Metal spatulas are hard at work on a steel slab frozen to -22 degree Celsius. Saran Balachandran chops and pulps the Oreo cookies soaked in sweet, creamy milk. In goes some fresh strawberries and a little more milk. The crushing begins again as the red fruit pieces are cut, mashed and mixed with the Oreo paste. The light brown mixture with a tinge of pink, spread as thin as possible on the metal slab, freezes in a couple of minutes and are scrapped into five rolls. A swish of chocolate syrup to top it all off and voilà! Oreo-strawberry rolled ice-creams are ready to be enjoyed!
Oreo-strawberry ice-creams being rolled on the frozen slab
The recently-opened Neeravi at Panavila Junction doesn’t serve scoops but rolls of ice-cream.
Set in a renovated vintage house, it offers a modest yet tidy air-conditioned space with a clear view of the busy Thampanoor road without any of its noise. A first of its kind in the city, foodies have been on a roll, all flocking to the place to have a piece of their freshly-made delicacies.
“The response has been extremely positive and we will soon have to make more room for the customers,” says Shahid Mohammed, who co-owns the venture with Saran and Shyam Vishnu, an interior designer. Former NRIs who now run a farm, Saran and Shahid have been working on the project for the last one year.
Fresh ingredients
Customised ice-cream is not a new concept, but what makes Neeravi rolls stand out are the fresh ingredients that go into its making.
While other creameries mix pre-made flavoured ice-creams or essence, Saran and Shahid use fresh fruits.
Kiwi rolled ice-creams
“It’s a challenge. But we have done our homework. The key is to use medium cream and fruits with less water content so that you get the right kind of blend which won’t freeze fast and is easier to roll,” Saran says as he prepares papaya-flavoured rolls.
The making time for a bowl of five rolls is four to five minutes. That is quite reasonable as the inventors, Thai street food vendors, themselves take about two minutes.
“Wait for a minute or two. Its too cold,” calls out Saran. Well, never heard that one before. We soon find out that the warning is not be taken lightly. Not being able to resist the light orange papaya rolls, we have a spoon well before the two-minute mark and end up holding our mouth, stung by the freezing rolls.
Tangy flavoured
Mildly flavoured and not too sweet, papaya rolls are as delicious as expected, while in the oreo-strawberry variant, chocolate dominates the taste with the pleasant acidic whiff of strawberry lurking in the background. With no extra-fat or emulsifiers added, this is ice-cream at its purest. Light green kiwi rolls garnished with sugar balls is up next and the difference a strongly-flavoured fruit makes is evident. The distinctive tangy taste of kiwi with the icy sweet cream does wonders with the taste buds.
Paani puri
After a final bowl of exquisite pineapple rolls, six plump paani puris arrive on an arecanut leaf plate with paani in a mini jug. The spicy minty masala is given a touch of sweetness with juicy pomegranate seeds and together with the paani , it is simply irresistible.
For those who wish to have a drink, Neeravi offers fresh juices as well.
Contact 95670 19515.
Price factor
* A bowl of rolled ice-creams would have five rolls and costs between Rs 100-150.
* Neeravi is open from Monday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. On Sunday it is 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.
