Around Town: This garden restaurant in Mumbai offers tranquillity of slow life, gives 15% off if you surrender phone

Bharwan Karela with Black Wheat Poori at Sukoon. (Credit: Sukoon)

The songs of yesteryears like “Woh chand khila” from Anari (1959) and “Hai apna dil to awara” from Solva Saal (1959) featuring Nutan and Dev Anand in black and white videos projected at one of the walls added to our experience.

“I wanted people to go back in time,” said Joshi, adding, “You are not coming to a restaurant or cafe, you are coming to a garden. You don’t have to order anything. There are corners where you can lie down, and nobody will disturb you. It is just a place to be, which is why we encourage people not to use their cell phones and get 15 per cent off.”

Cassava fries with kimchi dip at Sukoon. (Credit: Sukoon)

When asked if anyone has availed of this option, Joshi replied affirmatively, saying that older people are readily giving up their phones. “In fact, with Sukoon I wanted to create a space for older people to hang out since most new openings are catering to a younger crowd,” he said, admitting that it is already a success among them. “The aunties are loving the songs and are asking us to increase the volume,” he added.

Spread across 1,500 odd sq ft, the space has no corners but soft curves — just like Joshi’s other venture Affogato courtesy of his dislike for edges. It is designed with a minimalistic approach. Expect grey untreated walls throughout the space with a fireplace in one corner, complemented beautifully by a variety of plants and potted trees and a floor covered with natural grass.

Regarding the interiors, Joshi said he borrowed everything from his existing ventures — the staircase design from Affogato, the bar from Keiba and the fireplace from an Instagram post. “I asked my gardener to plant the trees and grass, reached out to a vendor on Indiamart for cane furniture and asked a friend who is also an interior designer to look after the placement,” he said.

Ragi Dosa at Sukoon. (Credit: Sukoon)

When it comes to food, the kitchen, helmed by chef Tanvi Shah under the guidance of chef Richard D’souza, offers vegetarian, vegan and satvik Indian cuisine. There are smoothie bowls, salads and wraps, a wide range of breakfast options including ragi dosa (Rs 450), paneer parantha (Rs 550), avocado and green pea toast (Rs 550), appetisers and thalis. The food is served in kansa thalis and bowls and the water comes in copper glasses.

We tried their jowar bhel (Rs 450) from the salad section and although a tad bit soggy, it captured all the elements – sweet, sour and tangy. Next came their warm and flavourful khichu chaat (Rs 450), which draws inspiration from ragda patties except that instead of a potato tikki, it has rice cake. We polished it off within two minutes. Their cassava fries (Rs 350) served with housemade kimchi dip were irresistible. Looking at the response on our social media, we gathered that it has already created a fan base for itself.

Talking about the interiors, Suren Joshi shared that he borrowed everything from his existing ventures — the staircase design from Affogato and the bar from Keiba and the fireplace from an Instagram post. (Credit: Sukoon)

We washed it down with Greenie, a fresh juice made from green apple, cucumber and kale, from their beverage menu, which also features a selection of Boocha Bae kombucha on tap and by bottle, coffee from Javaphile, tea, mocktails and health shots (all priced between Rs 110 and Rs 290).

For the main course, we went for Sukoon Thali (Rs 750), which allows us to pick five items from the mains section – we went for housemade millet maggi with vegetables, rich and velvety gassi stew with crispy malabar paratha, and bharwan karela stuffed with coconut and peanut, and served with buckwheat roti. Rajma Chawal didn’t live up to our expectations.

We rounded it off with I need coffee (Rs 450). Their take on tiramisu featured a small shot of caramel coffee — made in-house using Chikmagalur coffee — inside chickpea halwa and served with mousse-like cashew cream on the side. We loved it.

Joshi, who is constantly trying to offer more with this space, is looking to turn it into a yoga studio during the early morning hours, followed by a breakfast serving. And running it like a regular dining space between 12 noon to 10 pm.

“We are also looking at movie nights or live music or ghazal in the evening hours,” he said, adding that it can be anything as long as it syncs with the place’s vibe and is not too loud.