Healthy food doesn't mean you have to be denied life's pleasures as new West Bridgford takeaway Crunch is demonstrating. Wraps, salad bowls and the ultimate comfort food - a full chicken dinner, with roast potatoes, veg and gravy - make up the offering in Melton Road, which used to be the Nottingham Window Company shop.
The freshly made salads include chicken and avocado, goat's cheese and beetroot, halloumi, vegan falafel, tuna and a colourful Greek salad with grilled chicken breast, lettuce, cucumber, tomato, red onion, feta cheese and olives. If you're after some carbs then all of those can be neatly packed into a warm sourdough wrap.
Another option is a build-your-own Crunch bowl. Peri peri rice, rosemary and thyme roasties (cooked with olive oil) or mixed mash make up the bases, then pick the protein from a list including chicken, falafel and salmon and complete with either hot vegetables, salad or homemade slaw. A range of dressings and sides are also available. And for anyone watching their intake all the calories are listed too.
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It's Crunch's second outlet - the first opened in Mansfield around five years ago - and the company prides itself on making food "without the junk and unnecessary calories." Founder Andreas Zacharia, a former personal trainer, came up with the idea when he was struggling to find something fresh, nutritious, fast, filling - and guilt-free.
Coming from a family which owns chip shops and restaurants, he flipped it to go the quick, healthy route. He said: "It grew really quick. It wasn't just the people in the gyms wanting a healthier lifestyle.
"The greatest satisfaction I get is the builders coming up off the street and saying 'I don't eat lettuce, I need a bit more than a salad' so when we are serving up chicken, mash, roast potatoes, vegetables and gravy they are realising it's all homecooked, wholesome food but they're getting it in a couple of minutes. I think that's what everyone is appreciating the most. I think there is a big need for it.
"The concept is making fast food a cleaner option. We are surrounded by the obvious ones and all we are doing is cleaning it up. Everything is oven-cooked, everything is fresh prepped in the morning, there are no additives and all our suppliers are local. There is nothing fried.
It's six days since the West Bridgford shop has opened. As well as takeaway, there's a row of stools next to the window where customers can eat in.
Andreas said: "The most positive thing that I have noticed is that we've had the same people visiting four times in six days. The return was unbelievable. They came each day to try something different.
"We've had kids coming in for mini bowls with their parents after school, we've had the guys from the rugby club and the gyms, a few footballers from Nottingham Forest and parents pushing their prams, saying 'I haven't got time to cook today let's grab some food from here.' There's been some older customers too."
Crunch is open Monday to Saturday, from 11am, until 4pm on weekdays and Saturdays until 3pm. "We may open earlier as we've already had two customers leave with our breakfast wrap, which has egg, bacon, halloumi, mushroom and beans," he added.
The best-seller is the Chicken Kale Caesar salad, with chicken breast, kale, cherry tomatoes, parmesan cheese and tortilla chips. Sizes range from small to XXL. "You'll hear me telling the staff I do not want the customers to come back saying there's not enough food in that bowl. They need to be full," said Andreas, who had been planning to open a second takeaway in north Notts when coronavirus struck in 2020.
"That didn't work but it all worked out really well in the end," said Andreas, who hopes Crunch's location on the busy main road and West Bridgford's strong sporting links will prove successful.
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