Mumbai FDA Suspends Cafe Mondegar, Three Other Eateries Over Hygiene Lapses

The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration has suspended the licences of four popular Mumbai eateries, including the iconic Cafe Mondegar in Colaba, after inspections uncovered serious food safety and hygiene deficiencies.

Cafe Mondegar was inspected on Saturday. The FDA said the violations included a failure to maintain hot food above 60 degrees Celsius and cold storage below 5 degrees Celsius. Proper procedures for thawing food and cooling cooked food were also not followed, and sanitation shortcomings exposed the establishment to a risk of cross-contamination.

The other three restaurants whose licences were suspended are Maharashtra Biryani Centre in Kandivali, Tribhuvan Dairy Farm in Ghatkopar West, and Mahavir Cashew and Foods Pvt Ltd in Ghatkopar East. All four were found in violation of Schedule 4 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, which lays down mandatory hygiene and sanitation rules.

Separately, action was taken against nine other food establishments in Mumbai for violations detected during inspections. These were among 38 food establishments inspected in the city ahead of the festive season, during which 47 food samples — including milk, khoya and ghee — were collected.

Enforcement was also carried out against several establishments selling milk and milk-based products outside Mumbai. The regulator seized 30 litres of milk and more than 4,000 kg of milk products and sweets, together valued at over Rs 15 lakh.

The crackdown comes amid intensified FDA action on adulteration and hygiene violations under the agency's new commissioner, Tukaram Mundhe.