It is the story of a lonely and miserable evening. The English monarch, King Alfred, defeated in one of his campaigns against the Vikings, sought refuge in the modest home of a peasant. Oblivious of the king’s identity, the peasant woman offered him hospitality but also told him to attend to her cakes while she went outside to collect more firewood for the hearth. Drained by the devastations of a furious military offensive, Alfred stayed distracted as the cakes went up in flames. It is a story that has multiple versions, on whichever platform you choose to read it on. But certain truths, anchored by deftly calibrated character sketches, remain unchanged. Like how a mighty monarch and defender against a Viking invasion, was taken to task by someone of humble origins. As if cakes, the very idea of refinement and gastronomic artistry, cannot be ignored, even by the elite.
The same sense of wonder about this baked delicacy exists even today, feels Hemant Bahri, founder and managing director of the Bahri Group, the parent company of Bahri Hospitality and Cuisines Pvt. Ltd. Bahri Hospitality is the master franchise owner of the India business of Délifrance, the French bakery and café chain brand. Its first outpost, which opened in Delhi’s Defence Colony market on December 30, 2023 pays an ode to celebration cakes. “Indians have a special place in their hearts for confections marking their life’s milestones,” says Bahri. To keep in step with the sentiment, the international brand’s cake menu has been tweaked to accommodate a gallery of architectural cakes, that can be customised upon request.
This section of the menu is transporting, and includes entries such as lotus biscoff cheese cake, Noisette chocolat cake (tiered cake with dark chocolate ganache and hazelnut mousse), almond praline chocolate cake and more. The celebration cakes are eggless, keeping in mind local preferences, but are designed to create a spectacle.
But then, most things about the Délifrance label, set up in France in 1978, is about theatre and ensconcing patrons in a sensory experience. Known for both scale and culinary rigour, the brand has been developing bakery, viennoiserie (breakfast pastries, modelled on confections of Vienna, Austria), pastry and savoury products for foodservice providers, bakers and retailers in 100 countries around the world.
At the Defence Colony outlet, a stylish illustration of a Parisian lady, holding baguettes in one hand and coffee in the other, greets you. On the walls, framed photographs — burlap sacks of freshly-milled wheat, brown paper bags of flour, young wheat stalks with plump kernels — are a vehicle for a deeper understanding of the baking process. They are also a nod to the brand’s association with the cooperative VIVESCIA, a French grain cooperative group.
In the showcases, lit up like gleaming artefact galleries, breads in their many iterations, preen in an arresting setting. The tuna and lettuce croissant bursts at the seams with a cloud of tuna flakes on a thatch of salad leaves. Sitting close, the classic ham and cheese croissant sandwich offers a window to a range of savoury notes. The vegetarian category gets a lift with the pesto, mozzarella and tomato croissant, with the buttery mouthfeel of the bread playing off against the piquant pesto.
Diners in Delhi-NCR may remember that the international Délifrance brand tried to enter the Indian F&B space in 2016, with an outlet in Gurugram’s CyberHub. However, operations closed within a year. In its second foray, the brand has ambitious plans and is aiming to establish 30-35 stores across three formats (Bistro, Café-Bakery and express delivery) by 2028. In the next six to eight months, the brand is hoping to open five-six outlets in the Delhi-NCR region.
Bahri Hospitality will own around 50-60 per cent of these outlets directly and the rest will take the sub-franchise route. “The bakery business in India is evolving and baked goods are preferred over sweets on some occasions. Also, it is mostly unorganised. There are hardly players that exist in multiple cities. We decided to plug the gap,” says Bahri.
To that end, fresh as well as frozen ready-to-bake products for the Delhi NCR outlets will be served by the central kitchen set up at Delhi’s Mohan Cooperative Area. As of now, an arcade of viennoiserie, savouries, and patisseries, churned out from the central kitchen has been trotted out for patrons at the brand’s first outlet. This includes the Foret Noire Chiffon Roll or the Black Forest roll, Caramel Salé where a bar shaped pastry is crowned with caramel mousse and the flamboyant Almond Paris Brest. Rounding off the experience are fancy nibbles such as the ‘Assorted Lavash Box,’ where bread sticks crumble on your tongue in a vortex of savoury dust. Cheddar bread sticks and croissant crisps, displayed in see-through boxes at the outlet, declares their kinship with both flavour and texture.
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