Irani cafés are

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

-style cafés in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. They were originally opened by

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, Zoroaster ( ). Among the wo ...

Irani immigrants to

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

in the 19th century, fleeing

Safavid The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...

persecution or looking for better economic prospects. In India,

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

and

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

boast a number of Irani cafés, which are very popular for ''Irani chai'' (tea). In the 1950s, there were 350 Irani cafés in Mumbai; only 25 remained in the city as of 2005. Meanwhile, in Hyderabad, it is estimated that the number of Irani cafés has shrunk from 450 in the 2000s to 125 in 2024.

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, was also home to many Irani cafés.

History

They were originally opened by

Irani immigrants to British India in the 19th century after they fled from Safavid persecution in

West West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...

and

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

. Writing for the ''Hindu Business Line'', on "Mumbai's Irani hotspots", Sarika Mehta stated, "The classic format of these cafes is basic with a subtle colonial touch; high ceilings with black, bent wooden chairs (now cane in some cafes), wooden tables with marble tops and glass jars that allow a peek into the goodies they hold. With huge glass mirrors on the walls to create a feeling of space, visitors are greeted with eagerness and a whiff of baking. The speed of operations is impressive and service quite hassle-free." Irani chai and osmania biscuits.jpg, Irani chai and Osmania biscuits served in

Britannia irani cafe.jpg, Britannia Café, an Irani café at

Ballard Estate The Ballard Estate business district is situated in the financial district of Fort (Mumbai precinct), Fort. Located between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and Fort in South Mumbai, it hosts the offices of Freight transport, shipping compan ...

South Mumbai South Mumbai, colloquially SoBo from South Bombay in Indian English, administratively the Mumbai City District, is the city centre and the southernmost precinct of Greater Bombay. It extends from Colaba to Mahalaxmi (Western side), Byculla ...

Brabourne restaurant dhobi.jpg, Interior of Kayani and Company, an Irani café

Fare

Irani cafés may serve ''bun maska'' (bread and butter) or brun-maska (hard buttered croissants), and ''paani kam chai'' (a strong Iranian tea, 'tea with less water'), or ''khari chai'' (very strong tea), mutton

samosa A samosa () () (Hindi: समोसा) ( Persian: سمبوسه) is a fried South Asian and West Asian snack. It is a pastry with a savory filling that mostly consists of vegetables like spiced potatoes, onions, and peas, but can also include ...

s, and '' kheema pav'' (minced meat served in bread rolls), akuri (scrambled eggs and vegetables), berry pulao, vegetable puff, vegetarian/chicken

dhansak Dhansak is a popular Indian dish, originating among the Parsi community. It combines elements of Persian and Gujarati cuisine. Dhansak is made by cooking mutton or goat meat with a mixture of lentils and vegetables. This is served with ca ...

(a spiced lentil dish with meat and vegetables) and

biryani Biryani () is a mixed rice dish originating in South Asia, made with rice, meat (chicken, goat, lamb, beef) or seafood (prawns or fish), and spices. To cater to vegetarians, the meat or seafood can be substituted with vegetables or pane ...

, cherry cream custard, cheese khari biscuits, plain khari biscuits, coconut jam and milk biscuits and Duke's raspberry drink. Many Irani cafés offer sweet and salted biscuits like ''rawa'' (

semolina Semolina is the name given to roughly milled durum wheat mainly used in making pasta and sweet puddings. The term ''semolina'' is also used to designate coarse millings of other varieties of wheat, and sometimes other grains (such as rice or ma ...

), ''til-rawa'' coconut, ''

nankhatai Nankhatai (; Burmese: နံကထိုင်; Hindustani: नानख़टाई (Hindi) ਨਾਨ ਖਟਾਈ ( Punjabi) / (Urdu); ; Tamil: நானஹத்தா) are shortbread biscuits originating from the Gujarat region of the Ind ...

'' (sweet, crisp flaky Irani biscuits), Madeira cake ( tutti-frutti biscuits).

Cultural references

Nissim Ezekiel Nissim Ezekiel (16 December 1924 – 9 January 2004) was an Indian poet, actor, playwright, editor, and art critic. He was a foundational figure in postcolonial India's literary history, specifically for Indian poetry in English. He was awar ...

wrote a poem based on instruction boards found in his favourite Irani café: the defunct Bastani and Company in Dhobi Talao, Mumbai. In 2020 Neeraj Udhwani made the film '' Maska''.

Footnotes

External links

Irani Cafés and Bakeries: An Irani Zartoshti Tradition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Irani cafe Irani (India) people Indian drinks Coffeehouses and cafés in India Coffeehouses and cafés in Pakistan Culture of Mumbai Culture of Pune Culture of Hyderabad, India Culture of Karachi Restaurants in Mumbai Restaurants in Pune Restaurants in Hyderabad, India Bakery cafés Indian fusion cuisine Pakistani fusion cuisine

History

Fare

Cultural references

Footnotes

Further reading

External links