Hyderabad, in all its glutonous glory, has never made dieting easy on its residents.
Who can blame Hyderabadis, really? When surrounded by biryani, haleem, talawa ghosht and the likes, a man simply cannot diet in peace. Add to it the onslaught of cafes we are subjected to every passing day, and the idea of a ‘clean diet’ begins to feel like a punishment.
For years, healthy eating has come with a reputation for being boring. The unspoken rule has been simple: if it is good for you, it probably won’t taste good.
But what if that rule is wrong?
Sandeep Jangala, the founder of Yummy Bee, thinks so. In fact, he’s betting his entire business on it. Sitting down for a conversation with Siasat.com, the former cricketer turned entrepreneur, performed a culinary autopsy on the ‘boring diet’.
Yummy Bee’s concept of stealth health
The inspiration for Yummy Bee was simple: fatherhood. “I had a young daughter, and I did not want her to eat anything bad,” Sandeep says. What began as a personal mission to bake cleaner treats for his family soon evolved into a city-wide business.
However, creating a truly healthy menu meant first dismantling the “health” myths that many Hyderabadis swear by, specifically the belief that jaggery and honey are calorie-free alternatives to sugar. “People actually have this notion that jaggery and honey are better products. But the truth is, the calorie count is the same. The body doesn’t see a ‘healthy’ label; it sees the sugar. We wanted to move past the myths and actually reduce the intake,” he said. By using stevia as an alternative, a single slice of their San Sebastian Cheesecake saves the customer roughly seven teaspoons of sugar.
But sugar is only half the battle; the other half is the “boring” reputation of healthy grains. To combat this, Yummy Bee utilises a 4,000-square-foot R&D facility in Sainikpuri where a team of nutritionists “hide” millets and quinoa inside gourmet favourites. “Millet, almond flour, quinoa and similar flours sound boring to most people, so we don’t make a millet upma or quinoa khichdi,” Sandeep explains. “Instead, we incorporate it into our sourdough, our Korean buns, and our pizza bases. When I give a product to somebody, he should not be able to tell whether it’s sugar-free or not, or if it is gluten-free or not. If you cannot make out the difference, it’s achieved.”
The guilt-free verdict
While the science happens behind the scenes, the results are spreading rapidly across the map. Yummy Bee is India’s first guilt-free cafe chain. It already operates 17 kitchens, with another 13 outlets set to launch across Hyderabad. Additionally, it has officially entered the Bangalore market with 3 stores, with plans to scale up to 10 kitchens there shortly.
Despite this massive scale, Sandeep’s focus remains on the “hero” products that built the brand. He takes immense pride in his desserts, viewing them as the ultimate proof that you do not have to choose between health and indulgence. “Our desserts are our strongest point,” he notes.
To see if the reality matched the R&D, Siasat.com dropped by Yummy Bee’s Kondapur outlet. We started with the San Sebastian Cheesecake, arguably the crown jewel of their dessert line. It possessed the signature scorched top and a centre so creamy and rich that it felt like a direct challenge to the “boring” health-food stereotype. This was followed by the Chocolate Trinity Pastry, a dark, decadent experience that made the absence of refined sugar feel like a magic trick rather than a compromise.
On the savoury side, the Mini Korean Cheese Bun was a standout, offering that creamy, garlicky satisfaction but with a millet-based dough that felt remarkably light. For a cleaner, protein-forward bite, the Zaatar Chicken with Hummus provided a fresh, Mediterranean zing that hit the spot without the heavy grease. It is the kind of meal that leaves you feeling fueled rather than in a food coma.
Sandeep Jangala and Yummy Bee have proven that while Hyderabad may always be a city of biryani and haleem, there is finally a seat at the table for indulgence that doesn’t demand a “punishment” the next morning.
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