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We've found the best biryani in town!

Jaffer Bhai's slogan "The Biryani King of Mumbai" pays homage to Jaffer Mansuri and his legacy

Recently, two Emirati bloggers decided to survey the UAE to find the best biryani in town and it came as no surprise when they shortlisted Jaffer Bhai's in Al Karama as one of the top spots. The renowned restaurant from Mumbai opened in Dubai in 2014 and brings the same delicious taste from back home.
Moin Jaffer Mansuri, the Chef and Owner shares: "My grandfather used to run a small catering business back in the day and was renowned for serving tasty biryani. When my father took over, he thought we should open a retail outlet so that people don't have to order a kilo of biryani every time. The first restaurant opened in Grant Road, Mumbai, in 1973 and today we have 10 outlets in the city."

Jaffer Mansuri's association with Dubai goes all the way back to 1984 when he had opened an outlet in Naif, Deira. Mansuri says: "In 2004, my father and his brother separated, so my uncle took over the operations of that Dubai outlet and a few Mumbai branches. My father is a legendary chef and the staff working under him continued to be with him. He decided to rebrand and started Jaffer Bhai's Delhi Darbar in Mumbai."

Jaffer Bhai's vision is to serve mouth-watering food with good quality and quantity, consistency, and value for money. He says that they give a "warm welcome and goodbye to the customer as it will bring them back."

Through word-of-mouth the Dubai branch has established a committed clientele in just four years. A trip to the restaurant on the weekends is testament to its popularity as queues of people can be seen waiting to sample its delicacies.

Mansuri, who has been trained as a chef by his father, handles the day-to-day operations of the Dubai branch. But it is a close-knit family business and he relies on his support system to give him the best advice. "It was my vision to open the Dubai branch and my eldest brother Mazhar, who is in charge of the finances, supported me in the process. My brother Hassan is known as the catering specialist and is in charge of the entire catering business in Mumbai, while my other brother Mohsin is responsible for the preopening of outlets. Though they are not here, they are always contributing."

Delectable dishes
The restaurant's slogan is "The Biryani King of Mumbai" and pays homage to Jaffer Mansuri and his legacy. The dum chicken biryani served here is unlike any other in town with aromatic layers of rice, tender pieces of meat and luscious masala offering a feast for the senses. Mansuri says that the biryani is made to order but "everyone in Dubai loves spicy food, so we stuck to our original Mumbai recipes."

Some of the other bestselling dishes here include the tandoori chicken, tawa specialities and barbecue items. An interesting fact is that Jaffer Bhai's doesn't rely on any hand-written recipes. "The 50-year-old recipes by my father have been perfected by practice," he adds.

Mansuri stresses that Jaffer Bhai's focus is on serving good quality food. An example is the fact that they don't serve frozen chicken and opt for fresh chicken that is locally sourced. To ensure standards are maintained it has systems set in place in the main and centralised kitchens for quality control. Plus, the head chef has been trained by Jaffer Mansuri himself and has been working with them for the past 37 years.

He concludes: "It took my father 50 years to build the brand and we want to carry forward his legacy and passion for food. We are proud of our achievements but want to keep working hard."

-supplements@khaleejtimes.com