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Indian Coffee House where people also enjoy its signature coffee

Origin of Indian Coffee house

The history of the Indian Coffee House highlights the significance and relevance of the “Indian” in its name. While the British popularized coffee cultivation in South India during the 19th century, primarily for export and local consumption, coffee houses that emerged in cities like Madras and Calcutta were exclusively for Europeans. The idea of creating coffee houses for Indians had been around since the 1890s. However, the first such establishment, named “Indian Coffee House,” was opened in Churchgate, Bombay, in 1936, operated by the Indian Coffee Board. By the time of independence and partition, there were 50 coffee houses, and Pakistan inherited several branches in its cities.

Workers’ cooperative takes over

In the mid-1950s, the Coffee Board of India decided to shut down its coffee houses. In response, a delegation led by Communist leader A.K. Gopalan approached Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru for intervention. Gopalan proposed forming a cooperative society by and for the workers to run the coffee houses. This led to the establishment of the Indian Coffee Workers’ Cooperative Society. By 1957, the cooperative opened its first coffee house in the Theatre Communication Building at Connaught Place, Delhi, marking a new chapter in the Indian Coffee house chain.

The network of these outlets is easily recognised by their waiters’ uniforms, including distinctive headgear, and the standardised menu and meals at affordable prices. This provided travelers across the state or country with a reliable and safe place to enjoy a meal while on the go.

Coffee house essential for democracy

These coffee houses evolved into vibrant hubs for intellectual discussions and social gatherings, serving as daily meeting spots for friends and peers. Ironically, the very Delhi coffee house that symbolised Nehruvian socialism was demolished during the Emergency, under PM Indira Gandhi, in May 1976, to eliminate a crucial space for political and intellectual engagement. In the book Brewing Resistance: Indian Coffee House and the Emergency in Postcolonial India, author Kristin Victoria Magistrelli Plys emphasises the significance of these spaces, stating, “The coffee house was where opinions were formed. For democracy, the coffee house is essential.”

Organisation:

The Indian Coffee House operates 400 outlets across several states, including West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan, and Kerala. These outlets are managed by 13 cooperative societies, each governed by managing committees elected from among the employees. All of these societies are affiliated with the All India Coffee Workers’ Cooperative Societies Federation.

Kerala Indian Coffee Houses operate under two cooperative societies

Trissur Society (Travancore-Cochin Area): 

The first society, the India Coffee Board Workers’ Co-operative Society Ltd. No. 4227, was registered in Trissur on 10th February 1958. This society currently operates 49 branches across the region, from Trissur to Thiruvananthapuram.

Kannur Society (Old Malabar Area): 

The second society, registered in Palakkad on 2nd July 1958, now operates under the name Indian Coffee Workers’ Co-operative Society Ltd. No. 4317, Kannur, with its registered office in Kannur. It runs 31 outlets in major towns from Kasaragod to Palakkad. In the 2022-2023 financial year, the society recorded a total turnover of ₹90 Crs with a net profit of ₹3 Crs. A return of 3.3% on revenue. Which is commendable for such an enterprise.

The most notable Coffee house in Kerala for its architecture

Recent Closure of the Changanacherry Outlet:

The Changanacherry Indian Coffee House was first opened near the KSRTC bus stand in the 1970s. A second outlet, opened near the new KSRTC bus stand, was shut down a few years ago. The first outlet was relocated to Kurisumood seven years ago and was closed on 30th September 2024. The reasons cited for the closure are declining profits and a shortage of workers. This is the right and wise decision from the point of view of the business enterprise. This leaves Changanacherry, and nearby Tiruvalla, where the outlet was shut down in 2014, without any Indian Coffee House outlets. However, five coffee houses operate in and around Kottayam town.

Wish and Hope: The decline in business at Kurusumoodu, Changanacherry outlet was largely due to its unfavorable location; a better spot might have led to its success. Let us wish and hope that another outlet will open in Changanacherry soon, similar to the one reopened at Mohan Singh Place in Connaught Place after the Emergency, or the famous Bangalore Indian Coffee House that moved from M.G. Road to Church Street in 2009.

Long live the Indian Coffee House! The Indian Coffee House is a living monument to India’s colonial past and the socialist mode of business enterprise. It serves as a gathering place for like-minded individuals and also offers a space to enjoy its signature aromatic coffee.

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14 responses to “Indian Coffee House where people also enjoy its signature coffee”

  1. stephen mathews Avatar
    stephen mathews

    Dr Bify Joy

    “So well written capturing the real taste of Indian Coffee house,a place with I have a very sentimental attachment.The Coffee house within the Kottayam Medical College campus was one place which was a regular spot for us to gather almost on a daily basis where we formed friendships,we planned events,we discussed academics plus gossips galore.It was another place where we experimented with food combos safely .
    The attachment remained with me while doing PG in Thiruvananthapuram where I wouldn’t miss out on a Coffee house coffee before getting on a KSRTC Bus/train to Kottayam during weekends.
    There’s something in the taste/aroma of the coffee there that makes you yearn for it each time you see an INDIAN COFFEE HOUSE outlet.
    Thank you Kuttapacha for rekindling those beautiful memories and making me yearn for a cup of Indian Coffee House coffee..”

    Reply
    1. stephen mathews Avatar
      stephen mathews

      Thanks Bify for sharing your relationship with ICH

      Reply
  2. Vinitha Jayan Avatar
    Vinitha Jayan

    ICH has emotional bonding for me too. During my childhood every year when we visited changanacherry for our summer vacation, having Masala Dosa from ICH was never missed. It was a great family time at ICH. We used to feel amazed being served by the uniquely dressed waiters with their beautiful turbans. Though after settling down in changanacherry this visit to ICH was not a regular one but passing by ICH or seeing the ICH board would certainly take me to my childhood vacation time. Thank you Stephen sir for the wonderful research. Now my knowledge is beyond the Masala Dosa. It is indeed a loss of many memories bound to it for almost all the changanasserians.

    Reply
    1. stephen mathews Avatar
      stephen mathews

      Thanks Vinitha for expressing your emotional bond with ICH

      Reply
  3. Sonia Anna Zachariah Avatar
    Sonia Anna Zachariah

    Thank you Stephen sir for your insightful note on Indian Coffee House’s history. It reminded me of my favourite Vegetable Cutlet (beetroot-potato) with onion salad and their signature coffee.

    Reply
    1. stephen mathews Avatar
      stephen mathews

      Thanks Sonia for your sharing your nostalgic experience

      Reply
  4. Binu Joy Avatar
    Binu Joy

    Well said.
    The article brings back so many memories across so many towns and cities of India.
    Our earliest ones were the treats as a family in Bhilai where we spent our childhood. The first distinctive taste of masala Dosa and cutlets. To date, the memory lingers.
    Since then, every ICH in any location draws me in. The afore mentioned Bangalore MG road outlet used to be a favourite for its poached eggs on toast. The small hole in the wall outlet in Aluva which subsequently closed after a midnight gas cylinder mishap. The bustling one in Kakkanad where I go every opportunity I get. The spiral in Thampanoor…every time I passed by, I used to get in.
    For me, most of these visits have been by myself except the childhood ones. I loved and probably still do the atmosphere of the community where anyone can walk in and have a snack or a meal , sit and talk. The common man’s adda. A K Gopalan’s photo on the walls in many outlets. A sense of the nation as one entity.
    Many are now run down or closing. Really hope there is a revival.
    A sign of the times, I guess. It served a good purpose across an era when the country was different.

    The economic divide has placed us coffee lovers across Starbucks to CCDs to the ICHs and roadside thattukadas. But every once in a while , we step across our divides if only to savour not just another distinct aroma but a way of life.

    Reply
    1. stephen mathews Avatar
      stephen mathews

      Binu,

      as usual, your comment adds valuable insights to the blog. A coffee house national chain which has served over 8 decades, has been a feeling for very many across these years.

      You have raised pertinent questions for thought.

      Thanks Binu

      .

      Reply
  5. stephen mathews Avatar
    stephen mathews

    Dr Varghese John, Former Principal, UC College, Aluva

    “Much appreciate the details and the message that it does carry. I think this will appeal primarily to (and perhaaps only to) those who have known the Indian Coffee House culture. With something common to all of them, but something unique to most of the outlets, at least the older ones, whether at Kottayam or in Calcutta.

    They do give a sense of the colonial past, but also of the difference in the present: with a sense of the dignity and respect that each deserves, whether old or young, customer or staff, intellectual or otherwise. The words accompanying a picture that used to be strikingly visible at the old Changanacherry ICH were very suggestive: “A fine type, a fine coffee. Both are Indian.”

    Of course it is important to consider profitabilty. But wish and hope there is somebody in the Boards who is aware of the importance of this brand and its value for our social life.”

    Reply
    1. stephen mathews Avatar
      stephen mathews

      Thanks Varghese John.

      Everyone who had frequented ICH has nostalgic memories. The Chain authorities are facing the challenge to strategise to meet the changing eateries scenario.

      Reply
  6. stephen mathews Avatar
    stephen mathews

    Rintu, Entrepreneur, alumnus Berchmans Institute of Management Studies

    “Indian coffee house was once a most sought hotel for traveller’s. The brand is believed to provide good food at affordable rate. But they failed to carry the legacy . May be due to many resasons

    1. Due to the wide available options of eateries in and around any location.

    2. Penetration of International and national eatery brands and their widespred branches and their stiff competition

    3. Plethora of options infront of new generation- KFC,Chicking,Baskin Robins,Mac D , CafeCoffeDay,Starbucks, Pizza Hut,Burger King…other national and local eateries to the list.

    4. The marketing startegy of international brands creates a top of mind recall in new gen and the force they exert to their parents lead the family to have food from the place where children suggest.

    5. During the initial stage of Indian coffee house there was no much competition and options as such which helped Indian coffee house to grew

    6. India Coffee House grewed with a particular generation and it fades with that generation itself.

    From marketing perspect I would say it’s Marketing Myopia which leads the decline of Indian coffee house. Same like what happened to Hindustan Motors and HMT watches.”

    Reply
    1. stephen mathews Avatar
      stephen mathews

      Rintu, thanks for your incisive response. This clearly shows the thought you have put into the topic. Indeed, I am glad that the blog has elicited such views.

      Change is inevitable. For a Business the questions What, How much and when to change ??? are answers to arrive at. Hope they will be addressed by the ICH authorities.

      Reply
  7. Elizabeth Joseph Avatar
    Elizabeth Joseph

    Your article on Indian Coffee House brought back some fond memories. During my post graduate studies at Mar Ivanios college in the early 1970s, I stayed at the hostel in Nalanchira. My uncle who lived in Pattom frequently visited me there and occasionally took me to Indian Coffee House. The cutlets that I had eaten there have been the best so far in my memory. Thank you for the nostalgic feeling that your well-researched and educational article provided.

    Reply
    1. stephen mathews Avatar
      stephen mathews

      Thanks Sallychechi for your comments which add on to the emotional bond ICH has formed in the minds of its patrons

      Reply

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