This café in Ahmedabad scores high on design, food, experience

Spread across 3000 sq ft, Ahmedabad’s MRDA rooftop café is a unique example of regenerative design, indigenous building practices and seasonal food. Founded by Sanidhya Bhuva and Purav Patel, MRDA opened last year and has cemented a firm place for itself in the city’s dining scene. “MRDA is the Sanskrit word for soil, and through it, we ask a simple question: what if a space could work with nature, rather than simply exist within it?” says Bhuvan.

Designed by Studio Out of the Shed, the space focusses on indigenous architecture, ensuring that natural light reaches every part of the café throughout the day, shaping the experience of the space as much as the architecture itself. “This thought process extends to the kitchen and craft as well.

MRDA’s menu is built around local, seasonal produce and a closed-loop culinary system, where ingredients, time and process MRDA is deeply rooted in Ahmedabad. The project draws from the city’s climate, local produce, materials, craft practices and evolving design culture, while interpreting them through a contemporary hospitality format.” are treated as part of the larger ecology of the space,” shares Patel.

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The culinary offerings were concept ualised by Chef Gayatri Desai, and are now led by Prasanna Save, Head Chef and R&D, with food viewed as a material that changes with season, availability and time. “The materials have stories beyond aesthetics. Lime replaces conventional cement, IPS flooring is pigmented with natural oxides, lighting is made from waste paper, and indigo is prepared through traditional processes.

The material palette is intended to demonstrate how familiar, low-impact and locally rooted materials can shape a contemporary hospitality environment,” says Bhuvan. Over 80% of MRDA’s produce comes from a local farm, with the menu changing as per seasonality. The kitchen uses ingredients in a closed-loop approach, so nothing is wasted. Excess fruit can be fermented or preserved, and by-products can find their way into other preparations.