Anima Madhva Bhavan

Introduced to me by an aspiring Ayurvedic chef, Anima Bhavan is the only restaurant in town that serves healthy, delicious and authentic Mysore heritage vegetarian food within a homely atmosphere. They focus on hygiene, health and a real home-style taste, all served on a banana leaf.

Once seated, the servers come around and begin serving you a portion of yellow rice, some chapati, along with two or three different cooked vegetables. They will keep and eye on you as you eat your meal, and refill your leaf as and when required. The second ‘course’ consists of white rice, to be enjoyed with rasam. And all this is finished off with a dessert of some sort. The entire meal is so satisfying because it was all lovingly prepared and slowly consumed, that I normally don’t even have to eat for the rest of the day!

Expect to spend: < Rs200 for your lunch.

Oyster Bay

Set within a pretty garden, Oyster Bay has rather resort-like feel. It has a lovely ambience and is a great place for a celebration. I remember spending Christmas Eve there with friends in December 2015.

This restaurant has a wide variety of dishes, both local, Chinese and western, vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Food is generally well-prepared and good, especially their non-vegetarian options although service can be rather slow.

Expect to spend: At least Rs1,000 – 1,200 for a full meal there for two. It is a fine dining restaurant after all…

Hotel RRR

One of my all-time favourites and a definite must-try, in my book! RRR serves up really authentic Andhra cuisine of spicy vegetarian thaali popular among local Mysoreans. You get in your thaali, thalimpu, chutney, sambar, rasam, curd among other yummy cooked veggies and unlimited rice and ghee.

For biryani lovers, the place also serves good chicken and mutton biryani. RRR has two locations one of which is located in Gandhi Square, right in the heart of the city and is my preferred outlet because how non-pretentious and old-school it is. It gets filled up quick though, so get there early!

Expect to spend: About Rs 300 for two.

The Old House

Yet another upmarket, casual dining outlet with a nice decor and lovely ambience. It’s perfect for chilling out on Saturday nights, since the next day is rest day for Sharath’s students. The Old House is known for their breakfast pancakes and wood-fired pizzas.

Pancakes are light and fluffy and great for when you are badly missing them from home. But what you really want to come here for is the wood-fired, thin-crust pizzas. They are tasty, authentic and very cheesy. Ingredients are fresh and toppings are generous. There is also a good variety of interesting salads and pasta dishes on the menu.

Expect to spend:  About Rs800 for two.

Chakra House

This is a cool and kitschy cafe located fairly close to KPJAYI. There are beautiful murals painted on virtually every wall and I feel as though I am transported to another place the moment I step inside. It is a great place to hang out all day if you like, as the owner Rajesh is very friendly and super welcoming.

The food served at Chakra House is generally catered to the visiting yoga students and therefore healthy, of good quality and well prepared. Many dishes on their menu are my favourites. Among them are, their hearty lunchtime thaali, which is served with brown rice, avocado salad, carrot cake and vegan chocolate brownie. It’s also fun to find out and try what their special soup or stew of the day is.

Aside from food and drink, this cafe also has lots of other interesting things going on – almost every weekend, there is a event organised; from flute concerts to kirtan or a talk. Once in a while, you will find a makeshift stand just outside the cafe selling all sorts of unique items and trinkets. No one to have lunch or dinner with? Just head to Chakra House. You’ll find local artistic types hanging out with other yoga practitioners and by the end of your meal, you would have almost certainly have made yourself a new friend!

Expect to spend: About Rs200-250 for your lunch or dinner.