How the local bakery went international
Written By
Mini Ribeiro
| Updated:
Bun maska and chai at an Irani bakery; chicken patties at Merwan's; hot dogs from Vienna bakery - these were some of the goodies we loved.
Even the small bakery is keen to meet the demands of the discerning Mumbaikar. Move over khaari biscuits, make way for biscotti
Bun maska and chai at an Irani bakery; chicken patties at Merwan's; hot dogs from Vienna bakery - these were some of the goodies we loved. But times have changed, and the Mumbaikar has become a more discerning customer, when it comes to the latest in food. And so, many a city bakery has been forced to reinvent itself.
Arun Pinto of Birdy's Bakery and Patisserie attributes this change to the evolving urban lifestyle. "The rising affluence in fast-paced Indian cities has opened the doors of opportunity for the bakery sector. The broad consumer appeal of bakery products can be seen in the sheer variety available in the market today. The present day consumer looks for new products, better appeal, taste and convenience," he says.
Executive chef, Deepak Bhatia from the Hyatt Regency, concurs. "Customers have graduated from Irani bakeries to franchisees," he says. "The gap is narrowing, and with a lot of international companies coming into India, customers are familiar with the product, know what they want, and are aware of the real taste."
Bhatia says that at the Hyatt Regency, the emphasis is always on authenticity. In order to serve customers of The Bakery the "real thing", they strive for perfection through the right equipment as well as the ingredients. Varieties of breads ranging from whole wheat to multi-grain, mini desserts as per international trends, cakes, there's plenty to choose from.
There is constant pressure on bakeries to update their information, technology, products and services, to meet the ever-changing needs of the consumer. And there's also a strong Western influence on the product mix.
Emil Carvalho of American Express Bakery, says, "Over the last few years, we have changed our service style. We have moved to self-service. That is the trend abroad, and clearly the Indian customer wants that. We have also introduced a lot of health food items - whole wheat biscotti, crackers, as well as low-fat desserts and cakes." Keeping this in mind, Birdy's, too, will be launching their Caloric Health Food Range by the end of September.
Even old favourites like Gaylord's at Churchgate, have succumbed to the trend. "While we have retained our classics, we are today a complete bake shop with the latest in breads, cookies, desserts, and savoury items on par with any other bakery of international standard," says Noel D'souza of Gaylord's.
There's more consumer awareness, which can no longer be ignored. People want to know about expiry dates, ingredients used, calorie counts per serving, et al.
Kainaz Messman of Theobrama, says, "Bakeries are no longer producing mass desserts with a lot of sugar and cream. The customer is well-informed, and is both quality- as well as health-conscious. So naturally, we have to cater to the changing needs of customers. They don't mind paying the price for the 'real' thing."
Tirandaz Irani of Mumbai's oldest Irani Bakery, Yazdani, agrees that change is inevitable. "Keeping in mind the needs of the customer, we have introduced a whole range of breads, wheat poi, German whole wheat bread, brown bread.
In desserts, we have apple pies, lemon pies and plum cakes, as there is growing demand for them." He insists, however, that no one makes bun-maska or khaari biscuits the way they do. It's good to know that some things don't change.
Bun maska and chai at an Irani bakery; chicken patties at Merwan's; hot dogs from Vienna bakery - these were some of the goodies we loved. But times have changed, and the Mumbaikar has become a more discerning customer, when it comes to the latest in food. And so, many a city bakery has been forced to reinvent itself.
Arun Pinto of Birdy's Bakery and Patisserie attributes this change to the evolving urban lifestyle. "The rising affluence in fast-paced Indian cities has opened the doors of opportunity for the bakery sector. The broad consumer appeal of bakery products can be seen in the sheer variety available in the market today. The present day consumer looks for new products, better appeal, taste and convenience," he says.
Executive chef, Deepak Bhatia from the Hyatt Regency, concurs. "Customers have graduated from Irani bakeries to franchisees," he says. "The gap is narrowing, and with a lot of international companies coming into India, customers are familiar with the product, know what they want, and are aware of the real taste."
Bhatia says that at the Hyatt Regency, the emphasis is always on authenticity. In order to serve customers of The Bakery the "real thing", they strive for perfection through the right equipment as well as the ingredients. Varieties of breads ranging from whole wheat to multi-grain, mini desserts as per international trends, cakes, there's plenty to choose from.
There is constant pressure on bakeries to update their information, technology, products and services, to meet the ever-changing needs of the consumer. And there's also a strong Western influence on the product mix.
Emil Carvalho of American Express Bakery, says, "Over the last few years, we have changed our service style. We have moved to self-service. That is the trend abroad, and clearly the Indian customer wants that. We have also introduced a lot of health food items - whole wheat biscotti, crackers, as well as low-fat desserts and cakes." Keeping this in mind, Birdy's, too, will be launching their Caloric Health Food Range by the end of September.
Even old favourites like Gaylord's at Churchgate, have succumbed to the trend. "While we have retained our classics, we are today a complete bake shop with the latest in breads, cookies, desserts, and savoury items on par with any other bakery of international standard," says Noel D'souza of Gaylord's.
There's more consumer awareness, which can no longer be ignored. People want to know about expiry dates, ingredients used, calorie counts per serving, et al.
Kainaz Messman of Theobrama, says, "Bakeries are no longer producing mass desserts with a lot of sugar and cream. The customer is well-informed, and is both quality- as well as health-conscious. So naturally, we have to cater to the changing needs of customers. They don't mind paying the price for the 'real' thing."
Tirandaz Irani of Mumbai's oldest Irani Bakery, Yazdani, agrees that change is inevitable. "Keeping in mind the needs of the customer, we have introduced a whole range of breads, wheat poi, German whole wheat bread, brown bread.
In desserts, we have apple pies, lemon pies and plum cakes, as there is growing demand for them." He insists, however, that no one makes bun-maska or khaari biscuits the way they do. It's good to know that some things don't change.