Dial a meal

You've heard of 24-hour hunger helplines you can dial to order a meal home. But have you ever been to a restaurant where you need to place an order over the phone?
Well, at Mumbai's Cafe Ext. 202 Food Connect guests have to place their orders by dialling 202 from antique phones, sourced from Chor Bazar, that are installed inside four sit-in booths.
This vegetarian cafe in the corporate area of Lower Parel is the brainchild of 22-year-old Radhika Mehta. The booths offer diners complete privacy, making it an ideal place for a romantic tete-a-tete. "We do offer the option of having waiters note down orders the regular way, but patrons prefer to do it over the phone," says Mehta.
The fare takes in sandwiches, parathas, bagels, pasta, Thai and Mexican dishes. The chocolate pizza, which is the most popular dish on offer, is Mehta's own creation. The clientele includes office-goers, morning walkers , senior citizens and college kids. Mehta recalls one night when a customer came in just when they were closing. "I didn't want to send her away hungry, so served up a packet of instant noodles," she smiles.
She interacts personally with customers through the open kitchen and even cooks for them. Visitors are encouraged to write their feedback on post-it notes and stick them to the walls or on postcards that can be dropped into a box outside. Photographs on current topics like global warming adorn the walls, which also serve as a gallery for fledgling artists to showcase their work.
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