Food
Universal appeal
The Universal Kabab Kona retails rolls, pockets and plates, lined with home brand cheese and promises to dish out more
Muffin greets you as you enter the home of Karl Kothavala, proprietor of Universal Kabab Kona (UKK) which sells non-vegetarian and vegetarian crème rolls, pockets and plates. Muffin is a roll by himself — sniffing, wagging his coiled Pug tail while checking you out. Everyone gushes over the rotund pet. Like a regular foodie, Kothavala beams at Muffin calling him "the bun with fun, who is also part of the family.”
The entrepreneur chef who started retailing his eatables on the pavement near Sleater Road now sells his wares at Sterling Cineplex food court and at The Bombay Gymkhana. He also intends to open an outlet at the Phoenix Mills Mall at Lower Parel shortly. Kothavala’s set-up has won the first prize for Concept of Food and Taste given by Mumbai Boss — a website to update city dwellers on food, culture, events, news, nightlife, shopping and society.
The entrepreneur chef who started retailing his eatables on the pavement near Sleater Road now sells his wares at Sterling Cineplex food court and at The Bombay Gymkhana. He also intends to open an outlet at the Phoenix Mills Mall at Lower Parel shortly. Kothavala’s set-up has won the first prize for Concept of Food and Taste given by Mumbai Boss — a website to update city dwellers on food, culture, events, news, nightlife, shopping and society.
Karl Kothavala
On the UKK menu are mutton and chicken crème pockets, plates and rolls. There is also cross dress pocket — a mix of mutton and chicken sheekh kababs. Sheekh kababs with a dollop of his manufactured Say Cheez Boursin type herb and garlic cheese is labeled a "plate.” All non-vegetarian items cost a flat Rs 105 each. In vegetarian options, crème vegetarian pocket, roll, pocket surprise and plate are priced at Rs 95 each. For an additional Rs 10 a fried egg is added to the pocket to make it richer.
The labor involved in perfecting the cheese over seven months for consistency, taste, texture and durability seems to have paid dividends. The gourmet uses Dutch culture for his cheeses "which gives a beautiful buttery (with diacetyl) texture.” For the mascarpone, a vegetarian-friendly culture with citric acid is used to split the milk. "My mascarpone is second to none,” he avers with pride.
The proficient chef laments that he cannot make hard cheese as he lacks a curing room with high humidity and cold temperature. The artisanal cheese maker manufactures four strains of cheese — mascarpone, Philadelphia, Boursin type and crème fraïche or sour cream which he markets with seasonal fruits. He currently makes only about 30 kilos a day. During festivals the quantity goes up but the connoisseur in him will not bite off more than he can chew. The expert adds, "It (crème fraïche) is stable and doesn’t split so you can add fruits to it.” Cheeses, in 200 grams boxes, are sold at Rs 300 each at outlets. His cheese manufacturing brand Say Cheez is partnered with his childhood friend Rashmin Sayani. UKK is a proprietary concern. Both brands are sold under the mother concern, Sunspot Ventures.
The idea of a pavement stall occurred while cruising down the road at Tardeo as his friend Israel (Izzy) Harrington longed for some tea. Young Kothavala spied an Aarey booth and "conceptualized UKK… The footpath looked good, broad road, few walkers-by and quite quiet. I loved the adda-ness (the ethnicity of the cozy corner) of the place.” He chatted up the Aarey stall owner who was ready to partner this proposal. Thus Kothavala, grabbing an opportunity, started selling pocket sandwiches (made from a single piece of folded or hollowed dough) at the booth.
Stall at Sterling Cineplex and roll; UKK logo and Say Cheez boxes
Relying on retro recipes
Kothavala recounts how he chanced upon his maternal grandmother Betty Lall’s recipes during one of the family’s spring-cleaning flurries at their holiday home in Deolali, Maharashtra. What caught the grandson’s specific fancy were sketches of cheese and the process of making them — all articulated precisely "with scribbles, sketches and illustrations.” There was blue cheese, cream cheese, Boursin and several other recipes which were "jewels,” he claims.
"At 3 a.m. I started reading my grandmother’s handwritten recipe book with recipes of cupcakes, banana and ginger bread and all sorts of other cakes and even cheeses. I decided to make my first batch of cheese (from her recipes)… I made it in four hours’ time but it was quite horrible,” he adds, grimacing. The perfectionist explains that this was because he had no food thermometer or any other gauge to check accuracy in the maturing of the cheese. He harps on maintaining hygiene, how utensils must be sterilized, and how to conserve the culture from any other bacteria.
Before he started his own venture, Kothavala had worked 13 years with father Kayom (Kayomard) in their family concern Inter-freight Forwarders Private Limited until it was sold to a multinational firm. Subsequently he tried his hand at various franchisees related to food as he "always loved food.” None of these forays worked. With UKK, he believed he had hit upon his career. Izzy and he built the UKK brand together, with Kothavala’s funding and recipes. The professional also recounts how Parsi Times carried a write-up on his eatery as a result of which he was inundated with customers: "Some 400 bawajis turned up in the next few days…” Everything seemed idyllic in October 2011, until the partnership soured and came to an abrupt end nine months later.
The cheese maker decided to go into business on his own from July 1, 2013, with the support of family and friends. During the difficult in-between period from close down to re-starting, he specially mentions the backing of Mehernosh Khajotia of Celebrations Fine Confections. Khajotia makes the pockets for his pocket sandwiches. The businessman praises Khajotia’s handiwork saying "he created beautiful white, soft, fluffy pockets which are the base.” Pita pockets are thin, he explains, while these are fluffy and are then lined with UKK’s mainly Boursin type cheese and the fillings ordered by customers.
Kothavala recounts how he chanced upon his maternal grandmother Betty Lall’s recipes during one of the family’s spring-cleaning flurries at their holiday home in Deolali, Maharashtra. What caught the grandson’s specific fancy were sketches of cheese and the process of making them — all articulated precisely "with scribbles, sketches and illustrations.” There was blue cheese, cream cheese, Boursin and several other recipes which were "jewels,” he claims.
"At 3 a.m. I started reading my grandmother’s handwritten recipe book with recipes of cupcakes, banana and ginger bread and all sorts of other cakes and even cheeses. I decided to make my first batch of cheese (from her recipes)… I made it in four hours’ time but it was quite horrible,” he adds, grimacing. The perfectionist explains that this was because he had no food thermometer or any other gauge to check accuracy in the maturing of the cheese. He harps on maintaining hygiene, how utensils must be sterilized, and how to conserve the culture from any other bacteria.
Before he started his own venture, Kothavala had worked 13 years with father Kayom (Kayomard) in their family concern Inter-freight Forwarders Private Limited until it was sold to a multinational firm. Subsequently he tried his hand at various franchisees related to food as he "always loved food.” None of these forays worked. With UKK, he believed he had hit upon his career. Izzy and he built the UKK brand together, with Kothavala’s funding and recipes. The professional also recounts how Parsi Times carried a write-up on his eatery as a result of which he was inundated with customers: "Some 400 bawajis turned up in the next few days…” Everything seemed idyllic in October 2011, until the partnership soured and came to an abrupt end nine months later.
The cheese maker decided to go into business on his own from July 1, 2013, with the support of family and friends. During the difficult in-between period from close down to re-starting, he specially mentions the backing of Mehernosh Khajotia of Celebrations Fine Confections. Khajotia makes the pockets for his pocket sandwiches. The businessman praises Khajotia’s handiwork saying "he created beautiful white, soft, fluffy pockets which are the base.” Pita pockets are thin, he explains, while these are fluffy and are then lined with UKK’s mainly Boursin type cheese and the fillings ordered by customers.
Karl, Kayom (with Muffin), Erica and a guest
Soft landing
The son of Kayom and Erica (née Lall) the 1975-born entrepreneur narrates how he disliked studies both at the Cathedral and John Connon School and at St Xavier’s College as he was mildly dyslexic. He is "fascinated by the paranormal, chi energy (life force) and Unidentified Flying Objects, etc.” He also believes in the presence of aliens. He pursues this passion at conferences and surfs the net voraciously. Similarly, astronomy, science and technology make him state "I am a techie fan.”
"I am not an atheist… there is a universal force and energy looking after us. I say prayers. Ours is a wonderful, liberal religion — a religion of the world. If (Zoroastrian) tenets (were) followed, (we) would make the world a wonderful place. Ours is a healthy religion. The world should be human, not a complicated place. Our faith does not look at social taboos — gays, marriage (breaches) and other things… it is a live-and-let-live faith. It is this aspect that we are losing; if we follow it, skirmishes would be fewer,” declares the expressive bon viveur. Kothavala states the liberality of Zoroastrianism is what draws him to the faith. The UKK logo is, after all, a blazing fire.
The son of Kayom and Erica (née Lall) the 1975-born entrepreneur narrates how he disliked studies both at the Cathedral and John Connon School and at St Xavier’s College as he was mildly dyslexic. He is "fascinated by the paranormal, chi energy (life force) and Unidentified Flying Objects, etc.” He also believes in the presence of aliens. He pursues this passion at conferences and surfs the net voraciously. Similarly, astronomy, science and technology make him state "I am a techie fan.”
"I am not an atheist… there is a universal force and energy looking after us. I say prayers. Ours is a wonderful, liberal religion — a religion of the world. If (Zoroastrian) tenets (were) followed, (we) would make the world a wonderful place. Ours is a healthy religion. The world should be human, not a complicated place. Our faith does not look at social taboos — gays, marriage (breaches) and other things… it is a live-and-let-live faith. It is this aspect that we are losing; if we follow it, skirmishes would be fewer,” declares the expressive bon viveur. Kothavala states the liberality of Zoroastrianism is what draws him to the faith. The UKK logo is, after all, a blazing fire.
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