to get a spot, and that you have to stand and eat up. There are all the accompanying perks of the location - flies, dirt, unclean water and pickpockets. But, you should be ready for all that. This is Mumbai, and it comes packaged in one deal. Take it or leave it.
Pav Bhaji is actually a mish-mash (something like pot-luck, except here, you plan it out) of vegetables with a major component of potatoes and onions. Some prefer it without onions. All vegetables are chopped and minced. Here, at Cannon, the 'ustad' (= chef) is fortified with an actual wall of big cakes of pasteurised butter. Its always been 'Amul Butter' at Cannon. The vegetable-mix is heated up in huge dollops of butter with mashed potatoes, carefully selected mix of spices and some secret ingredients that distinguish the best of the pav bhaji 'ustad' from the others. The pav bhaji at Cannon has always come with spring onions (nowadays, only if asked for) and sliced and coloured onions, sometimes sliced beetroot, and a slice of lemon. The completed bhaji is of course, garnished with minced coriander leaves that pick up the flavour of the butter, spices and vegetables and knock you out of your shoes.
The women servers, 'Mavshi' (= Aunty), as they are called out to, by the unknowing or non-Mumbaikars, are always very alert. They know the various groups of people eating at different corners of the open feeding table, and they keep track of the numbers of extra bread loaves taken by each one in the group. They total up the 'bill' in their head, and will only inform the total amount to be paid. Its quite magical, and I am sure that some of them have not been to any school. They are very courteous, and would keep asking one and all if you need more bread loaves, asking - "Pav?" - or "Ankhi Pav Havet kaa?" (= Do you need more bread loaves?).
Remember, that this is the correct and original recipe. Do not compare it with the other pav bhaji that you have eaten at other places. They could be better in taste and better in ambience. But they are not the original and true pav bhaji. This recipe has the spices in the correct combination. It comes along with a deep red chilly chutney that can make you explode, and actually make you jump through the roof. Be careful when you try it. It is called "Thetcha" in Marathi and you should try it out with the Pav Bhaji. Unless you have sweated it out at the stall, you have not experienced the place at all.
The Cannon Pav Bhaji stall opened up on April 14, 1975. Now in its fourth decade, the stall is part of the lives of millions of commuters. The owner, Swamini Padwan, from a Maharashtrian family, knows most of the regulars by sight and you know that you have arrived at Mumbai, when you reach Cannon Pav Bhaji Stall and do not have to place your order. They just serve you because they know you.
I remember some years, when there used to be a hefty tall Sikh, very genial and happyish and helpful, who would be the 'papaji' or BOSS of the team at Cannon. He is not to be found in recent years. The team of servers and helpers comprises women, and they are very fast, efficient and most importantly, very courteous in the Mumbaiya sense of the term. You need to know how to get on their better side, and they go out of their way to help you enjoy the Pav Bhaji. The 'Ustad' or Chef is usually a specialist, mostly men. Once I have seen one of the women try her hand at making the pav bhaji and it was not different from the usual at Cannon.
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