In a bustling metropolitan city like Mumbai, where the food and beverage market is highly competitive, every eatery strives to distinguish itself from competitors. This often involves engaging customers in a first-hand experience, even in the cooking process that takes place in their kitchens. Recently, we had the opportunity to explore this concept at Bake Live Studio, an artisanal bakery and cafe. Here, customers can witness their food being prepared in a live kitchen, allowing them to gain insight into the entire baking process.
Interior of Bake Live Studio
Located at Girgaon Chowpatty in South Mumbai, Bake Live Studio is the third outlet that opened last month, following the successful launches in Mulund and Colaba. Upon entering, you'll find a spacious shelf on the right filled with an array of bakery items made in-house by the team, including multigrain bread, buns, and a variety of healthier snacks. The bakery leads to a vibrant seating area, adorned with modern furniture and lighting, all bathed in an inviting orange hue. Additionally, on the second level, there's more seating available, accompanied by a striking painting that beautifully encapsulates the concept of a live kitchen – the standout feature that sets this outlet apart from others. It's the perfect place to sit, chat, and savor a delicious meal.
Presenting the legacy dishes with a twist
/local-samosal/media/post_attachments/d56a634f-16b.jpg "publive-image")
Baked Vada Pav Bun
As mentioned, the icing on the cake here remains in its ability to give the guests a sneak peek into the making process of the food they order and hence, we, too, loved seeing our Paneer Bhurji Pav in making. The dish stood out for us for two reasons: first, it was an ode to the famous Indian street dish Keema Pav that is served in the majority of the old and heritage cafes and outlets in South Bombay, and the rich aroma and taste of Paneer Bhurji. "We wanted to curate a dish which is popular in South Mumbai but giving the patrons an option in veg, and hence, came up with Paneer Bhurji Pav," Vishaal Vira, the co-founder of the outlet said.
/local-samosal/media/post_attachments/01b76f61-cae.jpg "publive-image")
Vegetable Puff Mosa
Just like this, the outlet also presents a lot many other options that are served with a bling of difference to its traditional forms like their Vegetable Puff Mosa. Bigger than the size of a regular Samosa, the filling might have been nothing more than usual, but the coating stood out for us in this experimental food. We also had our hands on their baked Vada Pav Bun. Made in-house, the favourite dish of Mumbai, surely tasted a bit different, and gushy to the regular Vada Pavs in the market. What turned out to be a high spot from the outlet was also their Cheese Cream Bites that the bakery maintains to keep mild and sweet among variants like Almond, Chocolate Hazelnut, Coconut, and Rose pistachios out of which, we relished the Almond and Chocolate Hazelnut before calling it a day.
Live kitchen, experiments, and affordability
/local-samosal/media/media_files/RKAoVpJUuYTzyWvKN4dc.jpeg)
/local-samosal/media/media_files/b7fq5jd3J4V7tIQjH4bf.jpeg)
In addition to these items, Bake Live Studio also offers other Indian street food options, prepared with extra precautions. They claim to make all food items from scratch in their factory unit and cook them in their kitchen at the outlets. During our visit, we had the opportunity to witness the live baking of their buns, which was executed with great precision and attention to detail. Within minutes, the bakery was filled with the delightful aroma of freshly baked goods.
It's worth noting that the outlet's recognition may vary between their earlier two locations, Mulund and Colaba. The reasons for this recognition depend on the preferences of the customers in each area. As Vira explains, 'We have observed that the majority of people prefer items like Pizza at the Colaba outlet, while Vada Pav is a favourite at the Mulund outlet.' He's excited to see what works best for the Girgaon location.
Having said that, apart from the fact that the outlet has a live kitchen and makes the majority of the things in-house, the customers might not get away with the claims of the brand making the Indian street food healthier while also not ignoring the fact that the dishes are crafted differently to stand apart.
What can surely help the outlet survive in the long run is the affordability that comes with a lot of these items being served at the outlet, not ignoring the fact that it is located in good proximity with the colleges around and college-going students are most likely to hop on the place along with the local residents in search of Indian snacks made with an experimental twist. But for an artisanal bakery like this, that is working hard to even present Indian street food as a healthier alternative to regular street food, who becomes the audience and what becomes the best-selling dish for this outlet in South Mumbai, only time can tell.
/local-samosal/media/agency_attachments/sdHo8lJbdoq1EhywCxNZ.png)
/local-samosal/media/member_avatars/NcIP7MMQa99n1A2IIOAC.jpg )
Follow Us/local-samosal/media/media_files/r9QoeuwpNrQtdBSU12Pt.png)
/local-samosal/media/media_files/YPx2ixUoPHtjbIDVHNJt.jpeg)