Mumbai: On a rainy Thursday, food lovers were shocked when an insta post from Ranbir Batra, owner of New Yorker, the iconic Tex-Mex-Italian-Indian vegetarian restaurant at Chowpatty seaface founded by his father Tony Brar, announced that the place was downing shutters on September 11. It was a kind of 9/11 moment for the foodies.

The message came like a bolt from the blue. No reasons were given for the sudden decision. Efforts to reach out to Ranbir were in vain.

Ever since this dining place with its cool interiors opened 45 years ago, two generations of Mumbaikars had enjoyed its delectable fare. If the oldies preferred to go to Cream Centre next door for its outsized baturas and chhole, the younger generation headed for New Yorker.

In fact, taking your girlfriend to NY was an in thing in the ’80s. It was ideally sandwiched between Cafe Ideal, where you can sip your chilled lager as you watched the sunset through its glass windows, and Cream Centre which continues to be a favourite with the aunties and uncles.

In his post Ranbir said, “There is sadness as this restaurant opened a few years before I was born, close to 45 years ago…..It is due to some unforeseen and unfortunate circumstances that we have to shut our doors…but we pray this is not the end. We hope to continue to serve you some of our most popular dishes via a delivery model soon enough and then the door will always be open for New Yorker to come back in a new way. For now though, we say goodbye to this location.”

The post hints that NY may relocate to another location. There is speculation that the building may be going in for redevelopment and that is the reason for NY’s closure.

NY was justly famous for its Mexican tomato soup, Feta cheese salad, Smoky chipotle hummus, Nachos, Mexican galouti tikkis, Paneer quesadilla, Bean and cheese enchiladas, Burrito bowl, Blue Tribe Veg Sausage pizza, Pesto Genovese, Good ol’ Arrabiatta, Mucho grande pizza, burger, hot dog et al. which could be downed with Oreo thickshake, cranberry mojito or Lemon masala jeera soda.

The dessert section boasted Mexican churros, Molten choco lava cake, triple hot fudge nut sundae etc and guaranteed to make you stay away from your weighing scales.

Mumbai: Mumbaikars woke up on Friday to a grey sky and yet another spell of rain-soaked morning showers, as the monsoon continued its firm grip over the city. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a yellow alert for Mumbai, warning of heavy rainfall through the day on September 5 and 6. The prediction has kept civic authorities and residents on watch, with the city bracing for another round of waterlogging and traffic snarls.

According to the IMD’s forecast, the next 48 hours are expected to bring intermittent spells of heavy rain across Mumbai and its suburbs. Friday and Saturday will see generally cloudy skies with intense downpours, accompanied by humid and sticky weather. Daytime temperatures are likely to hover between 30–31 degrees Celsius, while the minimum will remain close to 24 degrees, offering little comfort to residents battling the damp conditions.

The rains, however, are not expected to last with the same intensity throughout the coming week. From September 7, Mumbai may finally witness a gradual dip in rainfall activity. The IMD has forecast moderate showers on Sunday and Monday, which will bring some relief to commuters. By September 9 and 10, the city is likely to experience light rainfall, and no weather warnings have been issued for these days, hinting at a much-needed break from the heavy monsoon spell.

Meanwhile, across Maharashtra, the weather department predicted varying rainfall intensity. On September 5, the monsoon remains active over the state. Light to moderate rain is expected in several districts, while central Maharashtra may experience heavy to very heavy rainfall in isolated pockets. Northern coastal Maharashtra is also on alert, with winds forecast to blow at speeds of nearly 50 kmph, raising concerns for fishermen and coastal residents.

In the Konkan region, the situation remains mixed. Raigad district has been placed under an orange alert with the possibility of very heavy rains in some parts. Meanwhile, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg, on the other hand, are under a yellow alert, indicating heavy rain at isolated places but not of the same intensity as Raigad. Temperature-wise, Konkan is recording a maximum of around 29.4 degrees Celsius and a minimum of 25 degrees, reflecting the cloudy and damp weather conditions.

Maharashtra: In a shocking incident in Chandrapada, Naigaon East, thieves looted jewellery worth Rs 33 lakh from a bungalow and then set fire to an adjacent grocery shop. The Naigaon Police acted swiftly and arrested four accused, including a woman, within just eight hours of the incident.

The burglary took place at a bungalow named ‘Bhimai’, owned by Harshad Mhatre (39). Adjacent to the bungalow is a grocery store named Kamini. On Monday, Mhatre had left for Virar to celebrate Ganeshotsav with relatives, leaving the house unoccupied, as reported by Loksatta. Taking advantage of the situation, the accused broke into the bungalow via the terrace on Tuesday night.

The thieves stole jewellery worth Rs 33 lakh from the house and then set fire to the neighbouring grocery shop. The incident came to light when the fire broke out, prompting a response from the municipal fire brigade, which managed to bring the blaze under control.

Following the incident, a case was registered at Naigaon Police Station under Sections 305, 331(4), and 326(G) of the Indian Penal Code.

Police launched an immediate investigation, and within eight hours, arrested four accused: Ajay Yadav (20), Sonu Faizan Khan (20), Deepak Kharat (21), and Fatima Sheikh (25). The arrests were confirmed by Police Inspector (Crime) Abhijit Madke, who stated that further investigation is ongoing, as reported.

In separate news from Palghar, a 25-year-old pregnant woman gave birth to a baby girl in an 108 ambulance in the early hours of Monday, September 1, while being transferred from Saphale Primary Health Centre to Palghar Rural Hospital due to concerns over possible complications during delivery.

The woman, Vidhi Sambre, a resident of the Saphale area, was pregnant with her second child and had been admitted to Saphale Primary Health Centre late on the night of September 1. After assessing the risk of delivery-related complications, the attending medical officer decided to refer her to Palghar Rural Hospital for advanced medical care.

At around 2:50 a.m., an 108 ambulance was called to transport her. However, during the journey, Vidhi went into labour and successfully delivered a baby girl with the assistance of the ambulance medical team.