Mountains, music and some good food, sounds like a delicious and a wholesome combination right? Well, there's a perfect place in the heart of Manali where you can get the perfect blend of all three together called The Johnson's Cafe. Apart from the absolutely delicious food, the place is instagram-worthy and will definitely bring out your hidden inner child.
The cafe lies within the premises of Johnson’s Hotel, overlooking the lush lawns of the hotel and the Himalayas through foldaway windows. I hope you can imagine how breathtaking the view would be. The cafe is located at a stone's throw distance from the iconic Mall Road and can be easily spotted by anyone walking on the road. The cafe has beautiful wooden interiors and also provision for outdoor seating. You may also choose an outdoor sitting arrangement on a bright sunny day for a sumptuous breakfast, for which the cafe is quite popular for. Towards the evening, they usually light a bonfire in the lawn which is followed by live music, making it a perfect place to have dinner with your friends or your family. Apart from delicious food, they also have a well stocked bar that serves a good collection of wine and cocktails.
During my stay at Johnson’s Lodge with my family, I had the opportunity to try one of their famous wood fired pizzas. And it was, without any doubts, one of the best pizzas I’ve had in my whole life. The pizza was how a pizza should basically be, crusty and a little on the edges and soft around the centre. We ordered a mixed vegetable pizza and the chef was really generous with the toppings and the cheese. Following day, we ordered two main courses followed by a dessert for dinner. For the main course we ordered Manali Local Chicken and Grilled Paneer in Masala Sauce. The Manali Local Chicken was served with some steamed rice, Madra-Palak and lettuce and cucumber salad. The chicken, cooked to perfection, was tender and beautifully cooked in the local pahadi flavours. The Grilled Paneer in Masala Sauce was, too, served with some steamed rice, Madra-Palak and salad. The cottage cheese sauce was a unique blend of spiciness and sweetness. Madra palak is a light, flavourful and full of butter spinach dish.
The dessert menu at the Johnson’s Cafe is pretty much restricted, so we decided to opt for Apple Crumble. You can either choose vanilla ice-cream or custard along with it. The Apple Crumble itself was a tad bit too sweet but became a perfectly balanced dessert along with custard.
If you ever have a chance to stay at Manali, I would recommend you to have at least one meal at this insta-worthy cafe. The lovely outdoor setting with wooden frames and vines of plants hanging around will surely lighten up your mood and the wooden interiors with funky photo frames, book shelves and bright sofas will leave you spellbound, wanting you to spend a whole day here.