Kale. Quinoa. Cleanse. We’ve heard of them all plenty and maybe too much. But there’s truth in that pudding, and Mumbai’s hippest suburb is one step ahead of the wellness game. From yoga studios and vegan cafes to farmer’s markets and more, Bandra is where its at. Our guide to the suburb’s healthiest digs will put you right on top of your good game.
Bandra’s Farmer’s Market
Sundays in Bandra usually start at D’Monte Park with tote-bearing shoppers browsing through stalls of fresh, organic produce from local farmers. Welcome to the suburbs’ thriving Farmer’s Market. Launched in March 2010 by city-residing nutritionist Kavita Mukhi, the weekly market is currently in its eighth season. With between 600-1000 visitors every week, their network of farmers has swelled to match, with 2000 organic farmers from Nashik and other parts of the state now participating. From sampling Kombucha and other fermented goodies or picking up cold-pressed cooking oils and stocking up on groceries for the week, visitors can also nosh on organic, gluten-free and vegan breakfast items, dessert, snacks and meals, all while enjoying some live music. Owing to its popularity the market, which previously ran only from October to March, now runs all year round, with only fruits and vegetables being sold in the monsoon months. Stalls worth visiting include, The Happy Hens Farm for free range organic eggs, Bombucha for some good ol’ Kombucha, Shishir’s Greens for local greens and bananas, My Pure Path’s pickles and ice creams, Organic Treats for their Red rice idlis and chickpea salad, and Anupam Superfoods for their hillside Taal Creamed Honey from Uttaranchal.
Open: Every Sunday from 10am-3pm. Getting there: D’Monte Park, near Bandra Gymkhana, St. Andrew’s Road, just off Turner Road, Bandra (West)
Tangerine Arts Studio
Set up in 2014 by Tanvi Mehra, Tangerine Arts Studio set out to plug a gaping hole in the Mumbai fitness scene by introducing a multi-disciplinary yoga, dance and meditation venue. The studio is home to all the activities and fitness regimes that Mehra loves herself, but is also a one-stop shop where members can build a practice in anything from Hatha yoga, Ashtanga, Mysore style Ashtanga, Vinyasa yoga, aerial silk/anti gravity yoga, and a whole host of dance forms ranging from jazz and hip-hop to Zumba and belly dancing. There’s even circuit fitness for those who want something a bit harder. A warm, happy and nurturing space, the studio employs passionate experts in these various disciplines with an aim to build a real community around people who are interested in everything from healthy cooking, meditating, yoga nidra or just hula hooping. The best part—this community is totally pet friendly and every once in a while you can enjoy private yoga lessons with your four-legged favourites.
Open: Daily from 7am-9pm Getting there: Pali Danda Rd, Danda, Khar West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400052 Contact: 098673 69960
The Bombay Salad Company
Kale, quinoa, cranberries tossed with amaranth, carrots, pomegranate and a topping of mixed seeds with a citrus orange-carrot vinaigrette dressing—sound like something you’d like to sink your fork into? It is and there’s more where that came from. Ex-Suzette chef, and now owner at The Bombay Salad Company, Karishma Dalal wears many hats in her entrepreneurial venture, one of which includes pairing local (as much as possible), seasonal, and nutritiously dense ingredients into happy and healthy salad bowls. Having opened its doors in 2014, Dalal’s salad bar is one of Mumbai’s first salad-only and perhaps the largest salad bar in the country. Clean eating at its best, these artisanal veggie bowls are committed to good health and great taste. Almost all-organic, there’s over 100 possible flavour combinations with which to make your own meal bowls. The menu, diverse in its offering, changes daily and seasonally keeping things super fresh. There’s also a star cast of multi-grain breads, gluten-free wraps, soups, juices, and smoothies accompanying the salads. If you’re a conscious eater then add this place to your phone book for a healthy lunch.
Open: Noon-10.30pm Getting there: 340, 16th Rd, Bandra West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400050 Contact: 022 2600 0270
Suzette
Started by husband-wife-friend trio Jérémie Sabbagh, Antonia Achache and Pierre Labail, Suzette is an incredibly warm and homey French café & crêperie. With a no-frills-attached, honest menu, Suzette offers only the most incredible organic, locally-sourced, real food. In pure French tradition, the menu sticks to classic recipes tweaked for the more conscious eater. Stars include their much-loved sweet and savoury buckwheat and butter crepes, fresh ‘smoozies’, juices, and salads. And though not solely vegetarian, the menu is definitely skewed towards the grazers with plenty of veggie and vegan sandwiches, croques, and salads. You can also expect to find super fresh-baked breads, croissants, desserts daily because…French. If you’re looking to start your day without sin, then Suzette is where you should be headed.
Open: 9am-10.30pm Getting there: Shop No. 14, Gasper Enclave, St John Street, Opp. Golds Gym, Pali Naka, Bandra West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400050 Contact: 022 2641 1431
The Kitchen Garden by Suzette
Local and organic. Two words you’ll hear plenty here. And of course there’s also vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free and the whole gamut of wellness terms we’ve all come to know. As if Suzette wasn’t enough for the healthy eater, husband-wife-friend trio Jérémie Sabbagh, Antonia Achache and Pierre Labail, opened the doors to yet another conscious food mecca over a year ago. Expect to be spoilt for choice with their energy bowls, overnight turmeric oats, cold brew coffee and homemade granola-topped everything. Hop over for breakfast and enjoy the open salad bar where sandwiches and salads are made live or sip some seriously decadent smoothies over some French hip hop. Since the space is quiet cozy spot, takeaway orders are welcome, and being on time for a breakfast table is highly recommended. Visitors can even buy off small portions of fresh prawns, bread, burrata, cold-pressed juices, granola, greens and everything they use to cook—deli style.
Open: 9am-11pm Getting there: C-101, Saint John Street, Pali Hill, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400050 Contact: 022 2645 8176
Brown Rice Box
Midnight munchies and post-party binging are enough to throw your health goals off course but with Brown Rice Box binge eating seems like a promising endeavor. Think smoked salmon with brown rice, red lentil curry, a chipotle salad and more delivered to your doorstep till 2am. There’s even some indulgent options here like butter chicken and dim sum but if healthy and wholesome food is what you’re craving then this delivery-only service has your back.
Open: Noon-2am Contact: 022 30151492
The Yoga House
Balance your chakras, order a detox juice cleanse or pick up a healthy lunch of orange fennel salad, quinoa upma, or almond pesto pasta and more all during your lunch hour. This pastel-walled, Santorini- style bungalow in Bandra houses a vegetarian macrobiotic cafe, a yoga class and a wellness shop. The cafe’s menu features all-day breakfast porridges, salads, sandwiches, dessert and beverages you can order online. But healthy food aside, their yoga menu is just as diverse, offering everything from Asthanga, Vinyasa, Prenatal, Hatha, Ayur yoga, and deeply immersive sound meditation. For a holistic mind, body, bowl connect, all doors lead to The Yoga House.
Open: Classes start as early as 6.30am. The cafe is open at all hours between 8am-10pm from Tuesday to Sunday. Getting there: Nargis Villa/Water Bungalow, Sherly Rajan Road, Nr. Rizvi, Opp. ICICI Bank, Bandra (W) Contact: +91 22 6554 5001
Sequel Bistro and Juice Bar
Quite aptly named, Sequel is the second chapter of founder Vanika Choudhary’s life, who quit her full-time corporate job to go on a short sabbatical, that eventually resulted in her opening a restaurant that promotes conscious eating—her lifelong dream realised. Offering wholesome world cuisine with fresh, high-quality ingredients, a strict no-sugar, no-flour rule in the kitchen, Sequel uses 100 per cent certified organic dry produce. Primarily vegetarian, the restaurant boasts of a cold-pressed juice bar, custom-baked artisanal bread, and an exotic menu with offerings like Himalayan wild black rice with roasted vegetables, salad with rolled smoked Norwegian salmon, avocado, romaine lettuce, and a fresh take on poached eggs with a yoghurt-based Hollandaise. If you thought healthy eating was a drag, think again. There’s even an exciting offering of single origin chocolates and desserts made using only natural sweetness.
Open: 9.30am-10.30pm Getting there: Shop No.2, Solace, 33rd Road, Bandra West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400050 Contact: 075064 77710
The Village Shop
From the team behind Birdsong Cafe, The Village Shop dishes out a farmers market-heavy menu. Head over here to indulge in some veggie-loaded gluten-free pizzas, whole-wheat aglio olio pasta, lasagna and other such temptations but all with a vegan plus organic twist. Once you’re done eating, head on over to the shop part of The Village shop and stock your pantries at home with black rice, haldi, Kombucha, homemade granola, gouda, cheddar, artisanal coffee, herbal teas, jaggery powder and more.
