8 Best Mumbai Street Food Items And Their Best Alcohol Pairings

Mumbai is home to a vibrant array of street food dishes. From Vada pav and dabeli to misal pav and sabudana vada, the variety is immense. While you can pair these delicacies with your average nimbu paani or chhaachh, why not elevate the experience by pairing them with some boozy drinks? Just picture it! At your next house party, instead of having the run-of-the-mill chips and dip or Schezwan chutney and chakli as chakna, you could have some of these iconic street food dishes! If you are curious as to how to go about it, unsobered has compiled this Mumbai street food and alcohol pairing guide for your benefit.

8 Best Mumbai Street Food And Alcohol Pairings

1. Beer With Vada Pav

Vada pav is basically the predecessor of sliders, so it’s not surprising that a piping hot vada pav pairs exceedingly well with an ice-cold beer. 

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Best Beers For This Pairing: Kingfisher Ultra or Premium (Crisp Indian Lager), Bira 91 White (Citrusy Belgian Wheat), Gateway Brewing Co., and White Zen (Local Craft Wheat Beer)

Best Vada Pavs For This Pairing: Ashok Vada Pav (Kirti College Vada Pav) in Dadar West,  Aram Milk Bar and Fast Food at CSMT Station, and Graduate Vada Pav in Byculla East

2. Rum With Ragada Pattice

For Ragada Pattice, a sweet rum like Old Monk works really well. The sweetness balances the spice and acidity of this street food really nicely.

Best Rums For This Pairing: Old Monk (Classic Dark Rum), Bacardi Carta Blanca (White Rum), and Short Story White Rum

Best Ragada Pattice For This Pairing: Sharma Chaat Bhandar in Vile Parle West, Gupta Chaat Centre in Matunga East, and Elco Catering College and Restaurant at Hill Road in Bandra West

3. Gin And Tonic With Sabudana Vada

A hot, crispy, and greasy sabudana vada will, no doubt, be a great companion to a bougie little G&T! You can even have it with a neat gin or an extra-dry gin martini.

Best Gin For This Pairing: Stranger & Sons (Indian Botanical Gin), Greater Than (London Dry Gin), and Bombay Sapphire

Best Sabudana Vada For This Pairing: Prakash Shakahari Uphaar Kendra in Dadar West, Aaswad Upahar and Mithai House in Dadar West, and Hotel Shabari in Santacruz East

4. Tequila With Bhel Puri

Bhel Puri is the perfect drunk food pairing for tequila. Make sure you squeeze lots of lemon juice on it and enjoy the acidity slicing through your tequila’s vibrant flavor profile.

Best Tequila For This Pairing: Jose Cuervo Especial Silver, Don Julio Blanco, and Patron Silver

Best Bhel Puri For This Pairing: Sharma Chaat Bhandar in Vile Parle West, Ram and Shyam Chaat Centre in Santacruz West, and Elco Chaat Center, Bandra West

Also Read: These Are The Best Alcohol Pairings With Mangalorean Food!

5. Vodka With Aloo Bhajji

This is the potato-on-potato combo you never knew you needed. The saltiness of Aloo Bhajji is SO GOOD with vodka; it’ll be hard to stop. Just make sure you also have enough water, or the salty+alcohol combo will dehydrate your body a lot.

Best Vodka For This Pairing: Absolut Vodka, Magic Moments Remix (Lemon/Orange), and Smirnoff Triple Distilled

Best Aloo Bhajji For This Pairing: Guru Kripa in Sion, Tiwari Bros Mithaiwala in Juhu, and Local stall counters at Juhu Beach Chaat Street

6. White Wine With Sev Puri

This is the perfect pairing for a girl’s night. The spiciness of the sev puri brings out the dryness of the wine, which simply makes you wanna have more sev puri. It’s a never-ending cycle!

Best White Wine For This Pairing: Sula Sauvignon Blanc, Fratelli Vitae Chardonnay, and Grover Zampa Art Collection Sauvignon Blanc

Best Sev Puri For This Pairing: Gupta Chaat Centre in Matunga East, Vithal Kamats Original Vithal Bhel in Fort, and Jai Jawan Street Stalls in Khar West

7. Rosé Wine With Misal Pav

Ditch chhaachh and try rosé with misal pav; it’s a heavenly combination. The spicier the misal, the more cooling the sensation of rosé.

Best Rosé Wine For This Pairing: Sula Zinfandel Rosé, Fratelli MS White and Rosé, and York Zinfandel Rosé

Best Misal Pav For This Pairing: Vinay Health Home in Girgaon, Aaswad Upahar in Dadar West, and Ladu Samrat in Lalbaug

8. Sparkling Wine With Bhajiyas And Bread Pakoda

You might be surprised by how well this bougie drink goes with the humble bhajiyas and bread pakodas. The magic all lies in the greasy nature of the snack and the spiciness of the chutneys.

Best Sparkling Wine For This Pairing: Sula Brut Tropicale (Sparkling Rosé), Chandon Brut Grover, and Zampa Soirée Brut

Best Bhajiyas For This Pairing: Kanda bhajiya, aloo bhajiya, kothimbir vadi, and moong daal bhajji, and even bread pakodas.

Also Read: 10 Unexpected Alcohol Pairings That Taste Way Better Than They Sound

Summing Up

So, the next time you host a party, try out one of Mumbai street food and alcohol pairings! The best part about this is that you can continue to experiment with different combinations of street food and alcohol until you hit the combo that works best for you. And since you’ll be experimenting, don’t be afraid to try some weird combinations too! Who knows, it might just turn out to be your favorite!