A Lukewarm Thumbs Down For The Healthy Fare Peddled By Gym Kook In Rohini's DC Chowk

Each year begins with a list of resolutions written at the beginning of your planner or journal. Topping the list is the inevitable - 'Lose Weight, Eat  Right, Get Fit'! You pay for the hefty gym fees, buy uber cute athleisure clothes so that you can fit into the crowd but as soon as friends ask you for a meal out, all those resolutions go down the drain. 

Denying eating out every time is not sustainable given that our social lives revolve around food and drinks so much. So, when the choice comes to decide between health and a happy social life, we all know what takes the deal away. 

If you want to choose to eat out healthy, our city has been sprouting some health food joints that cater specifically to your needs. One such place is Gym’s Kook located in DC Chowk, Rohini. Our verdict - kudos to the concept, but we probably won't be going back there anytime soon!

The Long & Short Of It All 

• The place is easily located in the bustling market of DC Chowk. It's just in front of the Western entrance of the market. 
• The description about calories and nutritional content in the menu is an added plus. 
• The food is healthy but the prices of some items can't be justified. 
• Healthy food can be cooked with the right amount of spice to make it tastier and the joint needs to work on this! 

Here's how the joint fared:

Chicken Caesar Salad 

When going for a salad, why not try the world’s most popular one? The Caesar Salad here is prepared with lettuce, chicken, olives, croutons and a cheese-based dressing. It tasted quite light and easy to digest. The dressing was prepared with mayo and cheese and thankfully, wasn’t overloaded on the veggies. The chicken was grilled perfectly but lacked seasoning. It was a good salad but the quantity did not make it score full marks on the satisfaction chart. 

Price | Rs 190
Calories | 170 

Hariyali Soya Tikka 

A vegetarian’s chicken or soya as we like to call it, is one of the most protein-rich foods available. It contains very low amounts of fat which makes it a fav for the gym freaks! This place served it with a mint and coriander marinade after light grilling. The seasoning wasn’t delicious enough to make the dish any special. 

We expected the char-y goodness that comes from the tandoor but it was nowhere to be found and left the texture quite rubbery. The salad was just chopped cucumber, tomatoes, and onions with chaat masala. Overall, the dish was very thanda for the price! 

Price | Rs 250 
Calories | 209 

Tofulicious Wrap 

Tofu is another protein rich food which has been replacing paneer in many gym diets. The name says the dish would be full of tofu and deliciousness, and it was! Stir fried tofu and veggies with no oil and a decent amount of seasoning constituted the filling. The wrap’s covering was a wheat based chapati. It tasted quite good with the fresh sour dip served alongside. It was really filling and can definitely be taken as an after-gym meal. Our only complaint - the covering chapati should have been cooked a little more. 

Price | Rs 160 
Calories | 220 

Blueberry Pancake 

Who said you can’t have anything sweet on a diet? These Blueberry Pancakes were the answer to our sugary cravings without the side effects. Made from a wheat-based batter, the pancake was light and fluffy. The blueberry jam was deliciously tangy and sweet at the same time. However, they served it with some chocolate sauce which we would suggest you avoid because it does not go with the flavour of blueberry and increases the calorific content. 

Price | Rs 140 
Calories | 200

The Slimming Detox 

As interesting as the name sounds, the actual drink was quite a disappointment! We did expect juice but this one lacked the quantity and the taste that would have made it worth the price. The ingredients indicated apple, cucumber, celery, and beetroot. It was just that - put into a blender and poured fresh. It was something a juice shop would sell for one-third the price. It tasted like beetroot juice as that was the most prominent flavour. Nothing to write home about for sure!

Price | Rs 140 
Calories | Less Than 100

Can you think of any other place that actually dishes out healthy grub AND gives you a calorie-count of each one to boot? Gym Kook is one place all you gym freaks gotta check out ASAP!

Meal For Two | Rs 800
Location | Gym Kook, S-22, Crescent Square Mall, DC Chowk, Rohini
Must Haves | Tofulicious Wrap & Blueberry Pancake