(This venue is closed.) "What diners are to New York, Irani hotels are to Mumbai."
The Iranis, like the Parsis who preceded them many centuries earlier, are Zoroastrians who emigrated from Greater Iran (modern-day Iran plus a considerable swath of surrounding territory) to South Asia. The Parsis fled religious intolerance; the Iranis, in the late 19th century, pulled up stakes amid famine and a poor economy. Some earned a living by opening tea stands, the most popular of which evolved into cafes (often called hotels, in local parlance, for some reason unknown to me). From a peak in the years immediately following World War II, Irani hotels in Mumbai have dwindled sharply in number. Credit the arrival of chain operations and a corresponding rise in commercial real estate prices; it's also likely that these low-margin businesses are increasingly unattractive to the better-educated children of longtime owners.
The homey setting and unassuming fare at newly opened Fido's (Fee-dose) attempts to evoke the spirit of its Irani forebears, where neighborhood regulars, budget-minded students, and journalists without portfolio might mingle early in the morning or late in the evening. (I visited on a weekday afternoon and, as it turned out, kept my own company.) Shown: brun bhurji ($4), essentially a pair of ready-to-assemble spicy scrambled-egg sandwiches; a cookielike nan khatai and a puffy, salty khari biscuit (50 cents each); chai ($1) in a traditional presentation. Mine was a "cutting," or small, cup of the familiar brew; a "full" would surely be better for dunking. Awaiting a return visit: a comparison with Irani chai, which seems to be a milkier and maybe more fragrant version, and two new items from the still-expanding menu, mutton dhansak pav and Parsi berry pulao.
H/T Anne Noyes-Saini (via private communication)
Fido's Cafe
785 Newark Ave. (John F. Kennedy Blvd.-Herbert Pl.), Jersey City
551-200-6081
