4 days ago
Around Town: Inside Dadar's Mama Kane, the 115-year-old eatery that arguably gave Mumbai its batata vada and Konkanis a taste of home
Right across from Mumbai's bustling Dadar railway station stands an eatery that has witnessed two World Wars, welcomed India's independence, survived the Covid-19 pandemic, and still holds its ground — Mama Kane.
Founded in 1910 by a rice cultivator from Ratnagiri, it began as a humble eatery offering fresh, hygienic, home-style vegetarian Maharashtrian food for the common man — think thalis with chapati, two bhajis, dal-rice, papad, and pickle.
A hundred and fifteen years later, Mama Kane continues to take pride in its consistency and founding principles.
In the early 1900s, a young Narayan Vishnu Kane from Reel Kespuri, a village in Ratnagiri, reached Pen in Raigad district, where he began making Ganesha idols. But since the work was seasonal, he looked for something more sustainable and made his way to Dadar — then a part of Bombay, where many from the Konkan region came in search of livelihoods.
Here, he noticed a gap — a lack of eateries that served clean, home-like food at affordable prices. So, in 1910, he rented a small shop near Vijay Nagar in Dadar and started a 15-seater eatery called 'Dakshini Brahminanche Swatchha Upahar Griha' in 1910.
'The first two words describe us. We are Brahmins from the southern part of Maharashtra,' shared Shridhar Kane, 62, who along with his brother Dilip Kane, 58, represents the fourth-generation custodian of the eatery, now popularly known as Mama Kane.
'But it was the third word 'swatchha' (clean) that really helped us earn people's trust,' he noted, adding that many had their meals here on a daily basis. Back then, the kitchen was run by Narayan's wife Lakshmi and his sister, lovingly called Akka. 'Whenever a kitchen is run by women, you can be sure it'll be clean.'
In addition to thalis, commonly referred to as rice plates here, the menu also included poori-bhaji and seasonal sweets like sheera, ladoo, and shrikhand.
The business picked up steadily.
When the new Smriti Kunj building came up, Narayan rented 3,600 sq ft and moved the eatery to its current location in 1928. Two years later, his son Shankar joined the business.
'The business really flourished under my grandfather,' Shridhar said. Shankar extended the operating hours from 10 am–7 pm to 6 am–9 pm. 'But no one really wanted poori-bhaji at 6 am, so he created batata vada, perhaps his way of reinventing poori-bhaji into a single, portable item that people could take to the station,' he added.
Back in the day, children from the nearby Chhabildas School would flock to the eatery during recess to eat batata vada. 'It quickly became a popular, affordable breakfast option for the working class,' he said.
There are even claims that Mama Kane invented the batata vada. While Shridhar doesn't officially claim that title, he is certain that 'at that time, no one else in Bombay was serving batata vade and we were the first to introduce it.'
Shankar also expanded the menu to include thalipeeth, pohe, missal, jalebi, and more.
It was during his tenure that the eatery got its current name. 'He expanded it to an 80-seater, brought in people from Konkan, and even roped in his sister's sons to help. They used to call him 'Mama' (maternal uncle), even in front of customers, and that name stuck,' said Shridhar. 'Eventually, it even made it to the signboard after World War II, because customers began asking for 'Mama Kane' by name.'
Over 115 years, Mama Kane has weathered immense uncertainty and change. The family still recalls the fear that gripped them during World War II, when there were strong rumours of the then Bombay being bombed. 'My grandfather sent the family back to Pen, keeping only one nephew with him to run the eatery,' said Shridhar.
The Covid-19 pandemic brought fresh challenges. 'In 2010, Dilip and I had converted a part of the dining space into two banquet halls. They did very well. People liked having a centrally located venue at a stone's throw distance from the station, with food they didn't have to worry about,' he said. But post-pandemic, business declined. 'Now everyone does meetings on Zoom. And more people prefer to order in than step out.'
Still, Mama Kane retains its old-world charm, staying true to its founding principles of serving fresh, affordable food. Now a 52-seater, this no-frills eatery operates from 10 am to 8.30 pm and runs like a well-oiled machine.
The moment you step inside, a staff member promptly asks, 'Kiti loka?' (how many people?) and, with a quick scan of the room, finds your group a seat. With just a few nods and glances, he signals to another worker to take your order, which arrives swiftly, followed by the bill, and the cycle continues with practiced precision.
The family has consistently declined franchise offers and even refused to install air-conditioning. 'We do cater to a wide range of people, including lawyers and professionals from IndiaBulls, but our core customer is the common man. For someone who eats here daily, even a Rs 5 price hike adds up to Rs 150 a month, and that's a lot,' said Shridhar.
'From someone else's lens, we may not seem wildly successful. But from our lens, we're fulfilling a purpose, a service, just as our great-grandfather intended.'
In line with this philosophy, Mama Kane also stopped selling bottled cold drinks upon learning of their health impacts about nearly two decades ago. Instead, they introduced a range of traditional sherbat options — year-round staples like kokum and limbu (lemon), and seasonal offerings like bel and aam panna.
Shankar also strongly believed in education. He sent his eldest son Kamlakar (Shridhar's father) to Europe to study engineering. Upon returning, he insisted that his son get some experience and Kamlakar worked with Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) before joining the family business. Shankar retired in the 1960s once his sons Kamlakar, Ramkrishna, and Mukund were ready to take over.
The next generation, too, pursued education: Dilip was a practicing CA until 2007, and Shridhar holds a master's degree in electrical engineering from IIT Bombay and still runs a consulting business. Mukund's daughters are CAs. So are Dilip and Shridhar's daughters, who represent the fifth generation ready to carry on the legacy.
But as Shridhar puts it: 'It's not like we do our jobs and then look at the eatery. We first take care of Mama Kane, and only then take on as much consulting work as we can manage. This is not a business for us — it's a service.'
Their offices are located in the same building as the eatery to ensure they're always accessible.
Looking ahead, the younger generation has plans to expand without losing the core ethos. 'They want to launch an online delivery business to meet rising demand,' said Shridhar. 'It's their way of taking Mama Kane into the future, while staying true to what we've always been.'
