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In the Beginning there was Bombay Duck - A Food History of Mumbai
‘Just what we needed. The first comprehensive history of dining in Mumbai/Bombay, India’s food capital.’—Vir Sanghvi
From the Kolis, who have been fishing in the city’s waters since much before recorded history, and early settlers such as the Pathare Prabhus, to the people who poured into the developing city in the centuries of British rule and those, like the Sindhis, who found a safe haven here during Partition, this is the first truly comprehensive food history of India’s great metropolis.
The city’s nativists like to champion what they consider ‘original cultures’. But originality resides in the Mumbaikar’s inventive impulse, a quality encapsulated in the nativist’s favourite food, the vada pao: Were it not for the Portuguese, who transported the potato or batata to Bombay, and taught the Goans the art of baking bread, or pao, the vada pao may never have been conceived!
Celebrating this rich diversity of cultures and cuisines, this book covers migrants from the Kanara coast, who gave the city the Udipi restaurant; Parsis, who introduced diners to Persian and Gujarati-inflected dishes, and their Irani brethren, who served this food in their iconic cafes; and the myriad Muslim communities that made the old neighbourhood of Bhendi Bazaar a gastronome’s place of pilgrimage.
Bombay Duck is a rigorously researched, delightfully anecdotal history of food in Bombay/Mumbai that is as colourful and cosmopolitan as the city itself.
From the Kolis, who have been fishing in the city’s waters since much before recorded history, and early settlers such as the Pathare Prabhus, to the people who poured into the developing city in the centuries of British rule and those, like the Sindhis, who found a safe haven here during Partition, this is the first truly comprehensive food history of India’s great metropolis.
The city’s nativists like to champion what they consider ‘original cultures’. But originality resides in the Mumbaikar’s inventive impulse, a quality encapsulated in the nativist’s favourite food, the vada pao: Were it not for the Portuguese, who transported the potato or batata to Bombay, and taught the Goans the art of baking bread, or pao, the vada pao may never have been conceived!
Celebrating this rich diversity of cultures and cuisines, this book covers migrants from the Kanara coast, who gave the city the Udipi restaurant; Parsis, who introduced diners to Persian and Gujarati-inflected dishes, and their Irani brethren, who served this food in their iconic cafes; and the myriad Muslim communities that made the old neighbourhood of Bhendi Bazaar a gastronome’s place of pilgrimage.
Bombay Duck is a rigorously researched, delightfully anecdotal history of food in Bombay/Mumbai that is as colourful and cosmopolitan as the city itself.
- GenresFoodNonfictionIndia
360 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 31, 2026
A comprehensive food history of Bombay/ Mumbai - across communities , cuisines, restaurants, shops selling speciality foods , etc..thoroughly enjoyable read.. Also nostalgic due to many of the eateries mentioned in the book.
June 27, 2026
About
The book traces the history of Bombay’s settlers and their influence on her food. From the fish-loving Koli community to the East Indian Christians, and from the Pathare Prabhus to the Iranis, the writer has managed to take us on a vivid journey of the cuisine that permeates Mumbai.
Review
Despite being a vegetarian and a non-Mumbaikar, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Pronoti Datta provides a near-comprehensive history of the migrants that arrived in the city in search of a livelihood. Not only did they manage to succeed in eking out a living, they also enriched the culinary heritage of their new home. Some dishes are now iconic, while a few remain confined within the dwindling community. For example, Mumbra, a banana cake containing shrimp, can also be enjoyed if you are friends with a Pathare Prabhu.
A mention of Kolkata’s Tangra in relation to Chinese food caught my attention. It was interesting to note that Nelson Wang of China Garden invented Chicken Manchurian, which is now a staple in Indo-Chinese food.
Datta’s prose is exquisite and makes the reading experience all the more interesting. However, her vocabulary tends to mirror that of Tharoor, and hence, the readers may want to grab a dictionary. Having said that, I could understand the meaning of a few words within the context.
While tracing the history of the early settlers, Datta praises the welcoming and cosmopolitan nature of Bombay. Escaping persecution from their homelands, the people were embraced by the city, which in turn became all the richer.
Bombay was symbolic of an inclusive city that embraced migrants from across the country with open arms. It was this spirit that was crucial to the city’s economic and cultural success. On the other hand, Mumbai, even though it is the city’s original name, encapsulated a narrow, nativist idea that privileged the Maharashtrian identity.
The wonderful photographs accompanying the non-fiction are a foodie’s delight. The B&W photo of the dining hall of the Taj evokes nostalgia, while the colourful ghormeh sabzi, an Iranian staple, causes one to salivate.
Did you know that patrel biryani has no rice but combines meat and colocasia leaves? Were you aware that the Sultan of Gujarat, Bahadur Shah, handed over the city of Bassein and the seven islands of Bombay to the Portuguese? Who would have thought that the ship-wrecked Bene Israelis broke their fast on Yom Kippur by partaking of kippurchi puri?
Eating out doesn’t just mean visiting a fancy restaurant. Places like bhaktiyarkhana and khanaval catered to the working class, who yearned for ghar ka khana. All this was made possible because the enterprising entrepreneurs made Bombay their home and settled there.
Coming to the title, the bombil, or the Bombay Duck hovers over the book and occupies our subconscious mind. As a biographer writes, … Bombay can claim the eccentric distinction of being largely based on rotten fish and the leaves of the coconut palm.
With this review, I have just touched the tip of the iceberg. To know more about the mouth-watering dishes and their history, buy this book. You won’t be disappointed. I have a good mind to revisit this book again. If only history classes in school were this interesting, I swear this subject would have lots of fans. This subject is not just about kings, rulers, and conquerors. It is so much more. Interesting people make up history and enrich a place by their characteristics. In this case, they offered us Irani cafes, aloo matar macaroni, and Bhendi Bazaar.
I ended the book on a high and hungry note. The recipes from the final chapter tempt me to don the apron. On a serious note, it was a delightful and humbling experience. There are quite a few things we take for granted. But how much of its history do we know?
You may or may not be a Mumbaikar. But I can assure you that you’ll find this book ‘unputdownable’. And this praise comes from someone who is not exactly a fan of non-fiction.
The book traces the history of Bombay’s settlers and their influence on her food. From the fish-loving Koli community to the East Indian Christians, and from the Pathare Prabhus to the Iranis, the writer has managed to take us on a vivid journey of the cuisine that permeates Mumbai.
Review
Despite being a vegetarian and a non-Mumbaikar, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Pronoti Datta provides a near-comprehensive history of the migrants that arrived in the city in search of a livelihood. Not only did they manage to succeed in eking out a living, they also enriched the culinary heritage of their new home. Some dishes are now iconic, while a few remain confined within the dwindling community. For example, Mumbra, a banana cake containing shrimp, can also be enjoyed if you are friends with a Pathare Prabhu.
A mention of Kolkata’s Tangra in relation to Chinese food caught my attention. It was interesting to note that Nelson Wang of China Garden invented Chicken Manchurian, which is now a staple in Indo-Chinese food.
Datta’s prose is exquisite and makes the reading experience all the more interesting. However, her vocabulary tends to mirror that of Tharoor, and hence, the readers may want to grab a dictionary. Having said that, I could understand the meaning of a few words within the context.
While tracing the history of the early settlers, Datta praises the welcoming and cosmopolitan nature of Bombay. Escaping persecution from their homelands, the people were embraced by the city, which in turn became all the richer.
Bombay was symbolic of an inclusive city that embraced migrants from across the country with open arms. It was this spirit that was crucial to the city’s economic and cultural success. On the other hand, Mumbai, even though it is the city’s original name, encapsulated a narrow, nativist idea that privileged the Maharashtrian identity.
The wonderful photographs accompanying the non-fiction are a foodie’s delight. The B&W photo of the dining hall of the Taj evokes nostalgia, while the colourful ghormeh sabzi, an Iranian staple, causes one to salivate.
Did you know that patrel biryani has no rice but combines meat and colocasia leaves? Were you aware that the Sultan of Gujarat, Bahadur Shah, handed over the city of Bassein and the seven islands of Bombay to the Portuguese? Who would have thought that the ship-wrecked Bene Israelis broke their fast on Yom Kippur by partaking of kippurchi puri?
Eating out doesn’t just mean visiting a fancy restaurant. Places like bhaktiyarkhana and khanaval catered to the working class, who yearned for ghar ka khana. All this was made possible because the enterprising entrepreneurs made Bombay their home and settled there.
Coming to the title, the bombil, or the Bombay Duck hovers over the book and occupies our subconscious mind. As a biographer writes, … Bombay can claim the eccentric distinction of being largely based on rotten fish and the leaves of the coconut palm.
With this review, I have just touched the tip of the iceberg. To know more about the mouth-watering dishes and their history, buy this book. You won’t be disappointed. I have a good mind to revisit this book again. If only history classes in school were this interesting, I swear this subject would have lots of fans. This subject is not just about kings, rulers, and conquerors. It is so much more. Interesting people make up history and enrich a place by their characteristics. In this case, they offered us Irani cafes, aloo matar macaroni, and Bhendi Bazaar.
I ended the book on a high and hungry note. The recipes from the final chapter tempt me to don the apron. On a serious note, it was a delightful and humbling experience. There are quite a few things we take for granted. But how much of its history do we know?
You may or may not be a Mumbaikar. But I can assure you that you’ll find this book ‘unputdownable’. And this praise comes from someone who is not exactly a fan of non-fiction.
April 25, 2026
The book is a richly layered and meticulously researched history of Mumbai told through its food. More than just a catalogue of dishes, it traces the evolution of the city itself - its neighborhoods, its inhabitants, its migrants, and its ever-shifting identity - through what people cooked, sold, and ate.
What I particularly enjoyed was how the book brings together the stories of diverse communities who made Mumbai their home over successive waves of migration. Parsis, Gujaratis, Muslims, Kolis, Maharashtrians, Jains and many others all leave their imprint on the city’s culinary landscape. The personal histories of iconic dishes - and the restaurateurs and street vendors behind them - turning food into a lived, human story rather than an abstract tradition. I loved the restaurant recommendations and plan to try them on successive trips there.
Also fascinating was the journey of various ingredients. The book gently dismantles the idea of what is “original” or “indigenous,” showing how staples like tomatoes, potatoes, bread, and vinegar - now inseparable from Indian cuisine - were once foreign imports that gradually transformed local food cultures. In doing so, it reveals Mumbai’s cuisine as something fluid, adaptive, and constantly evolving as households and restaurants constantly experimented to taste of it's varied clientele.
You can see how the demands of a growing, working-class city shaped quick, affordable, and ingenious forms of eating such as khanavals and vada pav stalls - food that is as much about survival and convenience as it is about flavor. Alongside this runs a parallel narrative of the city’s expansion, as neighborhoods grow, merge, and reinvent themselves with each new influx of people.
The book is a love letter to the mélange of Mumbai in all it's varied taste and colours. I took my time to read through and savor this delectable and delicious book.
What I particularly enjoyed was how the book brings together the stories of diverse communities who made Mumbai their home over successive waves of migration. Parsis, Gujaratis, Muslims, Kolis, Maharashtrians, Jains and many others all leave their imprint on the city’s culinary landscape. The personal histories of iconic dishes - and the restaurateurs and street vendors behind them - turning food into a lived, human story rather than an abstract tradition. I loved the restaurant recommendations and plan to try them on successive trips there.
Also fascinating was the journey of various ingredients. The book gently dismantles the idea of what is “original” or “indigenous,” showing how staples like tomatoes, potatoes, bread, and vinegar - now inseparable from Indian cuisine - were once foreign imports that gradually transformed local food cultures. In doing so, it reveals Mumbai’s cuisine as something fluid, adaptive, and constantly evolving as households and restaurants constantly experimented to taste of it's varied clientele.
You can see how the demands of a growing, working-class city shaped quick, affordable, and ingenious forms of eating such as khanavals and vada pav stalls - food that is as much about survival and convenience as it is about flavor. Alongside this runs a parallel narrative of the city’s expansion, as neighborhoods grow, merge, and reinvent themselves with each new influx of people.
The book is a love letter to the mélange of Mumbai in all it's varied taste and colours. I took my time to read through and savor this delectable and delicious book.
January 30, 2026
This book is key to understanding the cultural diversity of Mumbai. The book captures the gastronomical haven that Bombay or Mumbai is in a vivid and appetising manner.
It enlists the route by which many of the ingredients that are integral to Indian cooking came into the country.. While reading the book one understands how Portuguese left their indelible mark on Indian cooking, and it’s quite humbling. It is to be borne in mind that 500 to 600 years ago is not a long duration in history. There is an explanation in detail how each of the cuisines came to become a part of the secular culture of Mumbai. The genesis of The Taj is intriguing, so is the fact that its menu was French for a long time.
It has a collection of photos that would warm any foodie. This book is a must read for urban historians, food lovers, and those who understand that food is a unifier. Pronoti Datta has done an excellent job.
July 18, 2026
Beautifully simple book! It’s written in a way that keeps you interested and waiting to understand the layers of Bombay from the writer’s lens.
There’s right amounts of history, culture and enough detailing of food to have you day dreaming of getting a chance to gorge on those delicacies and that’s how the book goes right until the end.
If you’re a food lover and want to understand the “Bombay then, Mumbai now” phenomenon, give this one a read and you will not be disappointed.
There’s right amounts of history, culture and enough detailing of food to have you day dreaming of getting a chance to gorge on those delicacies and that’s how the book goes right until the end.
If you’re a food lover and want to understand the “Bombay then, Mumbai now” phenomenon, give this one a read and you will not be disappointed.
May 12, 2026
Loved how the book wove the story of Bombay's food scene from the early days right up to the present, beautifully intertwining aspects of culture and politics. Quite well researched and wonderfully organised, I enjoyed reading and reminiscing my own childhood growing up in the city amongst good food.
May 26, 2026
I was very impressed with the knowledge in this book and as a hardcore Mumbaikar and foodie, every chapter was interesting to read, with small tidbits and history of all the eateries I've been frequenting through life. Enjoyed learning more about my city through the lens of food. Very well researched and entertaining to read.
January 29, 2026
Compellingly captures the contributions of each of the city’s many ethnicities to the vibrant food cultures without pedantry.
July 6, 2026
Best book of the year, I love Bombay <3
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews