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Mumbai’s 112-Year-Old Irani Café B. Merwan & Co Shuts at Grant Road

A bare-bones notice offered no reason, highlighting pressures squeezing Mumbai’s remaining Irani cafés.

Overview

  • The storied café, founded in 1914 by Boman Merwan opposite Grant Road station, closed on January 1, 2026 after 112 years of service.
  • Regulars found a simple “We Are Closed” sign and a thank-you note on the door with no explanation or prior announcement from the owners.
  • Patrons shared memories online of daily bun maska with chai and mawa cakes, describing the closure as the loss of a neighborhood routine.
  • Coverage links the shutdown to mounting challenges for Irani cafés, including rising real estate costs, staffing shortages, succession gaps, changing tastes, and regulatory burdens.
  • The café previously shut for repairs in 2014 and reopened, but there has been no indication of a return this time, with reports steering diners to other historic Parsi-Irani spots that remain open.