28 May,2026 09:35 AM IST | Mumbai | Phorum Pandya
Jackfruit haleem
A new cafe gets us excited enough to trek to 2nd Pasta Lane in Colaba to check out Concu on a searing summer afternoon with a few adjustments to our regular order: We swap the hot Americano for a Miso Caramel and Cream Cold Brew (Rs 375) and follow it up with a stiff Gazpach-Oh! made with tequila, mezcal and an earthy tomato and celery cordial. Cocktails hour at the cafe begins at 7 pm sharp.
Mango Choux
Life and business partners, Swati Upadhyay and Sahil Taneja, recently opened Concu, a high-ceiling space that was once a garage for business tycoon Vijay Mallya's fleet. The duo began 14 years ago as a bespoke cake shop, offering macaroons, choux, tiramisu, whoopie pies and personalised cakes in Begumpet, Hyderabad. The Mumbai outpost boasts of natural light that floods through the translucent glass bricks; a central community table and sofa seating. The display backdrop holds up a macrame piece done by a staffer's mother. The heart logo untangles to make room "for unfolding new stories, in a new city," Upadhyay reveals.
Taneja has designed the display counter to tempt: Lines of opera, choux buns, seasonal mango dishes show their best side. The counter ends at the coffee station that extends into the cocktail bar. While the coffee is roasted by Chandigarh's Bloom Coffee Roasters, we hear they bought the pending lot of the coffee Suhas Dwarkanath used to make the winning cuppa for the semi-finals of World Barista Championship in 2025.
Taneja explains, "Every dessert is handmade - layered by hands, sans moulds, and cut with precision. Compotes are made in-house. We're proud of our choux buns that a select four-member team makes, ensuring size perfection," he shares. It is 11 am, and somewhere, it is cocktail-o-clock. We sip on Gazpach-Oh! (Rs 995). It's a pretty-looking, stiff drink with tequila and mezcal, landing our palate in a savoury tomato and celery soup, we mean, cordial. For day-drinking, Lush Americano (Rs 975) works well, spiked with Campari, rosso vermouth, and creamy beer foam.
The Jackfruit Haleem (Rs 595) is mashed heavenly goodness that replaces the meat with jackfruit, in the wheat and lentils preparation. The side of flat pita bread is dry, so we skip it. The lusciously-textured haleem is comforting. The zesty Avocado and Popped Rice (Rs 545) comes as a bed of green pea hummus, holding smashed avocado with green apple and popped rice. The dish needs salt, spice and seasoning.
The Chicken 65 Sando (Rs 595), a shokupan milk bread slathered with a desi chicken 65 sauce, and fried chicken offers a perfect balance of savoury crunch. The Southern Style PKG Hotdog (Rs 695) continues the spicy indulgence in a soft roll stuffed with pulled lamb, and mayonnaise mint chutney.
Matcha's new-age successor, Ube made from taro root, is on the menu. This trending Filipino dessert is originally made from purple yam. The Iced Mango Ube (Rs 375) is a three-layered drink topped with the purple yam ube, coconut and mango. It's starchy, fruity and is a balanced sweet treat. Dessert, Concu's heartbeat, is the finale. We cut into the seven layers of Opera (Rs 375) - coffee, chocolate and almonds interspersed with buttercream and ganache. The Mango Raspberry Roulade (Rs 345) lends a seasonal twist while the milk chocolate cruffin oozes gooey milk chocolate from its centre. We press the dropper holding mango compote into the Choux Bun (Rs 195); we can understand the four bakers' craft at play. Crusty coating, a wholesome bite, and burst of coconut cream and mango notes make it worth the trek.
AT Concu, Colaba Market, 2nd Pasta Lane, Colaba.
TIME 10 am to 9 pm; (cocktail bar opens at 7 pm)
CALL 9819822225
