Gloria Jeans Coffees

The mornings at Malad West can be quite a scramble. Down here on Khatas Kunva Road, the dust starts kicking up as soon as the first buses go by. We open up the shop and the first thing I do is check the machines. There is a specific smell of coffee that gets into your clothes and stays there all day. Vikthal Nagar is a place where people are always in a rush to get somewhere else. We see them coming in with their phones and bags, looking for a quick cup before they head to the station. The address says Pune 46 337 which is a bit confusing for some people, but we are right here in the heart of the Malad side. The tables get wobbled sometimes so I have to put a bit of folded cardboard under the legs. It isn’t a perfect place but it’s ours. The steam from the milk wand makes a loud hissing sound that I’ve grown to like over the years. It feels like the shop is breathing. We have some regulars who don't even have to say their order anymore. I just see them coming across the road and I start making it. The afternoon slump is when things get quiet and I can finally sit for a minute. We look out the window at the traffic and wait for the evening crowd to start pouring in from the offices nearby. It’s just a normal day.