Lucky Restaurant: Badshah of Biriyani in Mumbai
Amid Mumbai’s bustling Bandra at the crossing of Hill Road and SV (Swami Vivekananda) Road, barely 100m from Bandra railway station, stands a restaurant that has stood the test of time. A restaurant that has been serving legendary Mughlai dishes since 1938. Ask any Mumbaikar where he would love to have mutton biriyani and Murgh Mussallam, the answer will be an emphatic ‘Lucky’— the restaurant that has been attracting celebrities and foodies over the past eight decades.
As the Akasa Air was set to touch down at Mumbai’s CSMI airport early in the morning, I could see up close how the ‘Maximum City’ has transformed itself from the time I had last visited.
As our check-in time at the hotel was at 12pm, we decided to drive to the 88-year-old iconic restaurant for breakfast. The restaurant is currently run by the octogenarian Sayed Safar Ali and his son Sayed Mohsen. “My grandfather Sayed Ali Akbar landed in Bombay all the way from Yazd, a historical city in Iran in 1912. Earlier, there was a car showroom here which was set up by Dr De’ Monte. Almost half of Bandra was owned by him, ” said Mohsen, who had joined the family business in 1984.
“Sayed Ali Akbar had a restaurant in Bandra Bazar and was traveling from the city to Bandra suburb in local train. Once he changed his route to his restaurant and luckily saw the present Lucky restaurant building which at that time was a car showroom owned by Dr De’ Monte. Sayed Ali Akbar had mentioned this to his friend, Mr Karai, who was a social worker and a friend of Dr De’ Monte. He had asked my grandfather whether he was keen on setting up a restaurant. Sayed Ali Akbar had paid Dr De Mone a paltry sum of Rs 375 and decided to set up a restaurant there. Lucky Restaurant was thus founded at Bandra bazaar on September 9, 1938. The name ‘Lucky’ was given as my grandfather had got the property by sheer stroke of luck,” Mohsen, a street-smart guy, recalled. (The city came to be known as Mumbai from 1995).
Sayed Ali Akbar founded the restaurant and left it to his seven sons and two daughters. “Lucky has since become a family business,” Mohsen, a graduate from MMK College of Commerce and Economics, said adding his father Syed Safar was only 10 when he had joined hands with his father Syed Akbar at this restaurant.
Sayed Safar Ali, who used to work at a Pune restaurant, had moved to Madanpura, a vibrant street food bazaar that was known for its rich cultural heritage in south-central Mumbai. He was working there as a tea-coffee maker. “My father was a bright student. He had studied Botany at National College, Bandra,” he added.
During the WWII, Lucky used to serve mill workers whose first shift used to begin at 6am. Troops would stop by the eateries for meals during their breaks, Mohsen said. “Mumbaikars’ lifestyle improved after the British left India, and families started visiting restaurants.”
When the restaurant was opened, it offered only biryani, kheema pau, mutton chop, vegetarian daal, coffee, and tea. ‘Lucky’ has now over 100 different items on its menu. “Earlier we never tried tandoori chicken. After India became free in 1947, a restaurant named La Bella, along with A1 Grill, in south Bombay had introduced tandoori chicken. We later added that to our menu,” Mohsen said.
Sayed Mohsen (Centre): Captain courageous
After India’s Independence, Sayed Ali Akbar’s business took a upswing and the ‘Lucky’ grew more rapidly. In 1983, a hotel was built. A bakery unit was also opened in 1991. The ‘Lucky’ has opened another outlet in Goregaon in 2010. “We’ve over the years perfected the art of authentic biriyani cuisine. Our biriyani has alu (potato) in it, the typical Kolkata biriyani,” Mohsen said. “I’ve also introduced Chinese, BBQ and continental cuisine.”
“Since its inception, my grandfather never compromised with the quality of food,” he said. “Even today I keep striving hard to ensure that Quality is King at Lucky,” he said, beaming with pride. “In the coming years, nobody would possibly cook at home,” said Mohsen recalling how his grandmother would cook at home during those days and the aroma would spread to neighboring homes.
“It was here at Lucky restaurant filmmaker Vivek Vaswani, who was instrumental in launching Shah Rukh Khan’s film career, had signed the contract for SRK’s first movie ‘Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman’ in 1986,” he said pointing at the table where the deal was struck.
Years earlier, a young Salim Khan, newly arrived in Mumbai, would begin his morning cup of tea here. “Our signature mutton biriyani is Salman Khan’s favorite. He and his family members often come here,” said Mohsen, who spends almost his entire day at the restaurant to host his guests. Amazing!
The writer of the story has savored chelo ghost. It’s a typical Mughlai specialty served with generous amount of buttery saffron-infused rice, topped with succulent, slow-cooked mutton. It’s just out-of-the-world.
Lucky’s timeless charm has attracted celebrities like Sanjay Dutt, Manish Malhotra, Karan Johar, Amit Kumar, Shilpa Shetty and Bipasha Basu. “These days they prefer takeaway food especially our signature items mutton biriyani, and kebab,” Mohsen said.
How will he explain the Lucky’s USP? “Three ‘H’s… honesty, humility and hard work,” Mohsen said, his eyes took on a sparkle.
Lucky restaurant: Where history meets biriyani
