Chaiwale & Co.

While Yemeni (Qamaria, Qahwah & Chapati) and other Middle Eastern cafes (Karak House, Mar7aba) have recently opened across Orange County, we hadn’t seen a local Indian version until we discovered Chaiwale & Co. in Old Towne Orange – and we’re very glad we did. On our first visit, the small but energetic space was filled with guests indoors and outdoors, hosting a live DJ set playing hip-hop and dance music, and serving a seriously compelling menu of Indian coffees, teas, and desserts, plus a handful of savory items, all at reasonable prices. We’ve returned several times since, and remained impressed.

Superficially, Chaiwale & Co.’s drink and dessert collections resemble ones at the aforementioned Middle Eastern cafes: chais (teas) with spices such as cardamom or saffron ($4.50 to $6.50), lattes with pistachio, rose, or lavender flavors ($5.50 to $6.50), milk cakes ($8/slice), cheesecakes ($8/slice), and other small cupcake or donut cakes (under $5). The Kulfi Tres Leche cake shown above, garnished with rosehips and pistachios while oozing with sweet milk, is as beautiful and nicely balanced as the nicest cakes at Qamaria. But the influences, recipes, and flavors are slightly different: A Rasmalai Cake is topped with a piece of sweet Indian cheese and tons of pistachios, with soft milk cake underneath, while Mango Lassi and Gulab Jamun cheesecakes similarly pay tributes to some of India’s best-known drinks and desserts. Three Indian ice creams (pistachio, mango, rose/$5 each) and sweet noodle falooda ($10) are also available.

Fans of authentic Indian cuisine will find Chaiwale & Co.’s traditional beverage-style Mango Lassi ($6.50) to be nearly yogurt-thick and more tart than sweet, served – unless ordered “to go” – in the sort of solid brass cup one might expect at a nice Indian restaurant. Other drinks, such as a Matcha Pistachio Cream Latte ($6 to $7) and a Matcha Mango Lassi arrive in glasses showing off their layered ingredients, which when mixed deliver fine to good rather than great flavors. In each case, the matcha’s strength is roughly equivalent to the secondary flavor, but the matcha mango lassi is a little too sour despite its intriguingly dual-toned appearance. On a later visit, a double matcha saffron latte ($7.50) led with a perfect balance of saffron and matcha cream top, then revealed a tea base with small clumps of undissolved powder.