Khavayya

Khavayya is an awesome Maharashtrian food joint in Thane. Surprisingly, finding simple home cooked Maharashtrian food in a restaurant setting is hard in Bombay unless you know where to go in the few remaining Maharashtrian areas. Khavayya is in Thane - hence you need a visa to get there from Bombay ;). It is near Teen Petrol Pump, on the road going straight-right if you are approaching from Teen Haath Naka.

The best food available ehre is Maharashtrian lunch/dinner and snacks. The snacks include Misal, Thalipeeth, Khichadi, Vadas etc. - usual fare at the Dadar snack joints. But the best part is the lunch and dinner menus. There are limited thalis ranging from 45 to 75. Bhakris, Chapatis, rice, moogachi khichadi along with a host of veggies. The Usals and Zunka are also great. Don't bother with run of the mill non-Maharashtrian stuff here.

Two of us guys had a Zunka-Bhakar-Thecha, Dalimbi Usal, Chavli Usal, 4 Chapatis, Moogachi Khichadi. We were stuffed and overate in this - so servings are pretty sumptious and not by the katori. The total bill was 123.

I regret not having found such places in Mumbai earlier. How much one likes a place is unratable and never an absolute. But our experience and the entire setting was simply amazing.

Added: I am told the place is closed on Wednesdays.