There’s no dearth of bakeries or sweet shops in Delhi but every once in a while, you come across one which stands out. Gur-Chini is one such place, with its minimal black and white decor, industrial lights and a pretty weird menu, truth be told. At first glimpse, it comes across as one of those old school ice cream parlours but a closer look shows you what they’re really about - Indian mithai. To be consumed while sitting on leather-clad bar stools.

Peruse the desserts and snacks menu and you’ll be convinced you’ve entered an equivalent of a dollar store. Everything is priced at Rs 95 -  there’s Coffee Ras Malai, Salted Caramel Phirni, Mirch Ka Halwa, Pok Choy Chaat, Paalak Patta Chaat, Banarsi Sandwich Bhalla, Hyderabadi Toast Chaat among others.

You’ve probably already figured out, they’re trying to do something a little different with traditional Indian foods. But are they succeeding? A regular customer, who guzzled two large bowls of fresh Naariyal Daab Kheer in front of us in a span of 10 minutes would certainly vouch for it. But a bite into my own Salted Caramel Phirni left me wanting for more. There was nothing inherently wrong with it. It was a goodish phirni by all means, but the tiny drizzle of caramel lasts all of three bites. Now we think the dessert is reasonably priced and the Mirch Halwa seems to have quite a few takers but then, you turn your head around to the mithai display and realise one piece of barfi costs Rs 100 (minus taxes). What the what?

This is where the name of the shop comes in. They use the regular chini in the desserts but the mithai is made using gur, Stevia or even honey. So, the health element creeps in. They’ve got a variety of interesting flavours for sure though: South American Almond Tacos, Brown Sugar Besan Laddoo, Kheera Seed Barfi, Bavarian Chocolate Barfi, Wild Rose Petal Gulkand and even a Bournvita variant (for the record, this is a winner, tastes like your childhood has been molded into a tiny cube). They’ve used nuts like pistachio, walnut, almonds quite liberally and the colours are all bright and lovely.

Given the prices though, not sure I’d jump at the opportunity to gift multiple boxes to people (even if they’re all pastel and floral and beautiful); a late night barfi or kheer however after a satiating meal at Culinaire, is more doable. 

They don’t have much to offer to quench your thirst but a gur chai doesn’t seem like a bad idea.

Where: M-192, GF, M Block Market, Greater Kailash 2 (GK 2), New Delhi

Call: +91 9718036708