IN OVER TWO years, Ovenly, under the skilled and passionate stewardship of patisserie chef Harshita Mundhra, has become synonymous with finely crafted coverture desserts in the city. If you have ever taken a bite of her box of assorted chocolates, all filled with gooey elements, then you certainly wouldn’t disagree with us.
Operating from a production kitchen at Wood Street, Ovenly was started by Harshita, whose first choice of career was marketing. But her calling really was in whipping up magic with cream, sugar and chocolate —and very soon, she was drawn to baking. “I got into a patisserie through the chef of Delices in Kolkata, under whom I worked for six months without pay. I realised that I love this craft more, and that it’s not just a hobby. I decided to learn more, and in 2014, I enrolled for a course at Le Cordon Bleu, London, one of the best patisserie schools in the world. After that, I worked at Taj Bengal and learnt the discipline aspect of the industry. A few years in Mumbai’s production kitchen exposed me to a lot more, finally giving me the confidence to start Ovenly.”
Known for its velvety smooth textures, Ovenly’s wedding and festive cakes and chocolates employ the updated techniques of Mirror Glaze and Cocoa Butter Spray. Talking about it, Harshita, a student of St Xavier’s College says, “My idea was to help people enjoy a dessert without hesitation. Our sector is always evolving with time, and the Mirror Glaze and Cocoa Butter Spray techniques helped my business take off well.”
Ovenly is also into healthy and dietfriendly gourmet and her sugar, dairy and gluten-free products cater to the growing demands of customers. Her in-house cashew milk and date syrup only adds more flavour to the proceedings. She says, “We are always evolving with time. Today, there is demand for no-sugar, nodairy and gluten-free products. I took it up as a challenge, and now, we have ten items on the menu. One of our hit items has been the Paleo cake, with egg but no flour and dairy or sugar.” Harshita, who is waiting for the right time to start a brick-and-mortar store of Ovenly, is also working on a new FMCG project in Mumbai.
Cakes: Rs 1,100 upwards and chocolate box (9 units): Rs 450 upwards