FDA suspends iconic Café Mondegar’s licence for food safety lapses

MUMBAI: FDA on Tuesday suspended the licence of Café Mondegar, the iconic 94-year-old restaurant in Colaba, for hygiene and structural violations.

Some of the issues flagged included temperature control failures—hot foods kept below 60°C, cold storage above 5°C, improper thawing, and slow cooling—damp floors; defective drainage near food preparation areas, posing cross-contamination risks; and inadequate equipment sanitisation.

The restaurant declined to comment, saying its manager had left for the day.

FDA also suspended the licences of nine other establishments— Ruhafza Bakery (Khar West), Chandru’s Pure Ghee Sweets (Andheri West), Sharma Dairy & Fast Food (Andheri West), Punjabi Chandu Halwai LLP (Grant Road East), Shri Narayan Dairy (Vile Parle West), Gulshan Dairy Farm (Khar West), Tribhuvan Dairy Farm (Ghatkopar West), Mahavir Cashew & Foods Pvt Ltd (Ghatkopar East), and Agrawal Sweet Mart (Jogeshwari East).

Officials said keeping in mind possible large-scale adulteration or hygiene violations during the festive season, a joint FDA-BMC workshop was held for 110 self-help groups engaged in making modaks. They said assistant commissioners and food safety officers guided attendees on good hygiene and manufacturing practices, as well as methods to prevent cross-contamination.