Delhi’s People of Tomorrow restaurant is on a mission to make vegan food ‘cool’
Located in Vasant Vihar, Delhi, the new vegan restaurant is making noise with its experimental plant-based cuisine and ingredient-forward cocktails.
Delhi’s upscale Vasant Vihar market—once the bastion of youngsters—has now upgraded itself to cater to the palate of varied age groups. With plenty of options dotting the neighbourhood—from swanky bars to burger joints and fine-dining establishments—there’s something for everyone, including vegans.
Typically, restaurants serving vegan food have been stereotyped for featuring ‘dull’ or ‘boring’ menus. People of Tomorrow is exactly the opposite—it has dishes curated by several celebrity chefs who went the extra mile to showcase ingredient-forward food, keeping sustainability at its heart. The outlet also boasts an omakase cocktail bar that offers a unique twist to classic concoctions, made with fresh produce.
People of Tomorrow, Vasant Vihar
People of Tomorrow has opened a new outlet in Vasant Vihar after closing its previous outlet in The Dhan Mill shopping complex in Delhi since it didn’t have a liquor license.
“I wanted to have a vegan cafe where there is healthy and nutritious food, with no alcohol. That doesn’t work in India. Vegan food is such a hard sell so we needed something to get more people interested in it. We have a bar in the Vasant Vihar outlet—all in all, it makes more economic sense,” says Ritv Kapoor, Founder of the restaurant and a vegan himself.
YS Life visited the restaurant to find out if it was worth the hype.
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A vegan’s dream come true
Unlike most vegan restaurants where the food menu hardly runs into a page or two, People of Tomorrow attempts to break the stereotype around plant-based food.
In its reinvented avatar, the vegan restaurant’s menu is crafted by chefs including Anahita Dhondy, Surabhi Sehgal, Dhruv Nijhawan, Sambhavi Joshi, Anukriti Anand, a ‘secret’ chef, and People of Tomorrow’s in-house chef, Tashyaa Mehrotra.
Anahita Dhondy's Pulled-meat Croquette
From Dhondy’s offerings, the Pulled-meat Croquette stood out, which was actually crumb-fried shredded jackfruit balls paired with mint chutney. The use of jackfruit works as a good meat substitute, something that came as a surprise. It has a neutral flavour and texture, which lends well to a dish like this.
There’s also Caul-Mi Suey with foxtail millets layered under spiced coconut curry and cauliflower florets, garnished with crushed peanuts. This is People of Tomorrow’s take on the popular Burmese dish Khao Suey—it’s spicy and tangy like the original dish, however, not as heavy thanks to the use of millet.
Another dish that stood out was Tartare De Nasu by the ‘secret chef’—a version of the classic French dish that features eggplant tartare with lotus stem crisps, paired with a scallion dip. The tartare had a creamy consistency which was well-complemented by the crunch of the lotus stem crisps, releasing a burst of flavours on the palate.
Another intriguing preparation was Tomatoes of Tomorrow—a zero-waste dish with confit tomatoes, dried tomato jerky, and creamy stracciatella. It uses every part of the tomato—from the skin to the leftover pulp used in the jerky. One may initially be a little wary of an overload of tomatoes but every bite was a surprise; it was tangy and creamy and yet doesn’t make you feel bloated.
There’s also a dessert menu on offer by Chef Anand, featuring Caramel Hot Chocolate Fudge (a decadent warm brownie served with Biscoff ice-cream, coconut caramel and hot fudge sauce), Not a Magnum (enrobed chocolate chip ice-cream sandwich with coffee custard, coconut caramel, and salted caramel popcorn), and Berries on a Roll (fresh strawberries, poached strawberries, whipped cream in a soft Swiss roll with lemon and strawberry mousse, and oat crumble).
Paper plane, one of People of Tomorrow's artisanal cocktails that are prepared from the freshest produce
“When I turned vegan six years ago, there were no vegan desserts. There was a lack of availability; the situation was so terrible that I had to give up on sweets completely. Today, there are so many innovative desserts available,” recalls Kapoor.
Each dish can be paired with cocktails that are also zero-waste. A stand out is Clarified Pina Colada which uses the discard of the clarification as a complementary popsicle, showing that sustainability and culinary artistry are not mutually exclusive.
The menu also features Raspberry Bramble made with gin, raspberry foam and American lemon; Cosmopolitan with Cointreau, cranberry juice and lemon, and paper plane with Aperol, Montenegro and lemon, among others.
“We reinvent drinks where it makes sense. For instance, we have a cocktail menu with five options around global warming. There’s something called CH4, which is the chemical name for methane. It’s a white-coloured drink, out of which 18-20% is filled with smoke. The white drink represents the dairy industry and the smoke is the methane,” he explains.
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Walking the talk
People of Tomorrow has also incorporated sustainability in every aspect of its function. Right from its kitchen to housekeeping supplies, each of its services omits single-use plastic packaging. Additionally, it repurposes wastewater from filtered drinking water into the flushing systems and to wash utensils.
Basil Smash at People of Tomorrow
The restaurant features repurposed wooden cabinets and coasters that are made from recycled cork material, while its cutlery is crafted from recycled brass. It also offers reusable napkins.
“We also source black clay crockery from Meghalaya, where the practice…is led by local women. These women only use homegrown wheels and self-made wooden tools to shape every creation with their bare hands. Inspired by Japanese culture, we have imbibed wabi-sabi, which is the acceptance of imperfection,” adds Kapoor.
That’s not all. Since paint is a big contributor to pollution—particularly with its use of petrochemicals—the walls in People of Tomorrow are coated with Multani mitti, a breathable material that doesn’t trap moisture and lasts longer. It also has a lesser carbon footprint.
Moreover, the light fixtures are made with hemp-based cloth, which is more resource-efficient and uses less water to process.
“With People of Tomorrow, we have made veganism cool. Sustainability is a lifestyle, I believe—not a compromise,” Kapoor signs off.
Edited by Kanishk Singh
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