The chef with a French heart spills the bean on the making of authentic pastries. By Ankita Jain
Starting with home deliveries, then with an outlet in French embassy and now with over 13 flagship stores in the city, l’opera has become synonymous for French cakes and pastries in a very short span of period. Five years into operations, it’s introduced two dozens of cakes and pastries to its full of flavour carte and continue to do so till the month end.
“Some new entries to the array of pastries include the Safframel tart, a special blend of poached apple and caramel mousse, the silky smooth ‘Berrilla delight’, made with vanilla and wild berries and a brand new tropical gluten free Pabana Mon Amour made with banana, mango and passion fruit with a price tag ranging between 150 and 300 respectively. We are introducing four pastries every Friday”, said Amit Sinha, the executive pastry chef with 10 years of extensive experience, working in up-market hotels, French patisserie and boulangerie and fine dining restaurants in Melbourne as well as in India.
When asked about the ingredients which make it taste like the authentic French gourmet, the chef explained, “I follow one principle that is to create French product based on the elements available locally without compromising on the quality. However, some cakes require ingredients to be imported, chocolate being one of them. In India, all we get is compound in the name of chocolate. Also, we use the dry butter not the salted one hugely accessible in the market.” Talking about his masterstroke, he added, “A standard piece of multi-layer chocolate pastry filled with whipped coffee is something no food lover with a sweet tooth can say no to.”
Amit who represented India in the world pastry cup 2015 and was among the top five chefs said, “I try to introduce different styles and discover something new. I love to play around with textures in different layers and flavour combinations. This led to my achievement in the competition. Moreover, the new menu is also the outcome of my experimentations.”
“Chefs wear white because it is easy to keep a check on cleanliness. If you are dirty, it shows. Pastry making is no piece of cake, it requires technique. There are numerous ways to cook one simple ingredient, it is quite complicated. For instance, sugar can be cooked in 50 distinct ways in different temperatures. Chocolate is also another complicated ingredient,” he explained the challenges faced during the making of a perfect pastry.
He values quality over quantity and likes to serve small quantities of his creations. As per him, “Small portions leave a long lasting impact. This way, one can actually taste the texture.”
Also to delight the movie lovers at ‘The director’s cut’, Ambience Mall, Vasant Kunj, the bakery is all set to open its outlet inside the luxury arm of PVR cinema by the end of November this year. Also, this is going to be one of the most exclusive flagships in the city. This high-end bakery is also planning to expand to four additional cities namely, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru within four years adding 50 more outlets.