Eateries serving healthy fast food to open across Mumbai

Nidhi Behl

She wooed us with her contemporary take on Greek and Mediterranean cuisine at Byblos Kitchen and Bar, Lower Parel, last year. Now, chef and restaurateur Nidhi Behl has tied up with a hospitality firm as culinary director, planning to launch 18 restaurants, all with one motto: "to serve natural fast foods, to allow no room for guilt."

Her first venture, Thai Ban is a budget-friendly takeaway that opens at Colaba this month. Close on the heels comes Beer Bums, a watering hole, along with two QSRs - Boxed and Bowled and Roti and Parathas. Behl is currently in London researching methods of making preservative-free artisinal beer. Her next stop is France, where she learns to make organic breads.

Feeding off the organic milk obsession, Holy Cow Café will serve milk called A2 (untouched by hand, organic, preservative and hormone free), which Behl says will be hormone and preservative-free. For this, they have invested in a farm in Kolhapur. "The café will be a house of milk, cheese, yogurt and froyo made with natural apple sauce instead of sugar. The concept has been developed keeping kids in mind. It is the new way to go: no one wants to give up on junk food. So, the best thing is make it healthy," she says. And she's also dipping her fingers into the kitchens of the prestigious and gated clubs of Mumbai - Bombay Gymkhana, Wellington Gymkhana and Radio Club. "Usually, Mumbai clubs are synonymous with sev puri and chaat. It is time we go beyond." What does Behl have in mind? Sushi and burgers loaded with healthy goodness.