Baked goodies
The story of ‘Excelsior Bakery’ is a long one, one that dates back to many decades. Sagadevan, an enthusiastic baker, learnt the art of baking from the British and started his own venture in Shivajinagar. The small but popular confectionery store has withstood the test of time and has passed down four generations.
Saipreeth Muralidharan, the youngest to join the modest venture, says, “My great grandfather worked with the British at a bakery called ‘Bangalore Bakery’, in Cantonment, for a few years before it was dissolved. In 1930, he started his own bakery on Seppings Road and with the help of a British woman named Emery, learnt the tricks of the trade. She was the one who named it ‘Excelsior’ because she thought the number nine is lucky. The door number of the bakery was also nine at the time (now it has changed to number 36, a multiple of nine).”
A variety of cakes, buns and breads can be found here. But unlike the famous Iyengar Bakeries that spot the City, ‘Excelsior’ has a niche clientele. “We start preparing for Christmas a month and a half before; our plum cakes are famous and have special spices and essences that have been passed down from father to son. Our items, unlike other bakeries, have influences from the British, so it’s a niche crowd who come to buy our goods,” says co-owner Anuradha. Every year, for St Mary’s Feast, they prepare a 70 kg cake.
After Sagadevan, his only son Angannan took over. He passed it down to his two sons, Dharmalingam and Muralidharan, who are the current caretakers, along with Saipreeth (who is the latter’s son). Many of their customers are third or fourth generation loyalists. They come to feast on treats like the Japanese cake, ‘barfi’, mint bread, ribbon cake, honey cake, sponge cake, puffs and spiced breads. One aged customer says that his grandfather used to bring him here when he was 20. “Another customer recently came to the bakery from Chennai. His relatives, who live in Bengaluru, would take our products to him when they visited. He wanted to see the shop for himself and went back with nine loaves of sweet bread!” relates Saipreeth.
Along with scrumptious sweets and savouries, they also customise cakes. “We’ve always done it,” says Saipreeth, as he showcases some of the cakes that are shaped like a ship, Rajnikanth, Michael Jackson, Ben 10, Disney characters and more. “If a person gets a picture of a cake, we make it,” he adds.
What makes the bakery different is that they aren’t afraid of change. In February, they renovated the entire place and added a few things. “Before, most of the goods were of second sale, but now almost everything is ours. Also, we introduced a new menu that caters to the youth. Now it has a non-vegetarian component to it, with chicken rolls, pizzas, burgers and puffs. We only use chicken, but for ‘Ramadan’ we are planning to make mutton ‘samosas’,” says Saipreeth. They had to get a halal certificate, and now they are making delicious savouries. “We also introduced tea and coffee because people were tired of aerated drinks. And we installed a bench for the older generation,” he adds.
They strive to keep preservatives out of their goods. “We try to not use gels and chemicals but these days it can’t be helped. But most of our products don’t have much of it. In cakes, if gel is used, it becomes softer but doesn’t last long,” says Muralidharan.
Saipreeth, an engineering student, says that he initially didn’t have plans to enter the baking business but it was inevitable. “It was my boss’ birthday and I took some goodies from the bakery to work. There, my colleagues ate everything up real quick and asked where I bought them. I hadn’t told them I owned a bakery, but when I did I got many suggestions on how to improve it. Cashing in on these, I thought to myself that I could help the bakery instead of working on someone else’s dreams.”
With plans to expand and attract the youth, they are going to introduce more products. “All our new products are items that Saipreeth and his friends like; it all depends on his liking and understanding,” jokes his mother, Anuradha.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> MetroLife / by Ananya Revanna / DHNS – June 20th, 2015