The owner of a new Mount Vernon eatery
bDelight Restaurant is out to prove that a nutritious meal can still be tasty.
The 50-seat restaurant will open in the former Five Guys Burgers and Fries space, across from the Walters Art Museum, on April 19. The 2,000-square-foot restaurant at 111 Center St. will employ 12.
BDelight will offer customers food choices based on their daily calorie intake goal and use this to determine what items to order off the menu. They also have the option of ordering individual items, or a 1,000-calorie “balanced meal” that is low in cholesterol and saturated fat. Each balanced meal costs $12 and includes a main dish of a sandwich, pasta or a Chinese dish, along with a drink, salad, side and dessert. Individual menu items cost between $4 and $7 and include fruit cup, marinated vegetable salad and reduced-fat potato chips. Sweet-and-sour tofu with vegetables and beef with broccoli are among the Chinese dishes.
If successful, owner Rajah Anandarajah says he plans to open more Baltimore locations and possibly expand nationwide, including locations in California where he has relatives.
“People are watching what they eat these days. The local community, is more health conscious,” Anandarajah says.
Computers and scales in the kitchen area provide prompts to remind cooks and prep workers how much of each ingredient should be included for each dish, Owner Rajah Anandarajah says. Customers can place delivery orders on the website. The restaurant also has cashiers and two kiosks for self-orders.
Anandarajah says he used personal finances to purchase the 2,000 square-foot space. He declined to say how much he spent.
Writer: Jolene Carr
Sources: Rajah Anandarajah, owner of bDelight Restaurant; Christina Camba, Profiles PR