In
numerous small towns you can find local bakeries that have been around for many
years, owned and operated by local families. This is where you will find the
best kept secret recipes , that have survived the test of time because of
popular demand. They are part of our
history lingering in our minds and participate in our present. In some ways
these local bakeries are a part of the past and the present.
In my native town of Sivakasi,
renowned place for crackers, we have this 'Coronation Bakery' ,which is such a 'darling' to all the people of the place. The
name itself brings a flood of memories. Getting bread and rusk was Herculean
task for me by then. Bread was available only
after one o'clock in the afternoons and rusk only after eleven thirty in
the morning. Come too early, you will go empty handed. Come too late you have
to go empty handed. Don't be too happy that you are on time , you may have to
stand in a long queue of fellow citizens, relying purely on luck of getting
your portion of 'royal' pastries.
Born and brought in the town, I shall
always remain an ardent fan of their
products. Talk to me about the bakery, my face lights up, I chatter nonstop about its taste and flavor and get enthusiastic and
begin to recount those with all praise
for it. Quality is their mantra, not quantity. There is always a demand.
Stories mill around about how even people settled in foreign countries love
their bread and cakes.
It has been a few years since we moved
out of the town. The Chennai city offered us with marvelous food, entertainment and
connections. Basically being introduced to nothing other than parotta, naan and
biryani., we were stunned by the array of burgers, pizzas, chaats and other
various cuisines . However , when it comes to the basic ' bread' for morning
breakfast, we longed for our own ' desi' bread.
The Bakers of the city have an ' international' twist in their products. Cakes range from a wide variety of cheese cakes to blueberry cakes., puffs,
buns, rolls,etc., But Coronation Bakery has just cream cakes, plum cakes and Sponge cakes and that's it. Nothing more . Other than this they have bread and
rusk.
Having heard of my lofty descriptions of
the place, a foodie friend of mine expected it to be posh one and visited it
last year. But to her surprise it turned out to be dingy, crowded place overflowing with people of all classes. However the cakes and bread were such a revelation, she acknowledged. She has been in all praise for the Bakery. And
now, whenever I visit my hometown, I have to carry a loadful of cakes and bakes
for her along with mine. She rings me after receiving it with her mouth ful
churning them. I used to say her one thing .."Eat or speak.. Do one thing
at a time.. I cant understand."
The smell of the warm loaves is so
enduring. There is nothing like the aroma of the freshly baked bread , that we
experience while passing the area around the place. It's comforting, uplifting
and tends to activate our salivary glands. The smell is so irresistible that it
invades with a ocean of happiness.
Of late when I read one of the tweets of
historian Sriram.V, speaking about the library of Saraswathi Mahal ,
Tanjore" After 25 minutes of wait to bill 7 books, I am told to give the
exact change" ., I was reminded of Coronation Bakery. One of the
peculiar habits of the place is.. People
thronging the place will be allowed with a ration of only half kg of rusk and
have to queue for their share. If you need more , you have to go the end of the
queue and come again for the extra amount. Moreover you have to tender the
exact change such is the anomaly of the place.
The list would be incomplete if I had
not mentioned the 'Christmas thatha' cakes, which are cream based 'khoa'
moulded in Santa faces. Now I am writing this eating slowly ,savouring every bite
of the plum cake, my husband has brought from the town yesterday. It is a
divine experience to have it melting down your mouth.
