Romance in Notting Hill used to conjure up Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts: now it is kadak chai and bun maska.
In 2018, straight out of university, Gabriel Unger and Abhilash Jobanputra started to travel around India in search of a masala chai recipe to introduce to London, where they live. Both have a sentimental connection to India: Gabriel lived in Delhi as a child and Abhilash’s grandparents who were from Gujarat, migrated to Tanzania. After trying numerous ‘chai lattes’, both agree on one thing, Abhilash says, “No one in London does chai proper.”
The bun maska | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Now, they do. The duo launched the ‘Chai Guys’ as a weekend market stall in London’s Brick Lane in May 2019, with masala chai, kadak chai, and a Kashmiri chai. They were so successful, they started a full-time location in Spitalfields three months later, and then opened in trendy Covent Garden in 2021. Their final, and most recent launch is a cafe on iconic Portabello Road, Notting Hill, which has recently gone viral for its chai and freshly-introduced bun maska, hitting more than a million views on Instagram.
Discussing their research trips to India, Abhilash says, “Chai is a special drink. We understood that it was only right to go back to the source. So we went to Delhi and immersed ourselves in the culture.” While they were there, they also found tea suppliers from whom they sourced Assam black tea and Darjeeling green tea. Then, the duo started putting their recipes together, determined to give Londoners a taste of authentic Indian chai.
Gabriel Unger and Abhilash Jobanputra | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“Chai lattes are a really poor representation of the real thing,” says Gabriel, adding “Nothing in central London focussed on chai in the way you have hundreds of coffee shops. There was clearly a gap in the market.” He adds that they wanted to create a “masala chai that knocks your socks off with spice — we wanted something that has a depth of flavour, and packs a punch. We put together cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, fennel... and found a perfect balance.”
Determined to do it right, the Chai Guys decided to do everything from scratch, every single time. “When we started we would go to the weekend market with whole spices, a pestle and mortar. We would chop the ginger right there, and then start brewing the chai...” says Abhilash, adding “the scent would waft all around the market, and people started coming and ordering chai.”
“It is important for us to brew this correctly,” says Gabriel, adding that the chai is always brewed slowly. “This gives the spices time to steep — for us it was about doing it correctly so we maximise the flavour from the spices. We do it in batches of 30 cups, and it takes 30 minutes each time.”
The spicy samosa croissant dusted with sesame seeds and powdered sugar | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
When they launched their Chai Guys Bakehouse in Notting Hill, creating food that paired well with tea, they decided to follow the same principle, baking all the bread and pastry on site, and cloaking the street with that freshly-baked scent. Says Abhilash, “It was a place we could finally call our home.” The cafe offers some Indian-inspired food of course, including a flaky spicy samosa croissant dusted with sesame seeds and powdered sugar.
Inspired by the Irani cafes of Mumbai, they decided to pay homage to India’s well-loved bun maska, traditionally a soft bun with a generous lashing of creamy butter inside. “When we first tried it, we thought we must give people a chance to try this in London,” says Abhilash. The result is a fluffy bun made with Japanese milk dough and soft honey butter. The instant popularity seems to have even taken the founders by surprise. “It’s so simple,” says Abhilash, “But I suppose even the British can relate to bread and butter.”
And now they are learning the Indian joys of dunking it in sweet, steamy chai.
