Coffee is the centre of the universe at Sentido, a newly opened café tucked away at Whitefields, HITEC City. Within a few days of their opening, the café has already become a favourite with those who can differentiate their pour over from the cold brew, and even those who couldn’t care less. Would you believe if we tell you that this two-storey outlet was a consequence of a wager? “About six months ago, Harsha (Reddy), my partner didn’t drink coffee at all,” says co-founder Bharat Bongu, who took it up upon himself to convince his friend that he’s missing out on something without a daily cup of joe. He bought brewing equipment and set it up at home. After Harsha fell in love with coffee, he confidently opened the outlet. “Now, he is a lot more of a coffee drinker than I am,” says Bharat.
The café was named Sentido, which means senses in Spanish, with an aim to activate more than your sense of taste when you come here to enjoy your cuppa of latte or cold brew. The founders wanted the interiors to be as minimal as all the focus must remain on the brews. Hence, what you notice is minimalist décor, with wooden chairs and exposed structural beams. However, what coffee lovers would enjoy are tiny booklets that illustrate the journey of the coffee bean, from how they are plucked, ground into dust and brewed. “We wanted to get coffee back in the coffee shops, instead of adding food options without thought,” asserts Harsha, as he speaks about how he and Bharat went about deciding the menu.
We are intrigued by the Syphon Coffee maker that reminds us of the Bunsen Burners used at chemistry labs. It takes about five minutes for the coffee to be brewed and once ready, the heady aroma of the beans fills the room. The beautiful brown of the coffee looks even more enticing in an austere ceramic mug. The bitter taste is balanced well with the subtly salty Rosemary Sea Salt Cookie we were served with that.
Their Signature Cold Coffee that takes us by surprise. Without the clutter of cream and froth, the delicately sweetened coffee comprising espresso and condensed milk wins us over. The beans used are obtained from estates in Coorg and Chikmagalur, which are then roasted in Bangalore and sent in small batches to Hyderabad. And they use single-estate Arabica coffee for Pour Overs, Syphons and Aeropress. The food here is obtained from home bakers.
The Apple Crumble Cake, which goes well with your Syphon, tastes fresh and is only mildly sweet, thanks to the shreds of sweetened apple. What arrives last is the cappuccino, and it doesn’t disappoint either. You could pair it with a piece of biscotti or go light with the butter cookie. After all, how you enjoy your coffee is totally up to you.
Priced for two: Rs.500.