Where Belgian Chocolates Meet Indian Flavours: The Cacaoté Story

I was born and raised in Belgium, but my parents are from Ahmedabad. We would visit Ahmedabad often, and our friends would always ask us to bring back Belgian chocolates. That’s when we realised there’s a clear demand for Belgian chocolates and cakes here. Then, we visited the Maxx Royal hotel in Turkey and tried their pastries and chocolates. The taste was identical to what you’d find in Belgium. That’s when it clicked — if they can make Belgian chocolates in Turkey, why can’t we make them in India? My goal is simple: I want people here to experience authentic Belgian chocolates with the same refined quality as back home.

Our dining space is designed to complement our petition and the products we sell at our patisserie. For instance, if you have Italian food at our Brasserie, we recommend following it up with a strawberry basil cheesecake, which pairs really well with Italian cuisine. Similarly, with Asian food, we suggest our pineapple ginger cake, which features candied ginger pieces. It’s all about complementing our desserts.

I convinced the chef to join us by understanding his pain points. He was restricted in his previous hotel job, where they didn’t focus on pastries. I offered him freedom to try new flavors and got him the machines he wanted. Now, he’s experimenting with Indian ingredients, thanks to my mom Rita’s guidance

We have a separate catering business, and we are hoping Cacaoté will be a part of many weddings. We cater to VIP clients in Ahmedabad, and we will leverage our catering company to pitch Cacaoté products. We already bagged a catering gig in Jaipur for a big wedding, where we will have a chocolate bar. We are planning to go online by February, making Cacaoté products available all over India. Eventually, we will open smaller outlets in select locations across India.

Our Executive Chef Jonathan Gallet, who has spent most of his 25-year career working in Michelin-starred restaurants, is very particular about quality control. We check the quality of every ingredient, and every product that goes out of our kitchen. We are very hands-on, and everyone in our team is passionate about the project.

We source our ingredients from Europe through different vendors like Delta, Chef Middle East, and Eurofoods. We used to source ingredients ourselves, but now we focus on making the products, and our vendors handle the sourcing.

We have a temperature-controlled car, and our drivers are trained to handle the products with care. We have also introduced cold chain methods to our vendors, so they understand the importance of temperature control during delivery.

Yes, we plan to start a solar farm in the future. Since our boutique restaurant consumes a lot of electricity, we want to give back to the community through solar power. We will connect it to the grid and supply excess energy back. It's a future project, but it's on our mind since we know we have a large power consumption.

We are trying to break the trend in India where people usually go for ice cream after dinner. We want to introduce Indians to the idea of having cakes, chocolates, and pastries as desserts. Our head chef is a perfectionist and ensures that every pastry is made to the highest standard. We are planning to expand our staff once we open and see how the market responds.

The outside architecture was designed by an Australian designer, while the interiors were done by a London-based designer. I wanted a luxury yet minimalistic feel, with subtle hints of rose gold. Our packaging and design elements, like the chocolate-colored tiles imported from Spain, all tie in with the chocolate theme. The design concept was created by LEQB, and executed by a local company. We focused on incorporating elements like flowing chocolate and cocoa pods to create a unique experience.

It took us almost a year to research and conceptualise the project. Then, it took another 1.5 to 2 years to construct everything. We had to import machines from France and work with vendors who didn't have experience with these machines. Our chef, who has worked in luxury chains, was amazed by the kitchen space and machines. We were able to offer him the freedom to try new flavours and work with Indian ingredients, which was a major draw for him.

We are using a lot of Indian spices and fruits that our chef wasn’t familiar with before. We have introduced him to jaggery, ginger powder, jamun, and phalsa. We have experimented with making chocolates out of cumin, fennel, star anise, and gulkand. We have also made a five-spice chocolate and one infused with masala chai. Everything is made with fresh, locally-sourced ingredients, and we change our menu according to the season.

Yes, it’s all vegetarian. That's also a first. Everything is vegetarian, and we are excited for you to try our Petit Gâteau and other offerings after the launch.

We are always thinking of new ideas, but we need to focus on one thing at a time. For now, we are happy with what we have. Step two will be to develop more products and expand our range.