Offbeat CCU Marks the Arrival of the FestiveSeason with a Grand Seasonal Menu andTraditional Cake-Mixing Ceremony
Ambarnath Bhattacharya, Takmaa News, Kolkata, 27th Nov 2025 : At a time when Kolkata begins its gentle transition from the warmth of autumn to the quiet promise of winter, Offbeat CCU — the city’s evolving cultural, creative, and culinary ecosystem — ushered in the festive season with an afternoon that blended ritual, flavour, and human connection. The Seasonal Menu Launch, followed by the property’s annual Cake-Mixing Ceremony, unfolded not just as an event but as a thoughtfully crafted experience that highlighted the philosophy at the heart of
Offbeat CCU: community, creativity, and an unwavering respect for tradition.
Situated along Topsia’s EM Bypass corridor, Offbeat CCU has, over the years, grown into a multidisciplinary urban campus that houses talent, craft, food, and performance under one address. The afternoon began with guests gathering at the rooftop, where the air carried both the familiarity
of winter sunlight and the anticipation of a fresh culinary chapter. The Chef from Offbeat – Café Offbeat Upthere introduced the Seasonal Menu, designed specifically for the coming months — a period traditionally associated with richer flavours, slower meals, and indulgent cravings. The menu
blends global comfort and local memory, offering dishes that feel both contemporary and rooted. Plates moved from hand to hand, encouraging conversations that were as textured as the food itself — an aspect that has come to define Café Offbeat UpThere’s reputation as a space where people linger, talk, and return.
The spread included an assortment of thoughtfully prepared starters and desserts, each crafted to reflect the kitchen’s evolving culinary philosophy. While the café has always been known for approachable café dining, this seasonal menu hinted at a more mature, more deliberate vision for
food at Offbeat CCU — one where technique, seasonality, and cultural awareness converge. It was evident that the menu had been curated with an understanding of the city’s evolving palate: diverse, cosmopolitan, curious, yet anchored in familiar warmth. As evening approached, the gathering transitioned seamlessly into the Cake-Mixing Ceremony, one of the most cherished pre-festive traditions. This ritual — tracing its origins to colonial-era winter preparations — has endured across continents as a symbol of abundance, community, and celebration. At Offbeat CCU, it unfolded with a subtle elegance: tables laden with raisins, nuts, candied citrus, spices, dried fruits, and carefully selected aromatics. Guests joined chefs and team
members in folding the ingredients together — a gesture that symbolized not just the beginning of festive baking, but the shared participation that lies at the core of all celebrations. The ceremony felt intimate yet lively, as creators, students, media professionals, food personalities, and long-time patrons stood shoulder to shoulder, each contributing to the mixture that will eventually become the festive cakes served throughout December. The ingredients gathered in the bowls seemed to mirror the people gathered around them — varied, expressive, distinct, and yet part of a larger whole. Music drifted softly over the rooftop, and impromptu jamming sessions added spontaneity to the afternoon, making the experience both traditional and unmistakably contemporary.
For Offbeat CCU, the event was more than a seasonal occurrence. It was a reaffirmation of its place in Kolkata’s cultural landscape — as a hub where food intersects with art, where rituals coexist with reinvention, and where celebrations feel authentically community-driven. The presence of media,
bloggers, creators, and personalities from the culinary space added to the layered texture of the occasion, ensuring the story extended beyond the rooftop and into the city’s larger food and lifestyle conversation. Reflecting on the afternoon, the management team at Offbeat CCU shared,
“For us, the festive season is not defined by decorations or calendars alone. It is defined by people — by what they eat together, what they create together, and the memories they take away. The Seasonal Menu and Cake-Mixing Ceremony represent our commitment to shaping experiences that
feel genuine, inclusive, and rooted in the culture of this city.” As Offbeat CCU prepares to enter the year-end period, the property is set to introduce a series of winter-focused programming — including curated dining events, live music evenings, and a fresh roster of F&B experiences across the campus. The newly mixed cake blend will age through the coming weeks, slowly transforming into the festive bakes that winter regulars look forward to each year.
Guests can now experience the new Seasonal Menu at Café Offbeat UpThere, open daily from 12 PM to 11 PM, with the rooftop ambience offering an added layer of charm during the cooler months. With this celebration, Offbeat CCU invites the city to step into a season of warmth, flavour, and shared ritual — and to find within its walls a space where the festive spirit feels personal, contemporary, and deeply connected to Kolkata’s cultural rhythm.
