HYDERABAD : Hyderabad has a rich tradition of local bakeries which have been catering to the citizens since generations. The first home-based bakery had started up in the city around a century ago having bread as their only product. Over time, the bakery business flourished adding other items like biscuits, puffs, cakes, dilkhush and dilpasand. John’s Bakery, Khaja Bakery were some of the well-known places in olden times where people used to flock for cakes, bread, and biscuits.
The Hyderabad bakeries have seen a lot of churn with many vintage places closing down over the years. However, a few bakeries have gained a lot of popularity and become brands known in the city and even in the country. Apart from the well-known Karachi Bakery, seventy-year old Subhan Bakery in Nampally is today a leading name among the bakeries in Hyderabad.
Their Osmania biscuits with a secret twist to the usual recipe have a huge fan following in the city. Come Muharram, there is a long queue of customers from all over Hyderabad waiting patiently to get hold of their Dum Ke Roat, which has emerged as a signature product from this bakery. During the yearend their plum cakes are also extremely sought-after.Like many other bakeries of the twin cities, Subhan was also a home-based business in early part of the nineteenth century, when ladies in the family used to bake the breads at homes, and the male members used to deliver them to the customers.
Its founder Syed Khader Sahab started a shop Nampally during the 1940s, and as business flourished they shifted to the present location in 1951. The bakery was named after Syed Subhan the son of the owner. Their bread used to be so popular that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru used to prefer them for breakfast during his visits to Hyderabad. Though bread was the only product offered initially, they had the foresight to diversify into other items like milk rusk and an assortment of biscuits.
The bread market became very competitive in the sixties, with large branded suppliers entering the scene, leading to a huge erosion in margins. However, Subhan had established their biscuit and plum cake range too by this time. The arrival of Dum Ke Roat cemented their leadership in this business. According to Syed Irfan the present owner who has studied advanced baking techniques abroad, a lot of attention is given to ensure that the quality of their products is strictly maintained. Apart from the signature products from his outlets, he is especially fond of the Milk Bread and Chicken Puff that his bakery makes.
Today the premier bakeries of Hyderabad are on a path of expansion. Whereas Karachi Bakery has gone ahead and opened branches all over the city, Subhan has established a distribution network to sell their products in the major South Indian cities. They have also remodelled their main store in Nampally, where the customer can go around and select his favourite products The bakery has plans to further expand their offerings to all over the country.
Sabyasachi is a food enthusiast and blogs at www.foodaholix.in