Up the narrow by-lanes of Rajpur when the road gets narrower and you think you have seen it all, you chance upon a gem of a café, ‘The Tea Room at Alaya,’ a few month old eatery portrays how an artist’s touch can turn his/her surrounding into a virtual open art gallery.
Perched atop Joshua and Richa Hishey’s ‘The Alaya Design Studio’ their workshop has over the past two years metamorphosised into one of the best joints that Old Rajpur has to offer today.
This twenty-seater café, with its beautiful wooden décor add a touch of timelessness with its windows opening onto the narrow lanes below. The place oozes with good vibes with a view of the lush green hillocks in the backdrop and the Old Rajpur town sprawled below. A team of 4-5 people work under one roof catering to people from 10:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. every night, except Tuesdays. Foreigners; tourists; locals come here from far and wide to taken the flavours of ice tea, kawa, pita bread with hummus and shakes of all kinds.
The brain child of an art graduate from the States Joshua and his wife Richa, who came home to Rajpur in early 2000 and started Alaya Studio way back in 2005 with a handful of unemployed youth from the area. The duo used their expertise in turning their workshop into a perfect setting for a cup of tea and some mouth-watering finger food. Here too Joshua’s wife Richa seems to be his best critic and manager who emphasis on how to improve their new endeavour and keeps adding more to it.
Benhur, the manager for the eatery from Tamil Nadu, happened to be Rajpur when he came upon this chance of putting his Hotel Management degree to use, he tells us, ‘I find the climate lucrative and the setting is perfect for me, I love doing my job.’ And that one can make out, with his ready smile and his love for making shakes and sandwiches.
As evening sets in, Tearoom fills up with a glow from the setting sun, light music in the background along with chitter-chatter over a cup of tea, makes it a must-visit when in Old Rajpur looking for a perfect get-way to just relax and unwind.
