I had developed a bit of a paunch, and the wifey was obviously not very pleased. Hence, I had joined a gym and had started eating more of home food. However, you can’t always eat home food, and eating out was still a problem.
A lot of the joints in Bangalore seem to believe that taste is directly proportional to grease. Even if the grease is under control, they still add a lot of spices, or use not-so healthy ingredients in an effort to make the food ‘tasty.’ I then discovered Café Aarogya in Koramangala.
I won’t be describing the food. Their website, https://cafeaarogya.in does a good job of describing what is on offer. The summary is that they use healthy ingredients, shun artificial additives, and are(very) miserly about oil. I’ll stick to providing my opinion of the place.
So here goes:
Nutritional balance: Obviously very good, since that’s what the place is all about. Though I am no expert on nutrition, the spread at Café Aarogya tallied well with whatever my gym nutritionist had told me, and whatever I had read in some articles. I went in for the ‘Wholesome Meal’ combo most of the times I visited, and it covered the vegetarian food pyramid very well.
Taste: Yes, it’s good. I admire the cooks’ skills, because it is not easy to bring out such taste under such restrictions. It’s a heart-warming sort of taste, much like mom’s food. Ofcourse, don’t go with very high expectations, because the taste will certainly not match up to the fare you get at some of the regular restaurants. It’s definitely a thousand times better than the greasy, mass-produced junk you get at most darshinis and other such joints. But it may not measure up to the food you get at more upscale places. Anyway, bear in mind that it’s all about health.
To sum it up - While the taste delights, the fact that you won’t leave with guilt pangs enhances that delight.
Consistency: I went five times in two weeks, and the food was tasty every time. For me, that’s good enough to rate as ‘consistent’.
Ambience: Nothing great. But it’s friendly and comfortable.
Service: Quite good. However, I had been there on a holiday/weekend only once. The other visits were on weekdays. So I can’t say how it will be during ‘peak load’.
Downsides: The pricing may be a bit on the painful side if you want to go regularly. But an occasional visit is definitely very affordable. Another downside(for non-vegetarians) is that the place is strictly vegetarian. (I know non-vegetarian food is mostly unhealthy. But there are some healthy preparations possible, especially with fish and eggs). Anyway, I am a vegetarian myself, so I am perfectly happy with this.
All in all, a good place for the health conscious(and even for the not-so-health-conscious). Go for it.