"We're the antithesis of McDonalds," explains well-known environmentalist Dr Vandana Shiva, who founded Navdanya in 1989 to espouse the twin causes of ecology and the Indian farmer. "We will not homogenize and standardize foodstuff but offer you a menu that will incorporate India's biodiversity in all its richness. It will reinforce our commitment to sustainable, healthy and equitable ways of food production." And since Navdanya's vision is to turn Indian agriculture totally organic, from the farm to the table, the caf� offers traditional and innovatively cooked food.

Endorsing this credo of eco-gastronomy as it were, the caf� serves hot and cold beverages like mint and lemon grass tea, squashes made of litchi, sea buckthorn or ginger, and sattu paani (prepared with chickpeas). Salads include the 'nine sprouts chaat (a spicy mix made with organically grown chickpeas and different pulses), and a smorgasbord of dhoklas (a popular Gujarati steamed preparation) made of jhangora, sooji, besan and other flours.

For those who like bread, there is a unique 'create-your-own sandwich' section with whole-wheat or buckwheat bread and delicious fillings enhanced with an exotic apricot or tomato chutney paste.

"The idea," says Minoo Sahoo, the energetic caf� manager, "is to offer a diverse food basket that addresses the needs of different individuals. For instance, while amaranth is excellent for diabetics, sea buckthorn (or Leh berry, which is very nutritious and excellent for growing children in particular) may not work for them. Similarly, red rice is anti-carcinogenic while millets are good for lactating mothers because of their high calcium and mineral content. We also serve different kinds of wheat and rice that so far existed only in resource manuals."

According to Maya Jani, co-director of Navdanya, problems with contemporary food arise because it's been reduced to a lifestyle item. "Food has been cut off from nature; and this is the root cause of many lifestyle-related diseases like obesity, diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol."

The Navdanya Slow Food Caf� has an inclusive and holistic approach to food. Besides serving cooked nutritious food, it also retails organic raw food and semi-cooked products. These include rice, pulses, corn, millets, oils like olive, mustard, sesame, bhringraj and apricot, and traditional food sweeteners like honey, gur, shakkar and boora. It also plans to sell organic vegetable baskets (seasonal and green), of which only a few are currently available.

The caf� also plans to organize cookery classes soon to acquaint people with the art of cooking our forgotten foods. "We want to offer maximum nutrition without taking the edge off taste," asserts Jani. Incidentally, Navdanya's organically grown food has been selling from their permanent stall in Dilli Haat (south Delhi's craft bazaar) since a few years.

The caf�'s menu also has enough for those who like their palates teased and stimulated - for instance, pav bhaji and papri chaat are on offer. The paapri (made of raagi flour) comes topped with curd, coriander chutney and saunth (a sweet and spicy sauce). And the wonderful medley of taste and textures explode on the palate. The plump pav (crafted out of whole-wheat) is crowned with a blob of white butter and the bhaaji is a yummy mishmash of cauliflower, ginger, garlic and raw bananas instead of the usual carbohydrate-intensive potatoes.

True to the caf�'s holistic approach to food and health, even a full meal - tomato-basil soup, pav bhaji, papri chaat and kheer (a traditional sweet preparation) - sits easy on the stomach. And at Rs 130 (1US$=Rs 46), it's also light on the wallet.