A café for every hour: the story of AFETO

Cafés in Delhi are increasingly becoming extensions of everyday life, where laptops occupy window-side tables, entrepreneurs conduct meetings over breakfast, students prepare assignments between classes, and groups of friends spend hours catching up over brunch. As cafés have evolved beyond being places for a quick cup of coffee, many now offer all-day dining, specialty beverages and spaces designed for work or longer social visits. The trend, visible in neighbourhoods such as Khan Market, Greater Kailash and Hauz Khas, has also spread to parts of West Delhi.

Among the latest additions is AFETO, a café founded by pastry chef Ashima Gupta, who has drawn on years of experience in baking to open a café offering all-day dining, robusta coffee and an in-house bakery. Gupta says AFETO was conceived as a space people could visit at different times of the day — for breakfast before work, afternoon meetings, post-workout meals, evening coffee or a quiet break from the city.

Gupta says AFETO came together without a detailed business plan. “To be honest, AFETO wasn’t a meticulously planned café — it happened very organically,” she says. “There were several moments when the project almost got called off, but I was determined to see it through.”

She says the menu was designed to suit customers visiting the café at different times of the day. “Someone might visit us for breakfast, return later for coffee, come back for dessert or enjoy lunch with family,” she says. “Everything from our breads and bakery products to our granola is prepared in-house because freshness is extremely important to us.”

An all-day menu

AFETO has been designed to accommodate customers visiting at different times of the day. Alongside its all-day menu, the café has a separate protein-forward menu aimed at gym-goers and fitness-conscious customers.

Breakfast is a prominent part of the menu, with dishes including Eggs Your Way, AFETO Eggs Benni, Italian Baked Eggs, Parmesan Sunny Side Up, tofu bhurji scramble, overnight oats bowls, fresh fruit bowls and tiramisu French toast.

The menu also includes overnight oats, avocado toast, fresh fruit bowls and protein-rich dishes alongside waffles and French toast. Savoury lentil pancakes are served with toppings such as broken falafel, crispy paneer and garlic mushrooms, while croffles — a hybrid of croissants and waffles — are available with avocado and cheese, garlic mushrooms or eggs and chilli.

Smaller plates include hummus and falafel, crispy chimichurri potatoes, edamame, vegan sweet potato fries and salads featuring burrata, beetroot and seasonal greens. The café also serves gourmet sandwiches, handmade pastas, stone-baked pizzas, ramen, risotto and larger vegetarian mains.

From pastry chef to cafe owner

Before opening AFETO, Gupta spent more than seven years building her career as a pastry chef. While baking remained her primary focus, she says she wanted to create a café where desserts were part of a broader food and beverage offering.

“Being a pastry chef gave me a strong foundation in creating quality desserts, and I had always envisioned expanding into a dessert café someday,” she says.

As she prepared to open the café, Gupta says she realised she also needed to develop her understanding of coffee. “I believe that to run a successful food business, it’s important to understand every aspect of it.”

Although confident in baking, Gupta decided to train as a barista before opening AFETO. “Food and ingredients have always been my strength, but I wanted to understand coffee as well. As soon as I decided to open the café, I trained as a barista so I could contribute to every part of the business.”

Brewing something different

Coffee is another focus at AFETO. Among its offerings is Nitrobrew, a nitrogen-infused coffee. “It’s still relatively uncommon in Delhi, and we wanted to introduce something that offers a different coffee experience,” Gupta says. “The nitrogen infusion creates a naturally creamy texture and a smooth finish without relying on added ingredients.”

The café also features live coffee and matcha preparation. Gupta says the idea was to introduce customers to different brewing methods rather than simply follow trends. “We felt Nitrobrew would appeal both to serious coffee enthusiasts and to people looking to discover something new. Innovation should enhance the customer experience rather than exist just for novelty.”

Gupta says customers are increasingly interested in understanding brewing methods, ingredient sourcing and food preparation rather than simply ordering familiar items. “They are interested in understanding coffee, exploring different brewing methods and trying new flavours,” she says. She believes that shift has encouraged cafés to place greater emphasis on hospitality and food alongside coffee.

Getting it right

Opening a café with an in-house bakery required careful planning, Gupta says. One of the biggest challenges was ensuring consistency across different parts of the business. “Building an in-house bakery alongside a specialty café requires careful planning, consistency and the right team.”

“I didn’t want to compromise on ingredient quality or customer experience, even if it meant taking more time.”

Looking back, Gupta says those decisions shaped the café’s approach. “Every challenge became an opportunity to refine our processes and stay true to our philosophy.”

Coming together

While menus and interiors often define cafés, AFETO’s identity centred on community-building. “We wanted AFETO to be a community and lifestyle café rather than just a café,” Gupts says.

Community, she believes, cannot simply be designed. It has to be built gradually. Gupta hopes customers eventually think of AFETO as “a place where they can work, catch up with friends, enjoy family breakfasts or simply take a quiet break.”

“When people keep coming back because they feel connected, that’s when you know you’ve built a community.”

Lessons learnt

As a woman entrepreneur in the hospitality industry, Gupta describes the experience as rewarding. “The journey has been incredibly rewarding, but it has also taught me resilience and patience,” she says.

She says running a café has reinforced the importance of adaptability and consistency. “I’ve learned that consistency matters more than perfection. Building meaningful relationships with customers and creating a strong team has been just as important as developing the menu.”

Guided by values

Looking ahead, Gupta says she hopes AFETO will continue to grow while retaining the principles on which it was founded. “My vision is for AFETO to become synonymous with warmth, quality and community,” she says. “I want people to associate the brand with experiences that feel personal and memorable rather than simply another café visit.”

While expansion remains part of her long-term plans, Gupta says maintaining the café’s atmosphere will be equally important. “No matter how the brand evolves, I want every AFETO space to retain the same feeling of comfort, familiarity and belonging that inspired us from the very beginning.”

Her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs is simple: “Stay authentic, keep learning and never lose sight of why you started.”