FOOD -- 13::

CAFE FULLY LOADED:

A MILLENNIAL TRENDY RESTAURANT  

BY P. S SUNDAR.

What will a trendy restaurant look like when a young couple who are themselves foodies open it and that too in a major tourist mountainous town of Coonoor?  

That is this restaurant !!  

For the school and college students and young professionals including the military officers undergoing training at Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, the latest arrival “Cafe Fully Loaded, The Relax Hub” on Mount Road in Coonoor is becoming a rendezvous, especially in the evenings.

Rahul & Siya

“We designed this vegetarian restaurant to serve that purpose – build fraternity among the youth – it is a ‘relax hub’ because youth can spend hours relaxing on sharing experiences or reading books from our collection, play games and can fully load themselves with foodie!  That’s why we have named this ‘Cafe Fully Loaded, The Relax Hub’ and this name itself is catching up among the millennial – yes, teenagers!”, explained Rahul Mahbubani (31) who runs the cafe with his wife Siya (30).

And, there is a black board on which written with colour chalk pieces are many messages on this theme – ‘It is good to C U (see you) at The Relax Hub’, ‘But, first Coffee’, ‘Built by Foodies for foodies’, ‘Happiness is a good book and loaded food!’, Everyday is an adventure’, “People who do love to eat are always the best people’, etc..

“We keep changing the writings on the board.    We have done the interior decor using the creativity of Preity Jain (24), an interior designer qualified from Barcelona, Spain, after studying the preferences of the millennial youth who look for changes from the existing ones”, Rahul disclosed.

Preity Jain 

“Thus, we have converted discarded drums used to stock eucalyptus oil into cushioned seats which youngsters enjoy to sit on.   

"We have converted an old sewing machine into a wash basin.   We have used western types of tiles fixed on the walls”, Rahul shared.

“And, while they enjoy the food, we encourage the youth to read books picked from our collection – general knowledge, novels, non-fiction etc. – something unique in the town”, he noted.

“There are also some traditional games like Jenga, Ludo, Life, scrabbles etc to engage the mind.  Admittedly, all these have begun to attract the youth”, he added.

And, when it comes to food, Siya is totally involved with Rahul in preparing them.   The attractive menu card itself professes, “It is time to get loaded and relax!” matching with the name of the restaurant.

Siya who has studied professional baking and contemporary cooking in Nasik, Mumbai and Chennai, entertains the customers with her live preparation of food and decoration on plates. 

“In particular, guests enjoy watching me prepare for them Waffles with their chosen flavours.   And, our ‘Just Happiness’ dish comprising Soufflé, Brownie and Waffle – each with the customers’ choice of flavour – is a great hit with the youth and the elders alike”, Siya said.

Siya also excels in preparing ice creams so much so, no ice cream is bought from outside.

“Our veg loaded pizza, Margarita Pizza (loaded with cheese and ‘happiness’ !!) and burgers are the favourites fill-ups with the youth”, she disclosed.

“In the in-house special counter, we get repeat orders for Dabeli (a set of two loaders with peanuts and pomegranates), Pav Bhaji Toast (toasted with spicy touch of Indian Bhaji) and Paneer wrap (twisted with veggies and packed with sauces).     Of course, we have the popular Pav Bajji, Vada Pav, Pani Puri and the like as well.    Since these are supplied only in a very few restaurants in the town, the youth enjoy these affordable dishes at our place”, Siya shared.  

“Rose Tazz, Oceanic Blue and Lychee Tangeriene make our Mocktail enjoyable while Hot chocolate we prepare is a favourite hot loader”, she observed.

The restaurant also encourages youth to celebrate their birthdays in the place at chosen supplies.

And, before people depart, they have the chance of recording on the 'Memory Wall' their experiences..

 (response can also be sent to: pssundar.conoor@gmail.com)