Great Vegetarian Fare!

I work and live in the traditional, conservative Basavanagudi area of Bangalore, vegetarian food and restaurants being the norm there. So, it’s no surprise that from work or in the evenings to meet friends, I have become quite the regular at certain vegetarian places that I would probably have not deigned to enter otherwise. One such establishment is a nice place to go any time of day, be it for lunch, an evening coffee or a late night, post dinner catch up session.

Cafe Mondo, at the edge of Basavanagudi leading into Jayanagar, has cute and charming decor, coffees, chillers and really yum fruit blend drinks, not to forget a good selection of salads, pastas, pizzas and sandwiches; one of those places where you can go hang out and sit back to gossip while you enjoy a delicious and uniquely flavored drink (my favorite on their menu is the Orange Sunrise, a concoction of orange juice, vanilla ice cream, and… orange marmalade!). At INR 80 a pop, its quite easy (on the pocket and the palate) to go through a couple of these in a visit, especially when the weather’s on the hotter side. Their chillers are all coffee-based, and have been proclaimed good by my friends.

Cafe Mondo have daily specials on drinks and food items, including rice dishes like Thai curry. One of the best bites we had there was a special, a Hawaiian burger with just the perfect amount of pineapple pieces and a very nice bun, to go with the veg patty. I also enjoy their thin crust, vegetable-strewn pizzas, which come in two sizes (5″ or 9″) and range from Rs. 100-250. The salads are fresh and nice too. Their bruschetta as well as their fries are really good – the former loaded with a few different veggie combos, and the latter crisp and thin and with a couple of choices of dipping sauces. There’s garlic bread too, which is well flavored and perfectly baked, and here too, you can just get regular or go for a pesto or some other combo.

The one disappointing section of their menu is Desserts. They look good, all indulgent and tempting behind the display case, but whether it was the red velvet cupcake (hard, un-moist and very sad cream cheese dressing) or the triple layer chocolate mousse (err, mousse, darlings, has to be something you can scoop through, not where your fork needs to saw), the taste did not live up to the presentation. So, be warned, stay away from the dessert section and you’ll have an enjoyable time (well, the cookies and biscotti I’ve eaten in the past have been decent, so maybe just stay away from the fancy cakes). All in all, a good place to check out in a neighborhood where there are not too many continental/cafe type choices.

Ed: Cover photo not from this establishment.