Where to get the best Christmas cakes in Mumbai

Fruit cake or plum cake the midday editorial team has tried and tasted and tested all kinds of cakes given that ours is a newsroom of hardcore foodies and much of the food and drink coverage we pull off for the newspaper requires us to taste before we write So when we asked the Anglos East Indians Goans and Mangaloreans in our ranks to list out their favourite Christmas cake look what our search threw upEast Indian magicTanishka DrsquoLyma contributor The GuidePerpetualrsquos amp Rochelle and Clayton Malad West The secret to a good Christmas is the East Indian fruit cake always the light batter one not dark Itrsquos loaded with black currents raisins red and green glace cherries apricots and nuts And since this is a semolina or rava recipe itrsquos super crumbly The word around town is that the best cakes are to be found at Perpetualrsquos Sweets and Rochelle and Claytonrsquos Pro tip Eat a slice hot and fresh out of the oven something this writerrsquos mother taught her In this case maybe yoursquod want to go and pick up the cake yourselfTo order Perpetualrsquos Sweets 9820947968 Rochelle and Clayton 9987252923Treacle treatJane Borges Deputy Editor Sunday middayParisserie GirgaumNayantara Thomas and Farah Shroff the duo behind Parisserie have a special Christmas menu which includes the traditional Christmas cake It has a treacle base and the fruits used include an assortment of cranberries raisins lemon cashews all soaked in a mix of alcohol for over a month The cake comes with a layer of almond marzipan thatrsquos caramelisedTo order 9619331166PicAtul KambleAn organic orgasmSequelAs someone who doesnrsquot associate the decadent Christmas rum cake with anything organic and healthy we were quite surprised when we recently tried Sequelrsquos traditional cake Itrsquos made with fruit and nuts soaked in cognac for over a year and bansi wheat an indigenous variety sourced from Katol near Nagpur and sweetened with raw sugar It has a bit of the health cafersquos rye sourdough starter It brought back memories of a cake we had many moons ago prepared by a Sri Lankan family friend Itrsquos rich and velvety and full of flavour and moistTo order sequelmumbaiinOld is goldPerfect Confectioners Chandan WadiThe plum cake at Perfect Confectioners and Caterers is the star of Chandan Wadi in Girgaum Owner Tony Dsouza says that they have stuck to the same recipe over the decades and it comprises four kinds of fruits which render the creation a unique flavour when compared to other bakeries During Christmas the cakes travel all the way to Dubai and CanadaTo order 22058092Shape shifterSandra AlmeidaThevar News EditorLearned From Mom BandraMy family and many of my friends orders only from Learned From Mom for every celebration especially Christmas This is because their cakes are unfailingly delicious No matter what you choose from Dinellersquos repertoire it will be yummy This year the special menu is all about the bundt cakemdash from chocolate almond frangipane to vanilla bean bundtTo order 9867219430Little bit of everythingJaison Lewis technology columnist Sunday middayZarine Drsquosouzarsquos Nerul Navi MumbaiHome chef Zarine Drsquosouza bakes a variety of cakes and you can have your pick of the lot Be it the rich fruit cake with marzipan and fondant light fruit cakes alcoholfree creations Panforte and the splendid Goan baath cake made with semolina and coconut The cakes are excellent one of the best I have had The cake is moist as well when you compare the cake with say a storebought oneTo order 9920975733Bang for your buckClayton Murzello Group Sports EditorVenus Bakery Bandra ReclamationI would recommend the Christmas plum cake from Venus for its measured richness and taste Yoursquoll never go wrong with this predictable fare Yoursquod rather have your guests smirk at your safe choice than have them cringe over something that is over the topTo order 022 26425306Quality trumpsBonniersquos MulundStepping into Bonnie DrsquoSilvarsquos cutesy store Bonniersquos itrsquos tough to resist not being like a little kid in a candy shop But itrsquos her cakes from the range that are the standoutmdash from the Christmas classic plum cake to the allyear bar cakes that can be made to order and perfect to go with your teaTo order 9167202537Classic done wellFiona Fernandez Editor The GuideAt Indulge MulundAt Indulge by Fay Almeida the Christmas rum fruit and nut cakes are decadent and airy all in one bite The OG handson baker is almost always stationed at her galacumstore keeping a close eye to ensure the quality is topnotchTo order 8422993535