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No Time for Food: Delhi's Specialty Coffee Scene Is All About Serving Good Quality Brews

MENSXP | May 23, 2025 6:39 AM CST

The first thing I notice is the smell — nutty, toasty, warm — like someone just opened the door to a better morning. A man waves me in, and just like that, I’m pulled into the quiet theatre of coffee roasting at Caarabi Coffee Roasters.

The name itself is theatrical — an anagram of ‘Arabica,’ with the last two words brought forward. Rearranged. Reimagined. Much like their approach to coffee. I walk in expecting a menu. Instead, I’m asked a simple question: “What would you like to drink?”

For the first time in my life, I don’t have an answer. So much for being a ‘coffee-lover’.

I leave it up to Likhith, the man who analyses all the beans that enter a packet of Caarabi Coffee. He gently places a filter paper into a pour-over, and the show begins. The paper blooms open as coffee and water mingle inside. Steam wafts up. The slow trickle of nectar collects at the bottom. In a city that’s always rushing, this cup is in no hurry.

But this isn’t just a one-off experience. Something’s brewing across Delhi. A new wave of cafes is showing up with no WiFi and definitely no banana bread and croissants in sight. The coffee is thoughtful. Bold. Delicious.

In the three hours I spend at Caarabi, I drink the same coffee brewed in three ways — each tasting surprisingly different. For someone loyal to flat whites and cold coffees, turning her nose at those who drink bitter black coffees that taste like death, this is a quiet revelation.

A Shift in Delhi’s Coffee Culture

Delhi’s roasters, cafe owners, and coffee nerds are witnessing a shift — people aren’t just chasing a caffeine rush anymore. That’s why specialty coffee spots are growing. It’s no longer just a drink; it’s a ritual. A moment to slow down.

Gayatri Kaul, co-founder of Spruce and Pop — a home decor brand that turns knobs and handles into design statements — spends most days obsessing over the perfect blend of style and function. On others, she channels that same passion into discovering her next go-to coffee spot.

“What excites me most about Delhi’s new wave of specialty coffee spots is their unapologetic focus on the coffee itself. For the first time, cafes are creating spaces where the brew takes centre stage — not just as a beverage, but as a craft,” explains Gayatri.

Sanya Khullar, a Personal Brand and Image Coach echoes this sentiment and adds, "It’s exciting to see how new places are using and promoting Indian beans and roasters. It’s also great to see people becoming more aware of the coffee they’re drinking, exploring different brewing methods, and experimenting with new flavours."

But this shift didn’t happen overnight. It took years of experimenting and explaining tasting notes to an audience used to sugar-loaded frappes, like myself.

Bharat Singhal, the founder of Bili Hu Coffees explains, “We've been around for eight years now. Earlier, we had to educate people on what a cold brew coffee or pourover coffee is. While that gap is still there, when we consider Delhi's vast geographical footprint, there are some parts of the city wherein coffee culture is so strong that people do know about different coffee makers and ways to prepare coffee.”

Baninder Singh, SCA certified coffee roaster and Founder of Savorworks, adds, "Delhi’s coffee drinkers have become increasingly curious, attentive, and open to artisanal products. With more people traveling internationally, they’ve developed a refined palate for high-quality coffee and chocolate. Customers are not just willing to spend more on meticulously crafted products — they actively seek out the stories, origins, and processes behind them."

This slow, intentional way of drinking coffee is no longer a niche. It’s a refusal to treat coffee like a sidekick and, instead, like a lead character.

Is Delhi Ready To Ditch Food For a Good Cup of Coffee?

Back at Caarabi, I’m on my third cup of Vontekad coffee. So far, I’ve tried it as a pour over, french press and an espresso shot from an automatic machine. Likhith ensures I get a crash course in all the brewing methods as I fiddle around with the equipment nervously. Just as I take my last sip of espresso, Ajit Joshi, founder of Caarabi, walks in.

As we talk about Delhi's sweltering heat, he laughs, “Maybe this is why Delhi doesn’t want hot black coffee for half the year — it wants cold, creamy, frothy things. And that’s okay. Delhi will always have a strong cold coffee culture. But now, people want something more."

As he speaks, he starts prepping a pour-over with a different bean altogether — Ratnagiri Estate. He pushes the freshly ground coffee towards me and I remark, "It smells like summer. Very floral." He smiles and says, "Wait for it."

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If Likhith was slow and precise in his movements, Ajit is pure instinct. It’s like watching a wizard cast a spell he’s done a hundred times, eyes barely glancing at the scale, water flowing at just the right pace. Brewing comes as naturally to him as breathing.

This brew doesn’t smell or taste floral anymore. It’s acquired a berry-like flavour. And suddenly, I get the appeal — why so many in Delhi are hooked to specialty coffee. Behind every good cup is science and precision, but the experience of it all is pure art.

In Caarabi’s Omakase sessions, this is paired with a dessert called Turkish Delight with notes of rose and berries, much like the coffee. But is Delhi ready for a cafe culture sans the food and aesthetic decor?

Ajit takes a deep pause and says, “Coffee gets people in the door, but food makes you profits. That’s the reality. In Delhi, you have glamorised markets like GK and Khan Market, but you also have places like DDA markets where smaller experimental neighbourhood cafes flourish.”

Marcel’s in Defence Colony is one such place. It offers no food, no seating — only a well-brewed cup of coffee. Inspired by European-style coffee kiosks, Rudraksh Chugh opened Marcel’s a few months ago and the response has been tremendous. For him, Marcel’s was “A quiet rebellion against how transactional cafe visits have become. Most people today sip coffee absentmindedly behind a laptop screen. At Marcel’s, the lack of food and seating reorients your attention — back to the cup, the craft, and the moment.”

The newly opened, Hinoki: Slow Bar, is another place where you can get a mean cup of coffee and matcha. They have a modest seating area, but no food menu. Yet.

Run by literature students Urvi Singh and Deepanshu Saini, Hinoki espouses slow living. Their mascot, a sloth, says it all — it’s a creature that naps often and never rushes. No loud espresso machines or blenders interrupt conversations here. Just peace and excellent coffee.

Urvi says, “We’ve pledged not to switch to an espresso machine. If the crowd grows, we’ll just add another Flair machine. It takes a bit longer, but the espresso’s flavour is far richer. We’ll also introduce more manual brew options.” Their food menu will stay small with just a few Japanese-style sandos to complement the drinks.

Gayatri adds, “I don’t mind the absence of food. If anything, it feels liberating. It tells us the cafe is here to brew, not to cater. When I want a meal, I go elsewhere. When I want coffee, I want it to be the star — not paired with a croissant or a cookie out of obligation.”

That said, many feel a food menu enhances the experience rather than distracts from it.

“I’ve noticed many places skipping proper food menus. That might work for QSR models, where you’re grabbing a quick coffee on the go, but I wouldn’t visit a cafe just for coffee if there’s no food to go with it. The menu needs to be more holistic,” shares Sanya.

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Savorworks, too, believes in offering an extensive food menu along with great coffee. Baninder explains, “Skipping food isn’t an option because our goal is to provide a complete sensory experience that blends coffee, chocolate, and artisanal cuisine seamlessly.”

Is Specialty Coffee Just a Passing Trend or Here to Stay in Delhi?

Specialty coffee is at the risk of turning into a buzzword in Delhi, but scratch beneath the froth and you’ll find that not everyone’s pouring the real thing. “Just saying ‘Chikmagalur, Karnataka’ doesn’t cut it. There are 10,000 estates there. You have to be more specific about the origin, roasting and brewing methods,” explains Ajit.

Bharat Singhal adds, “How horrible would it be to learn that the cotton shirt I’m wearing comes from a cotton farmer struggling to sustain his life or household? The same goes for the rice we eat and the coffee we drink. It’s vital that brands provide traceability, so one knows that the people on ground producing this are living happy, sustained livelihoods."

Delhi still has a long way to go before becoming the hub of specialty coffee. However, for dedicated roasters, cafe owners and coffee nerds, it’s not a far fetched dream. “Marcel’s strips coffee back to its essentials; no fluff, no filler. In a city where specialty coffee is still finding its voice, we want to be part of defining it. Our hope is that Marcel’s pushes the scene forward toward more intention, more quality, and more care in every cup,” says Rudraksh.

The Rise of a Ritualistic Coffee Culture

As I wrap up my chat with Ajit at Caarabi, I mull over all the flavours I've tasted. All the flavours I've been missing out on because I've been too busy getting a jittery caffeine kick with milky, frothy coffees.

Four cups in, my caffeine tolerance is gone — but my attention span has returned.

In a city built on urgency, Delhi's specialty coffee culture offers something radical. A grounding ritual. A reason to pause.

As the founders of Hinoki put it plainly: “If there’s no space for a more ritualistic take on coffee, we’ll create it.” And that’s exactly what’s happening across Delhi. In a world obsessed with instant everything, coffee is finally asking to be savoured.

For too long, it’s been the drink of high-speed hustle. But like me, it’s been around for a while now. It wants to be taken seriously. To evolve. To slow down.

Turns out, Delhi’s specialty coffee scene isn’t just about sourcing better beans. It’s a reminder that some of the best things can’t — and shouldn’t — be rushed.