CHENNAI: It’s been a little over two weeks since I visited the Smith Field Bakery at Perambur Barracks Road, Purasaiwakkam. But, as I sit down to pen this story on a sunny evening, my memory fills my appetite with the delicious aroma of decadent cakes and shortbread at this charming piece of heaven.
Doling out baked goods for those in and around the neighbourhood for 135 years now, when I enter the 700-odd square feet pastry shop, my nose sniffs in the fragrance notes from fruity jams and buttery peanut slathered generously on freshly-baked buns, warm loaves of soft and spongy bread, the sweet-nutty aroma of plum cake and banana bread batter added to the scent of cinnamon, cashew nuts and almonds.
Myriad views and sounds punctuate and accentuate the patisserie’s ambience and my experience. My favourite is the line-up of sturdy glass jars by the window, packed symmetrically with a variety of shortbread biscuits, ginger biscuits, golden brown Madras butter biscuits and jam swirls. As the sounds of the cash register chiming every few seconds and customers ordering their favourite bites from the cabinet grows louder, Venkatesh S, the fourth-generation manager of the bakery walks in.
“It’s only 11.30 am but our bread loaves and most of the goodies are almost sold out,” he says, pointing to a section of the display cabinet. An employee scooches by, opens one of the glass shelves and packs a box with slices of their popular carrot cake — a piece of paradise, which made its way to Smith Field’s menu in 2010. “People have always liked our bread and bakes. We have, for years, worked towards giving them just that.
The legacy continues,” smiles Venkatesh, looking over a glass window. “You see that building on the opposite side? That’s where the bakery was originally housed. But, since the building was almost a century old, it had to be run down by its owners to make way for a newer structure. So, we moved to this location about seven years ago. Our residence is right above the unit,” he reveals.
BAKING A LEGACY
Founded in the year 1885 by Ponnuswamy N, a native of Madrasapattinam, the bakery, over the last century has become an integral part of the fabric of Purasaiwakkam’s history. “I have heard stories of how the bakery gave limited quantities of free bread to the residents during World War II. My father used to tell us how tokens were distributed to the residents to procure it.
Over the years, we have weathered several calamities and during such times of disasters and otherwise, the shop has continued to function, kneading away the dough and preparing fresh breads for its customers. In fact, during cyclones, we ensure we stock up more loaves to cater to the demand. As a child, I remember long queues forming at the shop, snaking its way outside. Our house used to be filled with boxes and packaging material for the goodies.
We grew up witnessing people’s love for the bakery and that always made me proud and drew me close to the shop,” he smiles, talking about the family-run business. How this bakery stood the test of time reminds me of American chef Christina Tosi’s words: ‘The secret to an epically beloved bakery is consistency’. At Smith Field, this stability has been made possible by strong family governance and participation over the decades, it seems. “From selecting the ingredients, reviewing the product recipe and quality, cutting to even packaging, we have always had family members on board.
My fondest memory of helping out in the bakery is of painting Easter eggs during Christmas. My mother used to make some of the designer cakes in the day. This kind of whole-hearted in-house engagement has made it easy for us to stand by our values and never compromise on quality,” he notes. After Ponnusamy’s demise in the mid-1990s, the baton was passed on to his son Sundaram. “In the late 1900s, my father Shanker and his brothers took over the business. His brothers have since then passed and my father is the third-generation owner of the bakery. I stepped into the business and have been managing its operations for over a decade,” shares the entrepreneur, who also owns and runs a newly-opened branch of the bakery in Maduravoyal.
THINK GLOBAL, BAKE LOCAL
Their menu, a mouthwatering parade of treats, harmoniously marries the old-time favourites with new-age baking trends, leaving its customers spoilt for choices. Venkatesh’s experience, innate interest in the business and acquired skills as a student from the Artisans Institute of Baking has only furthered the horizons of their indulgent menu. Decorated with decadent delights like plum cake, seed cake, bread, and rusks from the original list; fresh cream cakes, brownie, carrot and banana cake, walnut cake, fondant cakes, and centre filled chocolates from the old menu, Smith Field’s line-up also has several global inspirations.
“We think global and adapt it to the local palate. For instance, our popular three-milk cake is adapted from the Mexican Tres Leches Cake. The cinnamon cookies are an adaptation of the Belgian speculoos cookies,” he shares. But, some of the treats from the former menu like the almond icing cake, butter beans, Japanese cake, horseshoe cake and arrowroot have been discontinued due to changing interests. Yet, experimentation at the bakery never ceases. Their new addition, the Trikatu bread (with ginger, black pepper and long pepper) was born out of the consumer’s behaviour towards medicinal food products amid the pandemic.
“The Trikatu bread uses the trikatu churna — a home remedy for the common cold. But, we do not claim the bread as a remedy. The trikatu, along with other ingredients, adds a unique flavour to the bread. It has been doing really we l l , ” he enthuses. Pre-mixes are a strict no, and so are improvers to cut the production time and increase the products’ shelf life. “We use the homemade chiffon cake recipe for our chocolate truffle cake instead of the commercial sponge cake recipe. Though using homemade recipes will increase production cost and time, we counterbalance it by managing a lean production line with optimal scheduling and batching techniques,” he asserts.
Earlier, at the bakery’s former 2,000 square feet unit, a nine-foot-long stone table used to take centre stage on the production floor. Six people would go in circles around the stone table, hand-kneading and mixing the dough. Now, machines are used to mix the dough. “In the multi-step process, 90 per cent of the production is handmade by our artisan bakers. Their decades of experience allow them to feel the texture and control the process. Every baker here has been with us for a minimum of 25-30 years.
The oldest — Ramasamy, an 80-something-old — retired in December 2019, leaving us with his vast knowledge. He still visits us whenever possible,” he says, while Pandiyan, a baker who has been with Smith Field’s for over 25 years, swiftly moves around the kitchen, preparing the batter for their signature plum cakes. The entire night shift, starting from 10 pm, is dedicated to preparing their popular bread loaves, which, as we speak, fly off the rack into the customers’ baskets. “There are nine people involved in the bread-baking process. A small batch is also prepared during the wee hours. We follow the slow fermentation process and do not add chemical improvers. The slow fermentation of the dough makes is what makes the bread easily digestible,” he explains.
SCENT OF LOYALTY
Over two decades ago, the bakery was firing up its oven and making around 400-odd bread loaves a day. Today, the count has reduced to 200. Venkatesh points to the dwindling Anglo- Indian population in the locality as one of the major reasons. “For them, bread was the staple food. With people migrating to other localities and the changing demographics of the area, the demand for bread has reduced. Besides this, the market share is also split by fast-food chains. But selling 200 loaves in a standalone store is still a feat in the prevailing scenario,” he says.
The bakery’s patrons, who have been walking through its doors for generations concur. “As a child, I used to hold my father’s hand and buy freshlymade biscuits here. Until 20 years ago, I frequented Smith Field every week. Now, since I have moved to a different locality, it has boiled down to once a month. But it’s something I always look forward to. My granddaughter accompanies me whenever she gets time. I even have friends, who’ve moved to foreign countries, visiting Smith Field every time they are in town. We’ve never been disappointed by them!” shares 67-year-old Ramalingam.
The bakery has now trademarked its business and is mulling over different forms of expansions — ones that can be flagged without compromising on its originality. “We are also in the process of cataloguing and documenting the recipes. We are not just a part of the history of this locality but the entire city too and we want to preserve the legacy for years to come,” concludes Venkatesh. As I continue to soak in the sweet scents from the shop, can I just say: May the flour power be with us!
Smith Field Bakery is located at Perambur Barrack’s Road, Purasaiwakkam.
For details, call: 9884600232
The one-stop shop for artisanal biscuits
The bakery has 25 types of artisanal biscuits. “Once a familiar national biscuit brand’s production team visited our bakery and understood our recipe, jam swirl biscuits, in particular. They took samples of our biscuits and later went on to launch their jam cream swirls. We bake our products from scratch and do not use commercial premixes. Preparing from scratch helps us retain our quality and control the outcome. There are no compromises. We continue to use milled and powdered sugar, handpick and grind our masala, and prepare our caramel,” says Venkatesh, reasoning why they still beat the odds.
...since 1885 is Smith Field Bakery. From the vagaries of a war-torn world to the modern trappings of a capitalist economy, the bakery has weathered many a storm and continues to serve up the most delicious array of baked goodness. Here’s their story.