Sault Ste. Marie's first meat-free restaurant quietly removed 'plant-based' from its exterior signage last week.
"We did it the day before yesterday, and nobody noticed, to be honest," Ojas co-founder Surendra Kumar Bansal tells SooToday.
As we first reported in February 2024, Bansal and partner Oyunbileg Chuluunbazar came to the Sault from Mongolia to start a meatless South Asian fusion restaurant in the former Muio’s location at 685 Queen St. East.
After operating there for the past year, they haven't lost their enthusiasm for vegetarian and vegan cuisine, but are nonetheless preparing to add animal protein options to the Ojas menu.
"We are still open, and we are changing our menu," says chef Bansal.
"We are incorporating some meat proteins, including chicken and fish options. It will be a fusion menu. A majority of the items will be East Indian-inspired."
The newcomers from Mongolia are no strangers to the hospitality business.
They moved here from Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia with a population of 1.45 million.
There, they continue to operate three meat-free restaurants in a country that consumes large quantities of animal protein.
In November 2023, the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, a branch of India’s Ministry of External Affairs, named their Namaste Ulaanbaatar restaurant one of the top six Indian culinary experiences in the world.
Their eateries have fed the Dalai Lama and prime ministers of India and Bangladesh.
They even have a Namaste restaurant ready-to-eat products manufacturing unit.
Bansal and Chuluunbazar are now managing their Mongolian businesses from Sault Ste. Marie as they work here to build their Canadian beachhead.
In January of this year, SooToday reported that the fine dining establishment had been listed for an asking price of $180,000.
"We have decided to close the restaurant due to personal and business considerations," Bansal said then.
He and Chuluunbazar planned to eventually return to Mongolia, but would continue to operate Ojas until a new owner is found.
That plan hasn't changed, Bansal told SooToday on Saturday.
"Our intention hasn't changed, but as a business operator, we have bills to pay and to make sure people know we are open."
The sale listing is being renewed this weekend with a new real estate broker from the Greater Toronto Area and the asking price is reduced to $95,000.
"That shows we are still actively trying to compromise on what we were expecting," Bansal said.
Ojas restaurant stopped opening for lunch earlier this month.
It's open for dinner from 5 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. daily but is closed on Mondays.
Ojas will open on Easter Sunday but Bansal says reservations are recommended.
The new menu with meat options is expected to be ready within a few weeks.
"Our clientele has changed. Now we are getting different clienteles. So keeping that scenario in mind, we are adding some meat options on the menu, while keeping the vegan and vegetarian options available."