• 4
• Amazing Food, Amazing Owner, Great Juices

First of all, I would like to say that it's not fair you cannot give 5 stars to a restaurant that's not 'pure vegetarian', as Juice Shack deserves more than 5 stars. Let me back up - I'm vegan, and while I did not go hungry while in Varkala, it was sometimes a struggle to get things right/without ghee/without cream. Not at the Juice Shack! Umesh, the owner, works with you to make anything you want vegan! I got to try some of the things I've been dying to try, but couldn't until Juice Shack because they are traditionally made with butter. No problem for Umesh - where in other places, I would get blank stares when I asked if I could have it 'vegan', at Juice Shack I got a blank stare when I said 'Oh, I wish I could have this, but it's not vegan', because, at Juice Shack, EVERYTHING can be made to customer's liking and dietary preferences. Also, it turns out that Umesh was the owner of Elements, the highly rated vegetarian restaurant I tried to find but couldn't (it is currently closed, which is why I couldn't find it). All that said, I only wish I had given Juice Shack a try at the start of my stay, rather than at the tailend of it. I would have honestly eaten every meal there! The menu is huge, and everything on it that I tried was amazing. Juices really are larger than elsewhere in town, and at a better price, and there are daily specials as well. And Umesh, the owner, is an amazing human being. If I go back to Varkala (which I hope I will), part of the reason will be to visit him again, have tea with him, and spend more time in his company - he is positivity and hospitality embodied in a human! If you are in Varkala, make sure to visit Juice Shack at least a few times! You won't be disappointed!