Cafeography
Mumbai · Dadar & Matunga

Cafés in Dadar & Matunga

Filter coffee near Matunga's King's Circle, tea counters in Dadar and cafés around Shivaji Park.

Photo: Abhishek Mishra, Pexels License

Matunga was one of Mumbai's seven original islands and became one of its first planned localities under the 1899–1900 Dadar-Matunga-Wadala-Sion scheme.1 A large South Indian population has lived there for decades, and its temples and Udupi restaurants share the streets with Irani cafés.1 The park at its center was King's Circle until 1962, when it was renamed Maheshwari Udyan; locals still use the old name, and so does the Harbour line station.2

Dadar, to the south-west, is built around Shivaji Park, the largest park in the island city at about 28 acres. It opened as Mahim Park in 1925 and has trained cricketers from Sachin Tendulkar to Ajinkya Rahane.3 Coffee here leans to filter coffee and tea counters rather than espresso bars.

Local tip: Go to King's Circle in the morning: Café Madras started as a breakfast-only room that shut at noon, and queues build at peak hours.45

At a glance

13Cafés listed
2With opening hours
10:00Earliest opening
22:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: cafe trofima, from 10:00 (Daily 10:00–22:00).
  • Most common features: open late (15%), outdoor seating (15%), takeaway (15%).

Tapri Tea Lounge

  • 16/ 39, Maryland Corner, T. V. Chidambaram Marg, Sion East
  • 09619851379
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Coffee chains in Dadar & Matunga

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Café Coffee Day

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Café Madras and filter coffee at King's Circle

Café Madras opened in August 1940 on a quiet lane near King's Circle, in what is often called Mumbai's "Little Madras", and the third generation of the Kamath family runs it.4 Its filter coffee is ground fresh, blended with chicory and served in a steel tumbler and dabarah (a wide cup for cooling it). Expect a queue at peak hours and to share a table.4

It began as a breakfast room with four dishes and closed at noon; coffee cost 15 paise. On its 75th anniversary in 2015 it charged 1940 prices until noon, and some bills, rounded down, came to zero.5

The menu now runs from idli, rasam vada and masala dosa to panpoli, its oldest dish, and the coffee is sold in packets under the Kaapi name. In 2024 a meal for two with filter coffee cost about ₹300–500.4

The lanes of Matunga East

Anna Coffee is on Telang Road, Chay Shay on Laxmibai Kelkar Marg serves to take away or to drink inside, and Mani Cafe is a few minutes' walk from the circle. Cafe Instaa, on R L Kelkar Road near Sion, has outdoor tables and wheelchair access.

The circle's old name honored King George V; Morarji Desai, then Union Finance Minister, laid the foundation stone for the renamed park on 3 February 1962.2 Ramnarain Ruia and R. A. Podar colleges are nearby, and Matunga Circle keeps a vintage Irani café, Koolar & Co.1

Shivaji Park and Dadar West

On the park side, cafe trofima is at Raja Badhe Chowk on Shivaji Park Road No. 2 and opens 10:00–22:00. On Ranade Road, manis cafe opens 10:00–20:00, and Prakash is in Horizon Towers.

The park was renamed Shivaji Park in 1927 and became Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Park in March 2020; in 2010 the Bombay High Court made it a silence zone. Its eight cricket clubs still use the ground, and it was a focal point of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement.3

Getting there

Matunga has three stations: Matunga Road on the Western line, Matunga on the Central line and King's Circle on the Harbour line.1 The underground Aqua Line stops at Dadar, where it meets the Western and Central lines, and at Siddhivinayak one stop south.6

Sources

  1. Matunga, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. Maheshwari Udyan, Mumbai, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Shivaji Park, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  4. Cafe Madras: Mumbai's Favourite Spot For Timeless South Indian Flavours, Slurrp (Suprita Mitter, August 28, 2024), accessed October 2026
  5. Discount: 75 years off!, The Asian Age (November 24, 2015), accessed October 2026
  6. Line 3 (Mumbai Metro), Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
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In Dadar & Matunga, also browse: Open late Outdoor seating

FAQ

Dadar & Matunga cafés: questions

When did Café Madras in Matunga, Mumbai open?

Café Madras opened in August 1940 near King's Circle in Matunga. It began as a small breakfast room with four dishes, closing at noon, and a coffee cost 15 paise. The third generation of the Kamath family runs it, and on its 75th anniversary in 2015 it charged 1940 prices until noon.

How is filter coffee served at King's Circle in Matunga?

At Café Madras near King's Circle, filter coffee is brewed from freshly ground beans blended with chicory and served in a steel tumbler set in a dabarah, a wide cup that lets it cool before drinking. Tables are shared at busy times, and queues form at peak hours.

Which stations serve Dadar and Matunga in Mumbai?

Matunga has three stations: Matunga Road on the Western line, Matunga on the Central line and King's Circle on the Harbour line. Dadar has an Aqua Line metro stop that connects with the Western and Central lines, and Siddhivinayak is the next metro station south.

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