Food:
Similar to the coastal states of India, Marathi food also contains lots of fish and coconuts. Vegetables are an integral part of the diet here, just like in all other parts of India. Grated coconut is used in many dishes, but coconut oil is not used as a cooking medium most often. Lots of Peanuts and cashew nuts are used in vegetables and Peanut oil is the main cooking medium of Maharashtra.
Mumbai owns some of the best selected restaurants in India. These restaurants offer a wide variety of food. Gujarati thalis, Muslim kababs, Mangalorean seafood, Parsi dhansaak, North Indian tandooris and Goan vindaloo are just some of the names of the dishes available.
Maharashtrian Platter Or Thali
A vegetarian Marathi platter or thali consists of recipes such as curries, rice, sweets etc. The thali system in Mumbai is very common and most preferred meal, as it contains a complete diet of a person. It is inclusive of - 4 chapatis, pulses, vegetable, curd, rice, salad and sweet-dish optional. Among the other well known dishes of Mumbai are Bombil Batata Bhaji, Kamag Kakri, Solachi Kadhi, etc.
Fast Food of Mumbai
The people of Maharashtra enjoy eating their own fast food like Pav bhaji and Bhelpuri instead of hamburgers and hot dogs. Most of the Mumbai snacks are extremely hot and spicy. Pav Bhaji is a mix of a variety of vegetables and spices and Bhelpuri is a chat eaten widely by the people in Mumbai. Other snacks available are Vada Pav and Pani Puri. Vada is made of boiled potatoes coated with Gram flour batter and deep fried in oil. Pav is a round shaped bread. Vada Pav is known as the hamburger of Mumbai. Pani Puri is a light snacks made of puffed puris, sprouts and spices. There is a variety of snacks available in this city and people just love them. Some of the famous places in Mumbai to taste the legendary fast food is khau Galii, a small laneway off Zaveri Bazaar packed with food stalls, serving delicious food items. These mouthwatering dishes are also available on the beach stalls of Chowpatty and Juhu.
Other Delights
Apart from Maharashtrian vegetarian recipes, many other dishes are also available here like soups, chidva etc. Shrikhand is a sweet dish that is eaten with puris. Shira and Puran Poli are other desserts prepared specially on puja occasions. Besides these, Chikki is a famous sweet preparation of Mumbai, which is also gaining popularity outside the state.
Drinks In Mumbai there are many cafe shops and tea stalls are available offering different varieties of coffee and tea. Delicious fruit juices are available at juice stalls. They come in exotic varieties such as mango, custard apple and lychee. A good range of foreign beer is also available in Mumbai.
Mumbai is a food buff's delight. Here the variety of food available is more than anywhere else in India. You get a good variety of food here ranging from roadside snacks to fast-food and from ethnic food to five-star cuisine.

Culture:
Mumbai's culture is a blend of traditional festivals, food, music, and theatres. The city offers a cosmopolitan and diverse lifestyle with a variety of food, entertainment and night life, available in a form and abundance comparable to that in other world capitals. Mumbai's history as a major trading centre has led to a diverse range of cultures, religions and cuisines coexisting in the city. This unique blend of cultures is due to the migration of people from all over India since the British period.
Mumbai is the birthplace of Indian cinema—Dadasaheb Phalke laid the foundations with silent movies followed by Marathi talkies—and the oldest film broadcast took place in the early 20th century. Mumbai also has a large number of cinema halls that feature Bollywood, Marathi and Hollywood movies. The world's largest IMAX dome theatre is in the Wadala neighbourhood. The Mumbai International Film Festival and the award ceremony of the Filmfare Awards, the oldest and prominent film awards given for Hindi film industry in India, are held in Mumbai. Despite most of the professional theatre groups that formed during the British Raj having disbanded by the 1950s, Mumbai has developed a thriving "theatre movement" tradition in Marathi, Hindi, English and other regional languages.
Contemporary art is featured in both government-funded art spaces and private commercial galleries. The government-funded institutions include the Jehangir Art Gallery and the National Gallery of Modern Art. Built in 1833, the Asiatic Society of Bombay is one of the oldest public libraries in the city. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly The Prince of Wales Museum) is a renowned museum in South Mumbai which houses rare ancient exhibits of Indian history. Mumbai has a zoo named Jijamata Udyaan (formerly Victoria Gardens), which also harbours a garden. The rich literary traditions of the city have been highlighted internationally by Booker Prize winners Salman Rushdie, Aravind Adiga. Marathi literature has been modernised in the works of Mumbai based authors such as Mohan Apte, Anant Kanekar, and Gangadhar Gadgil, and is promoted through an annual Sahitya Akademi Award, a literary honour bestowed by India's National Academy of Letters.
The architecture of the city is a blend of Gothic Revival, Indo-Saracenic, Art Deco, and other contemporary styles Most of the buildings during the British period, such as the Victoria Terminus and Bombay University, were built in Gothic Revival style Their architectural features include a variety of European influences such as German gables, Dutch roofs, Swiss timbering, Romance arches, Tudor casements, and traditional Indian features. There are also a few Indo-Saracenic styled buildings such as the Gateway of India. Art Deco styled landmarks can be found along the Marine Drive and west of the Oval Maidan. Mumbai has the second largest number of Art Deco buildings in the world after Miami. In the newer suburbs, modern buildings dominate the landscape. Mumbai has by far the largest number of skyscrapers in India, with 956 existing buildings and 272 under construction as of 2009. The Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC), established in 1995, formulates special regulations and by-laws to assist in the conservation of the city's heritage structures Mumbai has two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and the Elephanta Caves. Popular tourist attractions in the city are Nariman Point, Girgaum Chowpatti, Juhu Beach, and Marine Drive. Essel World is a theme park and amusement centre situated close to Gorai Beach, and includes Asia's largest theme water park, Water Kingdom.
Mumbai residents celebrate both Western and Indian festivals. Diwali, Holi, Eid, Christmas, Navratri, Good Friday, Dussera, Moharram, Ganesh Chaturthi, Durga Puja and Maha Shivratri are some of the popular festivals in the city. The Kala Ghoda Arts Festival is an exhibition of a world of arts that encapsulates works of artists in the fields of music, dance, theater, and films. A week long fair known as Bandra Fair is celebrated by people of all faiths. The Banganga Festival is a two-day music festival, held annually in the month of January, which is organised by the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) at the historic Banganga Tank in Mumbai. The Elephanta Festival—celebrated every February on the Elephanta Islands—is dedicated to classical Indian dance and music and attracts performers from across the country. Public holidays specific to the city and the state include Maharashtra Day on 1 May, to celebrate the formation of Maharashtra state on 1 May 1960.

Languages:
Marathi is recognized as the official language of the Mumbai city of India. It is the most widely spoken language in the city. Apart from Marathi, there are many other languages that are spoken and understood in Bombay. Mumbaiya or Bambaiya Hindi is the slang language of Mumbaikars. This colloquial speech is a blend of Marathi, Hindi and English. Mumbaiya Hindi is extensively used on the streets of this Island city. The literacy rate in the city is above 86%, subsequently people have flair of education and culture.
Hindi, English and Marathi are counted amongst the major languages in Mumbai, spoken by the common masses. Hindi, being the national language, forms the dialect of 30% of the people. English, nevertheless, enjoys an associate status and is used for national, political as well as commercial communication. English is largely spoken by the people. Infact, it is the major language of the professional and managerial personnel in the city.

Foreign Consult:
Country Address of the Consulate
France Dattaprasad, 2nd Flr., 10, N.G.X Rd., Behind New Activity high School, Peddar Rd., Mumbai-26
Germany Hoechst House, 10th Flr.,Nariman Point, Mumbai-21.
Italy Annarita Violaut Kanchanjunga Bldg., 72, G.DeshmukhRd., Mumbai-26
Singapore 94, Sakhar Bhavan, Nariman Point, Mumbai-21
United Kingdom (Britain) Maker Chamber IV, Nariman Point, Mumbai-21
U.S.A. Lincoln House, 78, Bhulabhai Desai Rd., Mumbai-26. Ph.:3633611/7407/7408 Fax:3630350