Meet Pooja and Kavya, the sisters in arms

CHENNAI: Located at the heart of Chennai, CakeWalk, a confectionery established by Srinivasan, has been the pioneers in the industry for more than three decades. Pooja Srinivasan and Kavya Srinivasan, the second-generation duo management of CakeWalk, decided to carry forward the legacy of their father by starting a new cafe just above the confectionery.

“I have been associated with CakeWalk for the past 10 years. I am basically a pastry chef and worked in Australia for 6-9 months. I came back to be a part of this business,” starts Pooja Srinivasan, sitting at the cafe with soothing music playing in the background. CakeWalk is known for its cakes and pastries. But Pooja and Kavya wanted to make use of their other bakery stocks and add a modern touch to it. This motivated them to start a cafe.

“We update ourselves to cater according to our customers’ needs,” says Pooja, adding that they don’t restrict themselves to stereotypes of cafes. CakeWalk offers unique varieties of ice creams such as chocolate truffle, cake mash-up, etc, prepared with in-house sauces and toppings.

While talking about the confectionery started by Srinivasan, the general manager of the outlet, Raji Paul joins the conversation and says, “Initial years were quite difficult and we didn’t quit. After 33 years, we have now evolved and are providing better variations to our existing delicacies.” He has been associated with CakeWalk since its establishment.

When asked about the food trend in Chennai, “After the COVID-19 and lockdown, people have become more open-minded and are looking to try new things. This pushes us to update ourselves constantly,” remarks Pooja, who wanted to create a space, where the preferences of the entire family are met.

Kavya is the creative mind behind the aesthetics of the cafe, while Pooja handles the menu and recipes.

Being willing to learn is the backbone to achieve anything. “I learnt from my father and Raji Paul that you need patience to grow. They guide and correct us when we go wrong, as it is a constant learning process. The trends are short-lived and it is important that we do not get carried away by the fast pace of social media,” shares Pooja, adding that they wanted to be true to their customers.

Unlike many cafes, CakeWalk provides eggless relishes and their ingredients are locally sourced. As a tip to others wishing to get into this business Raji Paul says, “One should have a vision and execute the same in the right way. This is a slow process but will give a sense of achievement.”

In the idea of taking forward the legacy of their father, the sisters wish to sustain in the industry and evolve with time to match the preferences of Chennaiites.