Mexican food in Mumbai has alas been limited to the populist Tex-Mex grub served across stand-alone restaurants and chains alike. While quick service restaurants like Taco Bell, Loco Chino and Mexi Loko are flourishing owing perhaps to their accessible pricing, marginally more expensive stand-alone establishments such as Sancho’s and Taco Fresh have shuttered. Uba Tuba, a week-old Mexican casual dining restaurant in Bandra, falls somewhere between the two. It’s like a Tex-Mex chain in terms of its quick service format, easy-to-assemble offerings such as tacos, burritos, quesadillas and nachos, and friendly pricing. It is however a stand-alone, one that we hope is destined for longevity.
Uba Tuba has replaced HAS juice bar in a garage lot of the same building that houses Chaayos the tea cafe, a branch of Wok This Way, casual dining restaurant Desi Deli and dessert shop Country of Origin. While HAS had forgettable decor, the 35-seater Uba Tuba is vibrant; the upholstery is splashed with geometric patterns in electric blue, yellow and green that pop against the black interiors. The joint has billed itself as a Mexican grill, salad bar and perhaps in a nod to its predecessor, a pressery specialising in cold-pressed concoctions. Their veggie and fruit juices serve as a healthy foil to the spice-lavished food. The orange, lemon and ginger-infused Mariachi Morning (Rs170) is a vitalising beverage as is the Machete Mania (Rs180), which combines lemon, apple, spinach and fennel. The Cruz Control (Rs180) is an equally healthful blend of apple, kale, cucumber and celery, but with barely any apple to impart some welcome sweetness.
The food here arrives in quick succession as their Mexican staples have a fixed set of essential ingredients in varying combinations. The Frida Says Kahlo (Rs250), while listed under veggie salads, can easily pass off as a plate of loaded nachos. A heap of crisp Doritos-like nachos provides crunch to the tasty, chipotle-spiced mix of beans, sauteed bell peppers, corn, cherry tomatoes, avocado and Monterey Jack cheese. Get the salad to share in order to make room for their excellent soft tacos, which are served three to a plate. The Barbacoa mutton tacos (Rs300), for instance, are amply filled with juicy, tender, homestyle mutton topped with a flavourful garnish of pickled radish. The seafood-inclined won’t be disappointed by the Veracruz fish tacos (Rs260), a parcel of crispy lime-lavished cod, a welcome replacement for the ubiquitous and flavourless basa.
While the zingy tacos are decidedly more gourmet than your formulaic spice and cheese-heavy Tex-Mex fare, the adobo chicken burrito (Rs280) and the adobo mushroom quesadilla (Rs220) belong firmly in this category. In the burrito, adobo-rubbed chicken, beans, cheese and brown rice are smushed into a warmed tortilla wrap. Like the burrito, the adobo mushroom quesadilla is inoffensive at best. Both dishes could do with a hit of their green chilli-infused, sinus-clearing salsa verde, which is a better bet than the barely spicy salsa roja. Most importantly however, Uba Tuba aces the guacamole test. It’s a shame it has to be ordered as a side (Rs35 for a tiny individual serving). Guac should be a mandatory accompaniment with any Mexican dish, especially since Mumbai enjoys such a brief avocado season. But when you try a spoonful of their buttery, soft serve-like creamy swirl with tomato, crunchy onion and a dash of lime, all is forgiven.
Get: Barbacoa mutton tacos (Rs300), Frida Says Kahlo (Rs250), Veracruz fish tacos (Rs260).
Skip: Adobo chicken burrito (Rs280).
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Prices exclude taxes. This review was conducted anonymously.
Uba Tuba, Pearl Haven, same building as Chaayos, near Salt Water Cafe, Chapel Road, Bandra (West). Tel: 022 6565 7860. Open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 11.30am to 10.30pm; Monday, closed. Get directions here.