M2M Ferry ride detours to Indisauce and Boardwalk by Flamboyante

Have you ever travelled 85 kms just to see the dining place you wanted to try is shut for renovation?

Yep, that’s exactly what happened when I reached the entrance of The Ocean Club in Alibaugh. 🙃

But since I was travelling with my cousin and we did have a bit of work to complete before we could dine leisurely, we decided to finish that first and then see what’s next. Fortunately, our work was completed earlier than we had anticipated.

So, we had two options now-

Sulk and settle for the nearest restaurant and head back home in the evening.
Head into the city, explore new places and see where that goes.

Both of us being the most spontaneous people who can never take no for an answer, took the 2nd option. 😊

The first place we did a pitstop at was Boardwalk by Flamboyante at the Mandwa Jetty. The place is known for its wood-fired pizza, and boy, are they right. We also tried the Dimsums, but I thought they were a bit overcooked to my liking.

After that, we decided to head into the main city.

You have multiple options to get to the main city from Mandwa Jetty. You can take the shared rickshaw, local cab, or take the PNP buses if you are taking the ferry from the Gateway of India. The ferry ticket is your bus travel pass too!

If you are taking the M2M ferry like we did, you can opt for the share rickshaw, which would cost you around ₹100 or take the local cab.

Since we had our return ferry around 4 pm and wanted to chill with no agenda in particular, we made our way to Indisauce, a restaurant we found on Google Maps.

Even though we were a bit sceptical, we were really surprised by the food and vibe! It was like stepping into a curated, beachy vibe cafe that served the best in-house nachos, Alfredo sauce pasta, and a Nutella Cheese Cake.

Yes, you read that right. Italian cuisine, near one of the beaches in Maharashtra, with ingredients that are all sourced and made in-house. 🍝

It was evident from the well-curated menu that this wasn’t a restaurant that was started just for the sake of it. Upon a word with the owner, we got to know that he worked as a chef in many well-known restaurants in Mumbai, and then moved here during lockdown and began Indisauce.

So, after inhaling the delicious food because we were starving, we headed back to our Ferry Terminal. We stepped into Starbucks at the jetty terminal to refresh ourselves and fill our systems with much-needed caffeine before we headed home.

If you want to head to Aligaugh in less than an hour and experience the M2M ferry magic, you can book your tickets from the official website. With options to take cars and pets, I thought it was a great way to travel in less time and doesn’t burn a hole in your pocket either. The lounge decks have food and beverages, in case you are famished by the time you reach the ferry terminal.

Even though I ended up there for work, I know that if it wasn’t for the company, it wouldn’t have been a day well spent, even after the initial hiccup. I don’t think I would have been able to plan a day like this even if I had tried 100% of my brain capacity and used all the AI tools possible.

Sometimes it is best to let go, trust the process. and start dancing in your best dress!