Why We Skip Room Service | Forest Side Farm, Uttarakhand

joshihemanshu
Jun 27
3 min read

No Room Service: Why Breaking Bread Together Matters to Us

We've had a few guests over the years look around their room for a telephone or a room service menu when they first arrive at Forest Side Farm. We gently tell them that if they want breakfast, they'll just have to walk across the dewy grass to our main dining space when the morning bell rings.

A Deliberate Choice, Not an Oversight

It's a completely intentional decision on our part. We know the luxury of a tray dropped off at your bedside is nice, but we believe something much more valuable happens when you step out of your room instead. These small, unhurried interactions are what actually shape a memorable slow-living farm stay experience — not the convenience of never having to leave it.

What Happens Around the Table

Our dining space centers on beautiful 1st floor Forest Side cafe. When a meal is served — fresh, hot, and straight from our farm kitchen — everyone sits down together. There's usually a polite, slightly awkward silence at first, the kind that happens between strangers sharing a space. Then someone passes the homebaked bread, someone asks where the other group is traveling from, and within ten minutes the table is full of conversation.

Over the years we've watched solo travelers swap book recommendations with families, and corporate executives get unsolicited, screen-free life advice from retirees twice their age. By the time the coffee pots are empty, people who were strangers two hours earlier are planning a walk down to the Guruni river together, or heading out to explore our 2.5-acre organic food forest as a group.

Why This Matters More Than Convenience

In a world where most of the day is spent isolated behind individual screens, sitting down at a common table to share an honest, scratch-made meal is a small but real way to remember what genuine human connection feels like. That's the heartbeat of Forest Side Farm — we're not just offering a place to sleep, we're creating a space to slow down and share a piece of your story with people you'd otherwise never meet.

Practical Things to Know

Is the Forest Side Cafe just for breakfast, or for all meals?
Answer: Forest Side Cafe is a multipurpose space for all meals and for any other activities the guests wish to enjoy alone or in a group. Located in the first floor, is the most scenic spot, giving an opulent view green forested hills and farm lands all around.
Roughly what time does the morning bell ring?
Answer: Being an exclusive place with very limited number of guests we do not have the concept of bell ringing. We serve the food and meals with consultation with the guests.
If a guest genuinely prefers privacy or has mobility/health needs, is a private meal ever accommodated — or is cafe meals a firm house policy?
Answer: As a norm we do not serve food in the rooms. Guests will have to come to the cafe to have all their meals.
How many guests typically share the table at once.
Answer: Being an exclusive place we host maximum 6 guests at any point of time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Forest Side Farm offer room service?
No — meals are served at a shared communal table rather than delivered to individual rooms. This is a deliberate part of the property's slow-living, slow-food philosophy rather than a service limitation.
What meals are served at the Forest Side Cafe table?
All meals, including breakfast, lunch, dinner or any kind of in between snacks are served at the Forest Side Cafe.
Is cafe dining required, or can guests eat privately?
The cafe tables are segregated with planters giving private space to guests if they require within the cafe.
What time is breakfast served at Forest Side Farm?
Our usual breakfast time is between 8:30 AM and 10:00 AM.
What time dinner is served at Forest Side Farm?
Dinner is served at 8:00 PM. We do not take orders after 9:30 PM.
Is this style of dining suitable for families or solo travelers?
Yes — the cafe format has historically worked well for both; solo travelers, families, and even retirees have shared meals and ended up exploring the property together afterward.