Vikhuli Bogi, better known as Viky, grew up in the hills of Nagaland and was brought up with teachings that valued people over possessions. She is the founder and chef of Juvi Corner, a cozy space that serves homemade food. Her vision is to use all the profits to help the lesser privileged. Therefore, every meal is a step for someone to study and have a better future. When we got to know about the space and the story behind it, we couldn’t wait but check it out and get a first-hand experience of what they have on offer.
We reached the café on a Saturday afternoon and were immediately transported to a festive mood, more so because of the festive carols heralding the oncoming Christmas season. The café is on the ground floor and has a small corner where they keep indoor plants for sale. So, you are looking at a space that has wooden tables and chairs along with a lot of greenery in every direction you look. As we made ourselves comfortable and hummed to the carols, we were served their Organic Blue Pea Flower Tea. The tea was rich in antioxidants and gave us the perfect start needed for the lunch.
As we were about to finish our tea, a couple of delicacies from their menu were served to us. These included the Amishishi Meat Combo and Chicken Full Thigh Combo. The former had well-cooked pieces of beef (amishishi), mashed potato, chutney and steamed vegetables while the latter also had the same servings but with the chicken leg piece instead of the beef pieces. Both these dishes were on point with their flavours but we were more inclined towards the beef.
Following this, we were served the Roasted Pork Boneless and Smoked Pork Boneless. The roasted pork, one of the crowd favourites and the smoked pork, was prepared with smoked chilli sourced from Nagaland. If you looking for something that’s more on the spicier side, we would suggest you go for the smoked pork and if you want something that’s has a bite to it, go for the roasted pork. We also sampled a bit of the steamed rice and dal along with the above-mentioned dishes and it is fair to say that we loved every mouthful.
We wrapped our lunch up with a couple of their teas — Organic Sumac Tea and Organic Gooseberry Tea. The sumac tea is one of their in-house favourites and is loaded with antioxidants while the gooseberry tea is a rich source of Vitamin C. As we stepped out of the café, you’d be glad to know that it was not just our tummies that were full but our hearts too!
Meal for two: INR 800 onwards. At Patel Nanjundappa Layout, Kothanur.
Email: alwin@newindianexpress.com
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