Adrit Mishra, COO, TATA Starbucks India’s café culture is entering a new phase, one where coffee is no longer the sole hero, but part of a broader, occasion-led food experience.…

Adrit Mishra, COO, TATA Starbucks

India’s café culture is entering a new phase, one where coffee is no longer the sole hero, but part of a broader, occasion-led food experience. In a strategic move that reflects this shift, TATA Starbucks has partnered with Mumbai-based artisanal brand TwentySeven Bakehouse to elevate its bakery, savoury and dessert offerings across select stores, including its immersive Starbucks Reserve and experiential outlets.

The collaboration brings together global coffee expertise and locally rooted craftsmanship, responding to rising consumer demand for structured meal options, conscious nutrition, protein-forward choices and premium handcrafted bakery products. From indulgent pastries paired with espresso to calorie-conscious bowls and high-protein sandwiches, the partnership signals Starbucks’ evolving strategy to deepen daypart relevance from breakfast meetings to evening indulgences while strengthening TwentySeven Bakehouse’s positioning in India’s premium bakery segment.

In this exclusive interaction with NUFFOODS Spectrum, Adrit Mishra, COO, TATA Starbucks, and Aditya Dugar, Co-Founder & Director, Urban Gourmet India, discuss the strategic thinking behind the collaboration, changing consumer preferences in café dining, and what the future holds for food innovation within India’s rapidly evolving coffeehouse landscape.

What strategic objectives guided TATA Starbucks in partnering with TwentySeven Bakehouse, and how does this align with your broader food and café experience strategy in India?

Our partnership with TwentySeven Bakehouse is built on a simple insight: while coffee remains at the heart of our brand, customers today visit Starbucks for several more moments across the day, making the experience increasingly occasion led, such as breakfast meetings, working lunches, early dinners, and evening indulgences. This collaboration allows us to thoughtfully cater to these moments.  From a Butter Croissant or Hazelnut Pain au Chocolat for a perfect breakfast, to Thai Vegetable Bowl for a quick working lunch, we are catering to varied preferences of every customer. At the same time, it aligns strongly with our food offerings anchored on three lifestyle pillars: providing better nutrition, lower calorie transparency, and healthier protein options. TwentySeven Bakehouse also brings a level of artisanal craft, helping us elevate our bakery, savoury, and desserts across Starbucks Reserve® and coffee experiential stores in Mumbai.

How were the menu offerings curated to balance Starbucks global identity with TwentySeven Bakehouse’s artisanal, locally rooted philosophy?

The menu was curated by mapping food to coffee and real consumption moments across the day, ensuring every item complements the core coffee experience. Artisanal bakery options such as the Butter Croissant and Hazelnut Pain au Chocolat pair naturally with espresso-based beverages, while structured mid-day choices like the Thai Bowl and Soy Protein Toastie offer more considered lunch options. Savoury offerings such as the Cheese Peri Peri Pop Fries are suited for larger group visits with friends and family and indulgent desserts such as Cold Brew Tiramisu further complement our coffee storytelling.

From a consumer trends perspective, what evolving preferences around bakery and café dining does this partnership aim to address?

This partnership responds to three clear shifts we are seeing in how people engage with coffeehouses today. First, coffeehouses are increasingly being viewed as a third place for meals, not just coffee, especially among urban consumers, which reflects in the new menu, including more structured options like bowls, freshly assembled sandwiches, and wraps. Second, there is a strong movement towards conscious eating; without compromising on the calorie visibility, higher protein, and lighter choices or giving up on taste. Options to check calories and protein intake make these decisions easier in-store, whether it’s the Thai Chicken Bowl at 447 kcal, the Paneer Tikka Sandwich with 26grams of protein, or the Soy Protein Toastie offering 23grams of protein. Finally, we see a growing preference for premium, handcrafted food, particularly artisanal bakery, and this partnership allows us to bring that craft and credibility directly into the coffee experience.

How does this collaboration enhance the in-store experience at Reserve and experiential stores, and what role does food innovation play in driving footfall?

Starbucks Reserve and coffee experiential stores are designed for immersion and coffee excellence, showcasing small-lot, single-origin coffees from across the world. Through our collaboration with TwentySeven Bakehouse, customers can now pair specialty coffee with artisanal bakery, enjoy a structured bowl for lunch, opt for a high protein wrap post-workout, or indulge in Cold Brew Tiramisu alongside their coffee. The experience therefore shifts from a beverage-led stop to a more complete coffee and connections experience. The experience therefore shifts from a beverage led stop to a more complete coffee and connection moment, encouraging customers to explore more options from the menu, and return across different dayparts.

Looking ahead, is there scope for expanding this collaboration to new cities, formats, or product categories?

We are thoughtfully observing customer adoption across key areas at the moment, from lunch options such as bowls and wraps to protein-forward picks, artisanal bakery, or desserts, to understand where we are seeing the strongest resonance. At TATA Starbucks, our focus continues to evolve with customer needs through serving premium quality experiences, and the collaboration with TwentySeven Bakehouse reflects that intent. As we continue to gather insights and listen to customer feedback, we will ensure that any future expansion across cities, formats, or categories is both intentional and aligned with what our customers truly value.

To be attributed to: Aditya Dugar, Co-Founder & Director, Urban Gourmet India:

For TwentySeven Bakehouse, how does partnering with a global brand like Starbucks influence product development and brand positioning in India’s premium bakery segment?

Partnering with a global brand like Starbucks validates that we have always operated at an international benchmark, while remaining deeply rooted in the TwentySeven Bakehouse philosophy. In terms of product development, we operate now at a much larger scale, while keeping the consistency, craft and quality of our bakes the absolute same. This collaboration has helped strengthen our positioning within India’s premium bakery segment: we are a homegrown brand that can stand confidently alongside a global coffeehouse.

Shraddha Warde

shraddha.warde@mmactiv.com