Short and sweet

Warm chicken burrito bowl. Pics/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

Food: Wholesome
Ambience: Cosy
Service: Slow
Cost: Inexpensive
verdict: 1/4

We've always been firm believers that serendipitous discoveries are the best. And My Cafe, Juhu, with its nondescript façade - further exacerbated by bare minimal signage - is just that kind of place. With the address or location unavailable online, all we had to guide us was a couple of pictures taken by a colleague who had chanced upon this charming, tiny space a few days ago.

Open BBQ subway chicken sandwich

Cosily perched atop a dance studio and sitting cheek-by-jowl to a beauty salon in a bylane dominated by the iconic Prithvi Theatre and its equally famous and eponymous café, there's a lot about this diminutive, three-table first-floor café that made us smile. Surrounded by potted plants and fairy lights, with comfortable bench-style seating, the almost-by-the-sea café is perfect for grabbing a late afternoon tea and snack.

Speaking of which, the menu here is a modest-sized one featuring a variety of short eats and mini-meals along with a number of hot and cold beverages, including teas and tisanes. Though they take a good half-an-hour post ordering to make an appearance at our table, our iced mocha ('220) and fresh watermelon blossom mocktail ('250) hit the sweet spot. While the former is imbued with the aroma and taste of freshly ground Arabica coffee beans with a swirl of chocolate sauce giving it some additional heft, the watermelon drink has a hint of tart cranberry that cuts through the melon's sweetness perfectly.

Lemongrass chai, Iced mocha and Fresh watermelon blossom

Served with a small bowl of potato salli, the duo of tomato-basil crostini ('150) is generously portioned with meaty chunks of tomato and shredded of basil leaves. They taste scrumptious with the unexpected schmear of cream cheese applied to the toasted sourdough base instead of olive oil. Another open-faced preparation, the BBQ chicken subway sandwich ('200) is the perfect blend of juicy morsels of roast chicken and onion, all enrobed in a tangy barbeque sauce sitting atop a huge slab of focaccia.

Still peckish and craving something substantial, we call for the recommended warm chicken burrito bowl ('350). This turns out to be one of the best iterations of the Tex-Mex staple we've tried in a long time. With a toothsome base of plump red rice that is topped with loads of chicken, perfectly al dente kidney beans, yellow corn kernels and sweet bell peppers, all drizzled with a creamy cheese sauce, this one's a winner.

Sadly, the over-spiced herbed baby potatoes served with a yoghurt dip ('180) disappoint with the punishing, the almost searing heat of fresh red chillies dominating every mouthful. Even the cooling hung curd dip does little to calm things down. With just a single dessert of an outsourced [our server volunteered this information] chocolate brownie on the menu, coupled with the fact that it wasn't even available that day, we decide to end things here differently, with a spot of tea!

While we wish that we'd been served the milk on the side, instead of it being premixed into the hot beverage, our final order of the fragrant and soothing lemongrass chai ('120) is the perfect curtain call to an afternoon (and money) well-spent.

At My Cafe, Jankidas House, 1st floor, Janki Kutir, near Prithvi Theatre, Juhu.
Time 12 pm to 9 pm
Call 66756622/23

4/5 Exceptional, 3/5 Excellent, 2/5 very Good, 1/5 Good, 0.5/5Average. My Cafe didn't know we were there. The Guide reviews anonymously and pays for meals

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