Why tiramisu is trending and where to find the best tiramisu across the country
India's new love for speciality coffee has resulted in an obsession with tiramisu, the classic Italian dessert, and we're not complaining
Tiramisu, tiramisu latte, rasgulla tiramisu, masala chai tiramisu, tiramisu tres leches—it seems like almost every café or restaurant across the country has some version of the Italian dessert on its menu. There’s no doubt that the sweet treat made of mascarpone, eggs, sugar and balanced with espresso-dipped lady finger biscuits is a delight to devour, but I find the virality of the tiramisu peculiar as we aren’t witnessing the rise of a “new" dessert. The tiramisu has been popular across the country for years. So why is everyone suddenly obsessed?
First, a little history: contrary to popular opinion, the version of the tiramisu that we enjoy today does not date back centuries like other Italian culinary exports, but is roughly about 60 years old. “Invented" by a restaurant called Le Beccherie in Treviso, located in the north of the country, tiramisu is rumoured to have been first made when then-owner of the restaurant, Alba Campeol, was pregnant with her son Carlo. To help her young daughter-in-law regain her strength, Alba’s mother-in-law would prepare for her a hearty breakfast with zabaglione (an Italian dessert of beaten egg yolks and sugar) and coffee. Once Campeol got back to work, she was inspired to put something on the menu that reminded her of this dish. In the early 1970s, Le Beccherie launched their version of the tiramisu that quickly spread across borders.
Another story goes that a dessert, made from chocolate and cream and biscuits, would be served in brothels around Treviso, after the amorous deed was done. This was called Il tira me su, which literally translates to “pick me up". The ingredients are relatively easy to source or replace and the recipe is simple. By the late 1980s and 1990s, the dish had found its way on to menus of restaurants in the US, the UK and even India. This brings us back to the question: why is everyone talking about it again now?
According to Sahil Mehta, pastry chef, consultant and owner of the French boulangerie and patisserie Paris My Love in New Delhi, tiramisu owes its comeback to India’s burgeoning coffee culture. “Increasingly, more customers are becoming knowledgeable about coffee. This is leading to a surge in the number of coffee shops and coffee-related treats we’re seeing in the market. Tiramisu is an old favourite, so if you think about it, it was ripe for a nostalgic makeover," he says.
Of course, it helps that the dish is Insta-friendly too. High-end restaurants like LUPA in Bengaluru do interactive, tableside versions of it where the dessert is assembled in front of you, while coffee shops like SUBKO offer “Not Your Nonna’s Tiramisu," a “gluten-free, coffee-forward dessert featuring Savoiardi biscuits soaked in espresso and rum, layered with mascarpone, zabaione cream, and topped with a rum-and-pink-salt caramel.
Based on my personal taste tests of the dish and its many iterations across India, the flavour profile tends to veer on the sweet side, with an overall “wet" mouthfeel, perhaps the result of serving a creamy dessert like this one in a humid country like India. But purists believe that a classic tiramisu is one that isn’t too sweet or too moist. “A good dessert is about balance. When done well, the tiramisu is the perfect definition of that, with the bitterness of the coffee that cuts the sweetness of the mascarpone and the biscuits and eggs that add a light fluffiness to the texture," explains Mehta, who serves a classic version at his Delhi cafe.
For Enrico Signorelli, the tiramisu proved to be a way to engage with a like-minded community in a foreign country. Having worked at online food delivery company Deliveroo for years in Italy, Signorelli saw an opportunity in Mumbai when he visited in 2023. “Mumbai is so energetic, the food scene is bursting with innovation. I saw tiramisu on so many menus but none of them could hit the spot and satisfy my homesickness," he says. Earlier this year, after sourcing some ingredients from Italy and testing various recipes of tiramisu that would survive Mumbai’s temperamental weather conditions, he launched Mami Bombay, a tiramisu-only delivery and takeaway service in Bandra. Gen Z just can’t get enough. Mami offers two products: the classic tiramisu, assembled in an attractive see-through takeaway box and a 1.3kg version of the same dessert. It’s almost always sold out. “Nowadays when it comes to food, I’ve noticed that people either want something new or iconic," says Signorelli. Seems like the tiramisu and its many Frankenstein versions straddle both worlds.
Across the globe too, tiramisu is garnering many fans. The Tiramisu World Cup, held in Treviso, earlier this year announced that it was on the hunt for official judges. Within 12 hours, 100 available spots were all sold out. In New York City, Cafe Two by Two, which claims to be the city’s only tiramisu bar, has a fridge case that holds 18 different tiramisu, which range from original to peach lychee, taro mochi and even one that’s studded with seaweed pork-floss taro. In China, street stalls with colourful trays of tiramisu flood Tik Tok, while in Manchester, Italian restaurant Onda gained much attention with videos of its tiramisu drawer, that sparked viral moments like a content creator attempting to clear airport security in the US with a clear plastic handbag full of tiramisu. On Google Trends in India, the keyword tiramisu is trending upwards.
Last year, the “Tiramisu Cake" challenge, a viral social media dance trend featuring the song Tiramisu Cake, written by Korean indie pop band ‘We Are The Night’, took over Korean social media and spread across Asia. The song’s lyrics are told from the point of view of a man who falls in love with a woman at first sight, because she is “sweet like tiramisu cake." Of course, local bakeries jumped on the trend, launching special tiramisu to go with the viral trend. On Instagram, I scroll by tiramisu focaccia, protein-enhanced tiramisu baked oats, and decadent tiramisu lattes.
A sweet indulgence or a way to escape our increasingly chaotic lives, the tiramisu is here to stay. We may as well smell the coffee and enjoy a bite.
Smitha Menon is a food journalist and the host of the Big Food Energy podcast. She posts @smitha.men.
topics
