Dumbbells and Drama

These days it’s quite a task figuring out where to dine. For those of you who are new here, long story short, I have now moved over to the dark side. This dark side boasts of heavy weights, HIITs, 10km runs and a lot of healthy eating. I am consciously making diet plans, trying my best to follow them, and of course minimizing all the eating out.

Before you assume we gym folks  do not know how to have fun, I’ll have you know that we have our lovely cheat days, 1:00am nights and parties every other day. Balance is the key, and once you get the hang of it life gets easy. With restaurants introducing healthy food in their menus, trying to get this balance has got easier lately. Joining the list of brands that the #fitfam will always be thankful to is Mad House Grill, an establishment critical to the mere existence of Pune.

Mad House Grill has been a favorite for years, and I’m quite certain this feeling resonates with all those who have been living here for long. For those of you who’ve grown up in Pune, I find it really hard to believe that you have never eaten a juicy steak at Mad House Grill, Koregaon Park. Well, if you haven’t, it’s not too late, but seriously, I do find it hard to believe that you’ve never been here. You will have to visit now, you absolutely must. You can thank me later.

What I absolutely adore about Mad House Grill is the fact that the consistency in service and quality of food has never faltered. I have been visiting since 2003, and never had a remotely bad experience here.  Another point that I find the need to mention here- is it just me or have you too noticed how it looks like Mad House Grill is always ready to welcome Christmas, even in the middle of May? Every time I’ve visited, I’ve mentioned this point, equating it to the warmth one feels at an old, native home, sitting in the warm kitchen while stuffing their face with all those lovely treats that only a grandmother can cook. With so much love and a consistent quality of food and service, Mad House Grill makes it to the list of must visit when in Pune.

Fast forwarding to 2017 when I walked in to indulge on a cheat day (Cheat Day isn’t about pizzas and burgers anymore; we try staying away from processed, junk food even on these days, and opt for semi-healthy options (steak instead of burger, multigrain bread instead of whole wheat bread, idlis, potatoes, a glass of red wine instead of whisky, etc) I was visiting after 6 months (ouch) and was glad to see how nothing had changed. I settled in at a table outdoors, and started what would be one of our most memorable cheat meal dates.

I think I might have said “This is such a perfect date place!” at least a 100 times that night. Full credits to the candlelit tables, pea lights on the plants around, red wine, juicy grilled chicken breasts and great company to enjoy it all with.

The beauty of the menu here is that if you’ve been hitting the gym with a goal in mind and are watching your diet, you can pick the grills and steaks without feeling too guilty about cheating. In fact the owner herself eats her meals here, and she is a fellow gym rat too.  Armed with this information, and knowing that bajra rotis and protein filled dinner plates had been planned for us, we couldn’t wait to get started with the meal.

While everything on the menu has been a super hit with me, I’d take this opportunity to give a special shoutout to the hummus platter, the Pepper Mustard Chicken steak and tandoori jowar and bajra rotis served with grilled chicken kebabsfmmd

Not only are these healthy, but also super delicious! I would highly recommend Mad House Grill to each and every foodie, more so if they’re particular about their diets. A glass of red wine and a plate full of fiber and protein is quite the meal on a cheat day, isn’t it? You’ve earned it 🙂

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