Vada pav, alternatively spelt wada pao, (listenⓘ) is a vegetarian fast food dish native to the Indian state of Maharashtra.

[1] The dish consists of a deep-fried potato dumpling placed inside a bread bun (pav) sliced almost in half through the middle.

It was started in the late 1960s by the Vaze family, who used to hand out vada pavs from a window (Khidki) of their house facing the road.

[12] The party chief, Balasaheb Thackeray encouraged Marathi people in the 1960s to become entrepreneurs, i.e. start food stalls in ways similar to the South Indians setting up Udupi restaurants.

[17] A boiled potato is mashed and mixed with chopped green chilli and garlic, mustard seeds, and spices (usually asafoetida and turmeric).

The resultant fritter is served by placing inside a bread bun, accompanied with one or more chutneys and fried green chilli.