Navratri is one time when festivity and sanctity both can be seen together. People generally pick their sides – the saatvik or the eat-and-make-merry kinds.

Whether you are made to follow family traditions that abstain from certain food groups or you are the motivated pious kinds who strictly adhere to the saatvik way of living. Either way it’s always a good idea to add a little zing to your palate.

Chains like Bikanerwala, Haldiram and Nirula’s offer wholesome Indian thalis and snacks that give reasons to step out and taste something different.

At home too, curious ladies pull out the likes of grahshobhas and manoramans and now also the internet to make interesting additions to the table. You could try out Italian, continental and even South Indian this time as a part of the vrat ka khana. “Though people strictly prefer to cook and eat in the house but occasional varieties add to flavours and festivities,” says Taruna, a professional.

Delhi’s Hilton introduces Navratri Vegetariano at Infinity, with a wide range of favourites like Risotto, pasta, calzone, soups and salads all made from the vrat (fasting) ingredients. Buckwheat (kuttu) black pepper pasta may not give the look and feel of gluten laid pasta but definitely agrees with some spinach and ricotta cheese and makes for not so bad provisional pasta!

Sweet potato salads and soups are another delight - mashed potatoes cooked in cheese and milk, make for a great appetiser. Also try the steamed cabbage pockets – carrots, potatoes and cottage cheese rolled in gossamer cabbage leaves and the navratri vegetable stack and pumpkin and cheese risotto.

The hotel’s executive sous chef Mayur Thapa says, “Everybody produces the regular navratri thali, we thought of doing something different this time. Since Italian is anyways popular, we attempted at introducing it as one of the specials during Navratri.”

If you are in the mood for some continental then try out Cafe Turtle’s fresh fruit salad - a selection of fruits like pomegranate, apples, pears and berries, in a delicious orange dressing or pick from buckwheat pancakes, jacket potatoes or cottage cheese sizzlers. End the meal with a sweet treat of caramelized bananas that go well with a cup of green tea!

Yet another option is to try out South Indian varieties at Vaango where special navratri vrat combo comprising kuttu dosa with dahi vada and swang chawal payassam comes at a very reasonable Rs. 165. Their no onion-no garlic range also includes rawa idli, medu and dahi vada, plain and rava masala dosas, vegetable utthapam, curd and tamarind rice, desserts, accompaniments and huge range of beverages.

“Keeping in mind the food preferences and habits of our customer base during this festive period, we came up with this innovation after many months of R&D,” says Praveen Bodduluri, COO, Vaango.

The outlets boast of their presentation and assure strict saatvik compliance when it comes to cooking and serving dishes. This festive season you have reasons to not compromise on taste, so order what you please.