White bread, green chutney, butter, veggies and the sacred masala mix which is unique to each vendor. The masala is usually potato with onion and spices but there are many variants. Put the whole thing in a toaster wait three mins and pop open a thums up..you are good to go.
My earliest experiences with the bombay masala sandwich goes back to my school days at SXBA between Churchgate and Marine Lines. We had two breaks in school a 15 min short break and a 20 min long break. During the long break we could walk up to the edge of Marine Lines and hit the sandwichwala for a bite. In the early days it used to take forever as we were the young ones and low in the sandwich eating hierarchy. The older boys in the long pants and the girls from the college next door used to get priority.
Eventually we got into long pants and became reached the top of the sandwich chain. IT was great stuff, the sandwich was piping hot, out of the toaster and you would dunk it in ketchup (sometimes the disgusting pumpkin ketchup) before wolfing it down. Wash it down with sugarcane juice or Thums up. A cheap, effective meal, later in class the heat in your stomach would let you know where exactly the sandwich lay.
Every neighbourhood, has a sandwich vendor and larger ones have more than one and of course the popular ones are termed as the best. Or as Jerry Seinfeld said, "Everyone's guy is the best"
Another, grander variation is the Grilled Veggie with Cheese. This one is a freaking meal in itself, content wise was its the same as the little bombay masala toast except its on steroids. Although you get these all over the place as well, Right Place at Breach Candy are one of its finest and most popular purveyors.
So any of you folks, have your fav sandwich wala, drop me a line, ill put up a list.
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6 comments:
My favourite uses to be Dipu at Fort. Wrote about him once http://finelychopped-k.blogspot.com/2010/12/simple-pleasures-of-life-bombay.html But I agree with you. "every guy is the best'. Had good ones opposite Shoppers at Bandra. At Bandstand. I prefer the hand toasted ones to the electronic grills. These are my fav Mumbai street snacks
The one outside NMIMS college in Vile-Parle is my Fav..
Hi Guys,
thanks for the input, hopefully we get some more. i too love the original hand toasted ones.. but the new grilled ones are HUGE :)
Ah Gaurav, you've just taken me back 10 years. In the lane right next to the Old Passport Office in Worli (the lane that goes towards arguably Mumbai's first multiplex - Satyam Shivam Sundaram complex); there's a sandwich-walla, flanked by a milk centre selling energee. The masala cheese toast there, was, simply, to die for. Sure made up for the early starts to line up at the passport office (cos I refused to pay the agent for something I could've down on my own.. and the post HSC vacation was a long one ;) ). If parking in that part wasn't such a royal pain, I'd head there every single time I'm in Mumbai.
Gaurav, you should try the VEg. Grilled Cheese Sandwich near Odeon Theatre Ghatkopar East. The place is a Khau Galli. You will be amazed to see the number of people eating there at any point of time after 7 in the evening.
Kartik, thanks for writing. i rarely end up in the central suburbs but if i am ever in the vicinity i intend to invade khau gali !
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