India GOCafes in Mumbai
In Mumbai the word cafe means two different places. One is the Irani cafe: bentwood chairs, marble tables, a glass of sweet milky chai and a buttered bun, in rooms that have served it for a century or more. The other is the specialty coffee bar in Bandra or Kala Ghoda, with single-origin beans, sourdough and a socket for your laptop. The list above mixes both; here is how to choose, what to order and where to go.
How to choose: four kinds of cafe
Prices run from ₹ in the Irani cafes and bakeries to ₹₹ in the coffee bars; the cheap end is also the historic one.
Irani cafes (₹–₹₹)
Zoroastrian migrants from Persia opened cafes across Bombay from the mid-19th century, often on corner plots nobody else wanted, and served everyone at the same tables. There were about 350 in the 1950s and about 25 by 2005. Kyani & Co. near Metro Cinema has been open since 1904; come early for bun maska and a slab of mawa cake. Sassanian Boulangerie (1913) still bakes through the day and serves a proper dinner. Cafe Military near Flora Fountain is a century-old room of chequered floors, berry pulao and chilled beer. Britannia & Co. (1923) in Ballard Estate is lunch-only and known for its berry pulav.
Old bakeries (₹)
American Express Bakery in Byculla has baked since 1908 in a wrought-iron heritage building: khari, brun-maska, mawa cakes and, at Christmas, plum cake. B. Merwan & Co. (1914) opposite Grant Road station sells out its mawa cakes by mid-morning, still warm. Yazdani Bakery in a Fort lane near Kala Ghoda bakes in a wood-fired oven that has run for generations; order brun maska, apple pie or Shrewsbury biscuits. Theobroma began as a tiny Colaba shop in 2004 and its brownies are now found across the city.
Specialty coffee and a table for work (₹₹)
Blue Tokai helped start India's specialty-coffee movement; its Bandra and Kamala Mills cafes pour single-origin filter coffee and cold brew and have plenty of plug points. Subko roasts Indian-origin beans in restored heritage bungalows in Bandra, with pour-overs, cortados and sourdough; weekday afternoons are the calm time to work. Kala Ghoda Cafe has two floors, a quiet co-working level upstairs and all-day breakfasts; its free Wi-Fi is switched off from 12:30 to 15:30 to keep lunch moving.
Cafes with a story (₹–₹₹)
Prithvi Cafe is the courtyard cafe of Prithvi Theatre in Juhu, a meeting place for actors and writers since 1978: chai under the trees, bun maska, kanda poha (flattened rice with onion) and sandwiches between shows. Leopold Cafe on Colaba Causeway was founded by Iranis in 1871 and appears in the novel Shantaram. It was one of the first places attacked in Mumbai on 26 November 2008, and the cafe has kept some signs of the attack as a memorial.
What to order in an Irani cafe
The menu boards look long, but the ritual is short:
- Bun maska: a soft bun split and thickly buttered, made to be dunked in chai.
- Brun maska: the same idea with brun, a hard-crusted bread that cracks when you bite it.
- Irani chai: sweet, milky and strong, served in a small glass or cup.
- Mawa cake: a dense cake made with mawa (milk cooked down until thick), best early in the day.
- Khari: flaky, salty puff-pastry biscuits for the tea.
- Kheema pav and berry pulao: the hot dishes, minced meat with a bread roll and rice with tart Iranian barberries. Parsi cooking is meat-led, so vegetarians do best at the bakery counter.
For South Indian filter coffee instead, go to Matunga, where Udupi canteens such as Cafe Madras have served dosa and coffee for decades; see breakfast in Mumbai.
Where to go for what
Fort and Kala Ghoda: Yazdani Bakery, Cafe Military and Kala Ghoda Cafe a few minutes apart, Britannia & Co. close by in Ballard Estate. The natural break in a day of museums.
Marine Lines, Grant Road and Byculla: the morning run of Kyani & Co., Sassanian Boulangerie, B. Merwan & Co. and American Express Bakery. Go while the mawa cakes are still on the counter.
Colaba: Leopold Cafe and the original Theobroma, near the Gateway of India.
Bandra: Subko and Blue Tokai, where the coffee is taken most seriously. Juhu has Prithvi Cafe, best around a play.
Matunga: filter coffee with breakfast rather than a cafe in the European sense.
Good to know before you go
- Go early for the bakeries: at B. Merwan the mawa cakes are gone by mid-morning.
- In the Irani cafes the kitchen is mostly Parsi and meat-based; the bakery side (buns, khari, cakes) is where vegetarians eat well.
- Many Irani cafes still keep a list of house rules on the wall; read it before you sit down.
- For a long work session pick Bandra or Kala Ghoda Cafe; Prithvi Cafe and the old Irani rooms are for chai and conversation, not laptops.
- Want a guide to the Irani cafes? A walking crawl through three of them is described on the food tours page.
FAQ
Why is Leopold Cafe so famous?
It is one of the oldest cafes in Colaba, founded by Iranis in 1871, it features in the novel Shantaram, and on 26 November 2008 it was one of the first places in Mumbai to be attacked. The cafe has kept some signs of the attack as a memorial.
Can I sit in a cafe in Mumbai and work?
Yes. Kala Ghoda Cafe has a quiet co-working level upstairs (Wi-Fi is off from 12:30 to 15:30), Blue Tokai's Bandra and Kamala Mills cafes have plenty of sockets, and Subko in Bandra is calmest on weekday afternoons.
What is an Irani cafe?
A cafe opened by Zoroastrian migrants from Persia, a tradition in Bombay since the mid-19th century: bentwood chairs, marble tables, Irani chai, bun maska and mawa cake. Only a few dozen survive, among them Kyani & Co. (1904) and B. Merwan & Co. (1914).
Where is the best specialty coffee in Mumbai?
Bandra: Subko roasts Indian-origin beans in-house, and Blue Tokai, one of the pioneers of Indian specialty coffee, has cafes there and at Kamala Mills.
What is bun maska?
A soft bun split and spread thickly with butter, eaten dunked in sweet Irani chai. Brun maska is the version with brun, a hard-crusted bread.
Sources (2)
Facts checked: 15 October 2026. Prices and hours are approximate; check locally.
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