Bombay/Western Suburbs

From MaxTravelz

Asia : South Asia : India : West : Maharashtra : Konkan : Bombay : Western Suburbs

This district consists of the Bandra(queen of the suburbs), Khar, Santa cruz, Juhu, Vile Parle, Andheri and Powai suburbs of Bombay. The boundaries that this article draws for the Western Suburbs are somewhat artificial. Most people would include the suburbs of Northwest Bombay among the Western Suburbs, but that would cover too big a region. Moreover, Powai is between the Central and Western suburbs and would normally not be included in either. But it is included here as it has to be incuded somewhere.

These are some of the oldest suburbs of the city. In particular, Bandra has existed as a separate town almost as long as Bombay. The region started its history as a bunch of fishing villages. Then it became home to a Christian population which set up its churches, orphanages and monasteries. It later turned into a place where Bombay's beautiful people live, a status that it holds to this day. It is a very cosmopolitan place and a sinces it has 3 promanades it feels a bit away from the congestion you see in other parts of the city. It still has a lot of old bungalows around the suburb.

Bombay's only river, the Mithi, flows through this area, but unfortunately it is no more than a sewage line. In the 80s, a well-intentioned attempt to set up a new downtown away from Nariman Point resulted in the establishment of the Bandra-Kurla complex. Most of the larger financial banks and companies moved to this place. It also has the Ambani and American school. This is a nice-looking place, but it was built by filling up the mouth of the Mithi river. This is said to have worsened the impact of the worst flood in the city's history which it suffered on 26 July 2005.

Bombay's airport is located in this district. Most of the multinational chain of hotels are located here. Many software and BPO companies have their centres in and around SEEPZ, Andheri. The western suburbs also boast of the Juhu beach, infamous for its lack of cleanliness.

The Powai lake. Beautiful to look at, not safe to drink.
Enlarge
The Powai lake. Beautiful to look at, not safe to drink.

Contents

Get in

This area is served by the Western Railway stations of Bandra, Santa cruz, Vile Parle and Andheri. Bandra and Andheri are important junctions. The western harbour line terminates at Andheri. Bandra is also a terminus for long-distance trains.

The Western express highway runs through the district, as does SV road (Swami Vivekananda Road). When it is built, the Bandra-Worli sea-link will provide high-speed connectivity from the downtown area. Connectivity from the Central Suburbs is, unfortunately poor. Getting in from Sion or Kurla is a pain, but with the development of the Jogeshwari-Vikhroli link road ("JVLR") it is now a breeze getting through via Powai.

Bus services are very good. Generally, BEST's "200 & 300" series serves the Western suburbs.

See

Bandra Fort Carter Road Bandstand Bandra Reclamation promenade Joggers Park Pali Hill Mount Mary Church

Do

  • Hakone Entertainment, Level One, Haiko Mall, Hiranandani Gardens, Powai, Mumbai - 400 076. +91 22 2579 7000 (fax: +91 22 2579 7852) A popular place for bowling and go-karting .

Buy

Hill Road and Linking Road are lined with malls, stores, shops and hawkers selling branded as well as cheap export surplus clothes

Eat

Budget

For street food, two good vendors exist around Bandra. A bloke called Karachi Sweets on Hill Road does a good job. A little further down on Hill Road is Elco Arcade. There's a vendor there too who makes some pretty good chaat pani puri. In fact, most of what has been described above can be had from the vendor on Elco Arcade. For the pani puri though, Karachi Sweets is strongly recommended.

There are a lot of Udipi and Punjabi Resturants too. For non veg tandoor you could try Jai Javan at Linking Road opp National College.

  • Vow Snax, 16th Road, Bandra. +91 22 2600 4359. Indian fast food with a twist. Besides serving fusion Indian food they also serve traditional Sindhi home-cooked meals such as Sindhi curry. Their Chinese bhel is out of this world and original. It is run by a very nice Sindhi-Punjabi family and they make you feel at home when you are there. Especially recommended to singles who dine alone. Everything is very reasonable and their servings are very big. They provide free delivery as well.
  • Shiv Sagar, Juhu, is a fast-food chain where you can find excellent Pav Bhaji and great South Indian dishes such as dosas.

Mid-range

  • Thai Ban, Shop Number 8, Gaspar Enclave, Pali Naka Bandra +91 22 2645 9775. A great suburban favourite, this restaurant is wonderful value. Authentic Thai food with loads of coconut milk. Tiger prawns in spicy lemon sauce, squid with nakaching and chicken satay are all memorable, and often superior to more upmarket competitors.
  • Persia Dabar Linking Road, Bandra, Mumbai (Next to Shoppers Stop) Indian and Chinese food. Their Tandoori Naan and crispy veg. is a killer. Cheap, clean and friendly place.
  • Yoko's Sizzlers, 10/11, West View, S.V. Road, Near Akbarally's, Santacruz(West), Mumbai 54. +91 22 2649 2313, +91 22 2649 1528. Serves excellent sizzlers.
  • Saffron Spice, Sentinel, Hiranandani Gardens, Powai, Mumbai 400 076 +91 22 5699 0088 (fax: +91 22 2570 3737) An "Indian speciality restaurant" and one of the very few mid-range restaurants in the Powai area. The restaurant has received fairly decent reviews and the food has been appreciated for its variety. But it is extremely crowded during lunch and the staff will encourage you to choose the buffet. The lunch buffet is indifferent and the service is lousy, so you will have your rotis cold. It has a well-stocked bar and offers valet parking, but there is ample parking at all times. Rs. 221 (for the buffet, exclusive of VAT. An a la carte meal without alcohol would probably come to 500 rupees per person all inclusive.)
  • McCraig serves nice fast food, mini meals and snacks at Gaspar enclave, Bandra
  • A-1 and American Express Bakery have excellent varieties of bread and takeaway
  • Camy Wafers wafers, savories and farsan
  • Andora serves fast food opposite St Andrews School
  • Lucky SV Road is famous for its biryani
  • Hersh serves bread, goan sweets, fast food and snacks near Holy Family Hospital
  • Candies has excellent deserts, mini meals, sandwitches and snacks at Pali and Bandra Reclamation
  • Lucky Star serves great Mughlai food at Bandra Bazar Road
  • Highway Gomantak serves Konkani & Goan food which is super and you should try as many varieties of fish and seafood as you can in one sitting
  • Trafalgar Chowk average food but poor service

Chains such as Mocha, Barista, MCDonalds and Cafe Coffee Day dot Bandra. A KFC is comming up soon. Lots of new resturants & themes keep on popping up on Turner Rd, Gaspar Enclave, and Union Park.

In Juhu Govanni has good italian, the other Little Italy serves expensive little portions which keep you hungry. Most places thankfully have vallet parking

Splurge

  • Dum Pukth at ITC's The Grand Maratha near the international airport is a lovely place. It serves food that has its origins in the Mughal empire. Classic Lucknowi fare!


  • Palm Grove, Ramada Plaza Palm, Juhu Beach, Mumbai +91 22 2611 2323 (fax:+91 22 2611 3682),is a place that offers surprisingly great ambience and some really economical beer. The service is good and they have a live band in the evenings (7pm ownwards to 11pm, with a short break in between). The happy hours (about 25% discount on food and beverage) extend right up to 7pm. The crowd is fairly decent and includes a fair sprikling of Europeans in the evenings. (Expect to spend about Rs. 120 ($3) for a beer + complimentary snacks, and Rs. 180-Rs. 270 ($4 - $6) for add on snacks to go with the beer.
  • Seijo and the soul dish has an interesting oriental menu
  • Taj Lands End has an interesting range of expensive but quality resturants
  • Olive is pretentious and overprices
  • Shatranj Napoli is ok for the price

Drink

Loads of bars and pubs such as Hawian Shack, Club 9, Totos etc. Decide where you wanna go depending on the music you wanna hear. Stags are discouraged

Sleep

This is a very expensive area and it is a tough job to get good budget hotels, especially anywhere close to the airport. If you can, you are well advised to choose a hotel farther away to avoid paying through your nose.

Budget

  • Midland Hotel, Jawaharlal Nehru Road - Santacruz (East), Mumbai (5 minutes drive from the domestic airport and a 10 minutes drive from the international airport), +91 22 2611 0414, +91 22 2611 0413 (reservations@hotelmidland.com, fax:+91 22 2613 2411) Free airport pickup and drop available, Complimentary American Breakfast. $87 - $97 (Rs.4000-Rs.4400. Rates inclusive of tax.)
  • Best Western The Emerald, Juhu Tara Road, Mumbai, 400049, +91 22 2661 1150, +91 22 5695 4850 (fax: +91 22 2660 3475) Twenty minute drive from the airport, near Juhu beach. $100 onwards (Rs.4,500)
  • Kohinoor Continental, Andheri-Kurla Road, Andheri (E), Mumbai - 400059 +91 22 2404 2211 (kohinoorconti@nivalink.com) $110 onwards (Rs.5,000)
  • Tunga International, B- 11 M.I.D.C, Central Road, Opp Mahakali Caves Road Andheri (East), Mumbai-400 093 91 22 5692 1212, 91 22 2836 6010
  • Tunga Paradise, B-11, M.I.D.C. Central Road Andheri(East) Mumbai-400 093 91 22 2821 7272
  • Hotel Airlines International, Yoga Institute Road, Prabhat colony, Santa Cruz(East) Mumbai, 400055 (five minutes from the domestic airport and fifteen minutes from International Airport.) 91 22 2610 0741, 91 22 2614 9562 $48 - $72(Rs.2,200 - Rs. 3,200)
  • Hotel Regent, Ramakrishna Mandir Road., Kondivita,Andheri (East), Near International Airport, Take the same lane as to lotus Suites, off the Andheri Kurla Road, and travel further inside for 500m), Mumbai 400 057. Tel: 28342020/28342626/28379383 FAX: 28215587. This is a reasonably good budget hotel.$40 - $100 (Rs.1,800 - Rs.4,500)
  • Hotel Orritel West, 34-B, Opposite Fame Adlabs Cinema, Off New Link Road, Andheri West, Mumbai 400 053. Tel: 26732256 / 26732257 Email: (info@orritel.comThis is a reasonably good budget hotel with airport transfers, a 24 hour coffee Shop and a garden restaurant.

Mid-range

  • Ramada Plaza Palm, Juhu Beach, Mumbai +91 22 2611 2323 (fax:+91 22 2611 3682) Complimentary Buffet breakfast. $125 - $140 (Rs.7,425-Rs.14,625 )
  • Le Royal Meridien, Ascot Centre, Sahar Airport Road, Mumbai 400 059 (1 km from airport. 5 minute drive.) +91 22 2838 0000 (fax:+91 22 2838 0101 Additional contact details. ) $165 - $325 (Rs.7,425-Rs.14,625 )
  • Orchid, Nehru Road, Vile Parle East, Mumbai - 400 099(Adjacent to Domestic Airport), 91 22 2616 4040 (samohmu@orchidhotel.com, fax: +91 22 2616 4141) An Ecotel Hotel is Asia's first certified eco-friendly five-star hotel. Located bang next to the domestic airport. $160 - $435 (Rs.7,000-Rs.16,500)
  • Lotus Suites, Andheri Kurla Road, International Airport Zone, Andheri (E), Mumbai 400 059 91 22 2616 4040 (info@lotussuites.com, fax: +91 22 2827 0345) $95 - $105 (Rs.4,000-Rs.5,500)
  • Rodas Boutique Hotel, Central Avenue, Hiranandani Gardens, Powai, Mumbai 400076 91 22 5693 6969(info@rodashotel.com, fax: +91 22 5693 6979)
  • Holiday Inn, Balraj Sahani Marg, Juhu Beach Mumbai, 400049, +91 22 5693 4444 (reserve@holidayinnbombay.com fax: +91 22 5693 3100) Twenty minute drive from the airport, near Juhu beach. $170 - $230 (Rs.7,650-Rs.10,350)
  • Sun N Sand Hotel Juhu Beach, Mumbai 400049
  • Hotel Bawa International, Nehru Road Extn., Behind Centaur Hotel, Near Domestic Airport, VileParle (E), Mumbai 400 057. Though this is very close to the Airport, avoid this hotel. In December 2005, a South African woman was drugged by lacing her drink with a narcotic and raped. There is a strong suspicion that the owner was involved.

Splurge

  • The Leela Kempinski, Sahar, Andheri (E), Mumbai-400059 (1.5 km from international airport), 91 22 5692 8888 (reservations@theleela.com, fax: +91 22 5693 4455, +91 22 5691 1452. Additional contact details.) If you have the money, this is the hotel to stay in. Awarded the best hotel for the International Traveller in the country in 1997-1998. $195 - $205 (Rs.8775-Rs.9225.00)
  • Marriott Executive Apartments Lakeside Chalet, (also Renaissance Hotel and Convention Centre) 2&3b near Chinmayanand Ashram Mumbai, 400 087, +91 22 2611 0414, +91 22 2611 0413 (fax: 91 22 5692 8899, US/Canada tollfree number: 1-800-HOTELS-1) Nice view of the Powai lake. $200-$400 (Rs.9,000 - Rs.18,000 )
  • JW Marriott Hotel Mumbai, Juhu Tara Road Mumbai, 400 049, +91 22 5693 3000 (fax: +91 22 5693 3100, US/Canada tollfree number: 1-800-228-9290) Twenty minute drive from the airport, near Juhu beach, offers a great view of the Arabian sea. $200 - $500 (Rs.9,000-Rs.22,500 )
  • ITC Grand Maratha Sheraton & Towers, Sahar, Mumbai, 400099, +91 22 5654 5454 (mail@welcomgroup.com, fax:+91 22 5651 7171) One of the poshest hotels in the city. Close to the business districts of north and central Mumbai. $180 - $700 (Rs.8,100-Rs.31,500 )
  • Taj Lands End is the latest happening place at the end of beautiful Bandstand Bandra

Contact


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