Mumbai: Restaurant-On-Wheels To Start At Andheri, Borivali Stations

Mumbai, 31st March 2023: Travellers will now get the chance to experience restaurants on trains at some stations in Mumbai. Restaurant on Wheel is a new initiative launched by the Railways, in which old railway coaches are beautified and converted into glamorous restaurants. Earlier, Railways implemented this activity at CSMT and Nagpur. But now restaurants on wheels will start at Andheri and Borivali suburban stations as well. This is the first restaurant on wheels on the Western Railway (WR) Mumbai section.

Sumit Thakur, Chief Public Relations Officer, Western Railway, said in a statement, “It has been decided to set up restaurants-on-wheels with coaches at Borivali and Andheri stations. One will be east at Gate 10 at Andheri, while one will be east at Borivali, north of the station (Virar-end),”

Under the Restaurant-on-Wheels initiative, old railway coaches are converted into revamped restaurants. This box is installed on the railway track. Here you can have a fine dining experience. Travellers can enjoy a variety of cuisines here. It can accommodate more than 40 people. The interior of the restaurant is decorated in such a way that customers can experience dining in a theme-based setting.

The restaurant is set up using a decommissioned railway coach. The restaurant rates and menu are decided by the licensees as per the market rates approved by the Railways. Pan-Indian, Continental and other cuisines are generally available and the restaurant is also open to travellers and the general public.

The licensee is responsible for maintaining the corridor/premises and is expected to comply with the Food Adulteration Act and other statutory laws. For safety reasons, portable fire extinguishers will be installed and employees must know how to operate the equipment. Fire extinguishers shall be made available from time to time and their validity shall be regularly checked by Railway authorities.

Central Railway (CR) has set up one restaurant on-wheels each at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and Nagpur, and these have so far become important eating places for 1,25,000 and 1,50,000 customers respectively.

“CSMT receives about 250 customers on weekdays and the number goes up to 350 on weekends,” said Shivaji Sutar, Chief Public Relations Officer of Central Railway.

Sutar said, “Central Railway plans to set up two more such restaurants at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus in Dadar East and Kurla. After all activation in the next year, there will be five such restaurants at city stations, including one at CSMT.”

To facilitate entry and exit at Bandra Terminus, one of the busiest stations in Mumbai, Western Railway has introduced access-controlled parking facilities at the station. Thakur said, “The parking facility has been given a modern look by installing a mechanical boom barrier system for controlled entry and exit. Fixed pick-up and drop points for passengers have been set up near the station building. Dedicated lanes have been provided for autos, taxis and private vehicles to facilitate movement and decongest the station area. Apart from adequate parking space for all types of vehicles, a round-the-clock CCTV system has been installed in the parking area to ensure the safety of passengers.”