The 116-year-old Albert Bakery is a testament to Bengaluru’s innovative food culture. Each visit leaves one hungry for more

Every once in a while, we come across a place so iconic that it comes to be identified not by its name but by the food it serves. That’s why you get to answer this pop quiz. What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you read khova naan and bheja puff? If your answer is a pat ‘Albert Bakery’ and your mouth starts to water, you’re a true blue Bengaluru foodie.

Nestled smack in the middle of Old Bengaluru’s favourite haunt — Frazer Town’s Mosque Road, which also doubles up as a must-visit for the plethora of Iftar delights to dig into during the month of Ramzan — Albert Bakery is a standalone ode to the classic art of baking.

A confectionery paradise

Set up in 1902, the humble bakery has been at the heart of baking ingenuity with a range of delicious delicacies, including mini cocktail samosas, a variety of baked biscuits, coconut cherry cookies, among other favourites.

Festivals also bring extra crowds for the bakery’s specialities like the hot cross buns on Good Friday, marzipan eggs on Easter Sunday, non-alcoholic plum cakes for Christmas and brain puffs for Ramzan. They have daily specialities like chocolate lava cake, chicken Swiss and mayo rolls, tarts, quiches, banana and grape muffins, chocolate croissants, donuts and pizzas.

A day at Albert’s begins as early as 5 am for the staff, from putting together fresh batches, mixing ingredients, to purchasing groceries and cleaning, but the shop has an odd time schedule — it opens only at 3 pm and downs shutters on the dot at 9 pm.

Says a beaming Mohammad Sabir Faizan, who handles the business with his father and proprietor Nawab Jan, “The timings ensure we serve only fresh and hot baked products, because we make the confectionery fresh in the morning. We usually run out of our main items, especially khova naan and cocktail samosas, before 9 pm. Other bakeries may add preservatives and improvers, but we never do. We make batches that are sufficient for each day.”

The crowds that throng the baking establishment are a testament to their methods. Most often, the late evening traffic snarls on this road are usually because of customers eagerly first digging in, then taking home their favourite snacks from Albert’s.

From breads and buns

Sabir, the fourth generation baker in his family, takes us down memory lane, even as we munch on hot samosas and creamy biscuits. “The bakery was set up in 1902 by my great grandfather Mohammad Yacoob, initially as a godown in Sangam Lane off Kamaraj Road.

He used to cycle and supply buns and breads to the predominantly British and Anglo-Indian communities in the Cantonment area back then. The current establishment on Mosque Road was started in 1921 to expand business,” he recalls.

He continues: “When my grandfather Mohammad Ibrahim was around, they served mainly bread, biscuits, rusks, tea biscuits and other regular items. It was only after my father Nawab took over that he introduced the other specialities that we are now famous for.”

Enquire about the name and Sabir laughs: “Back in the early 1900s, Bangalore was largely populated by the British. My great grandfather felt it would appeal to everyone alike if the bakery had an English name. His plan worked and the name stuck.”

Robert Williams, a techie who has been devotedly getting goodies home from the confectionery, stops between ordering hot donuts dripping with chocolate and khova naan, and says: “I still remember the first time I tasted the khova stuffing in the naan as a child. It is one of my sweetest memories growing up, and now, I make sure I take these treats home to make memories with my kids.”

Special mentions

Oozing with dripping hot, molten khova in a crispy, oven-baked pie, the khova naan is an explosion of sweetness in the mouth. Balancing it is a must with the cocktail samosas — mini samosas available with vegetable filling, minced chicken or mutton kheema stuffing. Dunk it in tomato sauce and it makes for a glorious treat. The bakery also makes it a great way to end the season of Lent for Christians, with the hot-selling and soft hot cross buns, while the unconventional bheja puff during Ramzan makes for a crunchy, flaky mouthful with some soft, juicy and mushy mutton brain inside.

“The secret,” says Sabir, “is that we use perfectly-cooked goat brain stuffing instead of regular minced meat.”

So, the next time you want to celebrate, head to a bakery that truly raises a toast to Bengaluru’s palate.

In this weekly column, we take a peek into the histories of some of the country’s most iconic restaurants