Hailing from one of Chennai’s prominent families in the hospitality business, Nivruti Reddy proves that she’s a chip of the old block with her new ventures. We met the vivacious entrepreneur.
She’s smart, erudite and with her feet firmly planted on the ground! Nivruti Reddy was born with the proverbial silver spoon. “Growing up, hospitality and the food business was all I knew,” she confesses. Nivruti’s family owns the Savera Hotel, and Shyam’s Hospitality, a group of successful restaurants across Chennai. But she was determined to do things on her own. After an undergraduate degree in Management from Warwick University, UK, she went to Cornell University to pursue a one-year intensive training in Hospitality Management. “That was the turning point for me. I learnt so much and it was a great networking opportunity. We were 70 of us, from across nationalities, and were able to interact and take so much back from each other as well, especially those with family businesses.”
Nivruti decided to step out of the shadow of her parents, especially her mother Nina Reddy, who is known to be a hostess par excellence. She knew where here skills lay, and decided to embark on the journey of creating a series of new confectionary outlets, “I’ve always enjoyed working with confectionary, and when I returned, I decided to start Baker’s Code, a chain in Chennai. We didn’t want to do the usual one-size-fits-all, impersonal chain. Each Baker’s Code outlet serves as a unique neighbourhood bakery that provides freshly baked breads, cookies, cupcakes, doughnuts and cakes. All our products are fresh, and that is our USP. We have three branches in Chennai currently (OMR, Velachery and Besant Nagar) and are looking to expand into other neighbourhoods around Chennai.”
While Baker’s Code is undoubtedly popular on the south Chennai circuit, it is Nivruti’s latest venture The Brew Room at Savera Hotel, which is really the buzz of Chennai right now. “While the culture of coffee shops is very popular here, I found that there was very little emphasis on coffee as such, and not much variety other than the usual cappuccinos and latte variants. So coffee connoisseur and expert Mark Tormo from Barcelona has created and crafted a menu with specialised varieties of coffee, and this, I would say, is our USP.”
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The coffees are brewed using eight different methods, with brewers working hand in hand with the chefs and bakers to offer recipes inspired by genuine taste and ingredients. The Cold Drip is brewed for 18 hours and served chilled at 5 degrees C, while Light Roast with popcorn, almond also has fruity sweet notes with hints of wine. Chemex was invented by a German chemist obsessed with coffee, and is delicate, mild and preferably drunk black, or with just a cloud of milk. Medium Roast has floral and fruity notes, specifically citrus and ripe berries, while French Press The brew is like an infusion— aromatic and with round mouth feel.
Vaccum Siphon is flavourful and sophisticated with lingering taste. Aeropress is a fairly new method developed in the US. Hand-operated, the pressure to brew comes from the brewer’s own strength, by pressing with the hand. Dark Roast offers caramel and nutty notes with hints of wine. Turkish Coffee is thick, short, black and brewed with fine powder flavoured with cardamom, using an Ibrik, over the fire, and finally, The Brew Room Dabara Coffee is essentially Madras Filter Coffee but sans chicory, dark roasted and brewed with the traditional filter and blended with fresh buffalo milk.
Nivruti says, “In terms of service, we have trained the staff to provide adequate information so that they guide the customer to choose well. We have also focussed on food-coffee pairings, so while you can have the food and coffee separately, we also advice you on how to pair them.” Done up like a typical European Café, the furniture and little artefacts that add to the ambience, are handpicked by the family on visits abroad. She is also the Marketing Manager for www.itspets.com, an online pet store that she’s started with her husband and friends. “We have also recently opened an Itspets store on East Coast Road in Chennai to provide a hassle-free shopping experience for pet owners.”
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RECOMMEMDED PAIRINGS
*Esspresso with a Blondie (with white chocolate brownie)
*Classic Cappuccino with Langues de chat cookies (cookies to scoop up the top layer of cream and then dive into the cappuccino).
*Cold Drip (an 18-hour brewed coffee served chilled at 5 degrees C served in a wine glass) with
Fettuccine Carbonara.
*Shakeratto (hand shaken black coffee chilled with ice cubes) with a Spicy Cajun Chicken Sandwich
*Chemex Coffee with the Three Cheese Soufflé Omelette
ADVICE TO WOMEN WHO WANT TO BE FOOD ENTREPRENEURS
*Love what you do and don’t be afraid to fail.
*Worry less about growth and more about quality.
*There is no substitute for talking directly to the customer.
*Be ethical and authentic; remain competitive but stay true to your beliefs and principles.