For the last one year, Srinagar resident Sakib Mir has been bringing to Kashmir — raised on a menu of sheermal, custard and black forest pastries — a spread of French goodies
It would have been a busy day for Saqib Mir, had it not been for the curfew that's struck the tourist hotpot of Boulevard Road in Srinagar. In a 115-square-ft space, stands a dream built last year. A dream to bring to Kashmiris a chance to taste desserts from beyond the childhood staples of black forest and pineapple pastries, bought from local bakeries.
Pain de compangne
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The bakery culture in Kashmir, says Mir over the phone, is deep-rooted, and the hot-selling traditional items are not quite the croissants and mousses. Besides the pastries, your other calorie-packed indulgences include kulchas, katlamas (doughs deep-fried in ghee) to the sheermal (a saffron-flavored traditional flatbread) and baqerkhani (a thick, spiced flat-bread).
Chocolate eclair
Mir followed a traditional profession, dealing in handicrafts, until a chance meeting with French national Melanie Mir, who was visiting the Valley in 2002. They got married the same year and, Mir, who says he's always "loved to bake", attended a CAP diploma course in bakery in Paris. "After the course in 2014, together, we set up a 1,200 square feet bakery on Boulevard Road with the latest equipment," he says. But, the couple lost it all to the September floods that year. Devastated, the couple packed off to Paris for four months, along with their seven-year-old son Rehan, uncertain of a future in Srinagar. "I was in depression. It was my parents and brother who helped us reset our bakery here."
Almond mousse
They returned last year and set up Le Delice. And, life is on track now.
"That is, if you leave out the fact that our bakery has remained closed for one week due to the ongoing tension over the killing of Burhan Wani. We are worried about our safety," Mir informs us with a steady voice.
Le Delice bakery
The menu
"Le Delice means something good and tasty," says Mir, who designs his own menu. The crisp menu contains eclairs, apple caramel, tarts, calission (French candy) and pastries in flavours of chocolate raspberry and apple caramel.
French baking, he explains, is like chemistry. "It is all about mixtures, and their reactions at different temperatures. We are going slow with our menu as it takes me a lot of time to train the staff as the French techniques are pretty different," explains Mir. The 10-12 staffers at Le Delice, at the takeaway, either have experience at traditional bakeries or are college graduates. "So, we do a few products, ace them, and then move on to the next batch," laughs Mir, who is waiting to add a set of charlotte (trifle) pastries, which can be served hot or cold.
Change of taste
Locals are lapping it up. "Everyone wants to try something different, and we did get a few offers to expand already. But, we are in no hurry. We will take it slow and steady," says Mir.
The local bakers, he wishes, would move with the times. "Their products have deteriorated. I get my ingredients, such as cheese and chocolate, from Delhi, where it is imported from Europe. Since we don't have wheat here, I order that from the capital too."
"Presently, we are using a lot of seasonal fruits, such as peaches," says Mir.
While Melanie is in Paris at the moment, she helps with accounts when she is here. "But, she is taking her time to adjust in Kashmir. It is not easy."
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