Sisters Turn 60-Year-Old Family Home Into Vintage Café

When Swati and Sanyogita Rathore walked through their grandfather's empty bungalow during the pandemic, they saw more than fading walls and dusty rooms. They saw their future.

The sisters had spent years apart, mostly in hostels growing up, climbing corporate ladders in separate cities. Swati worked in hospitality for a decade, quietly collecting café ideas on a Pinterest board. Sanyogita was busy mastering recipes from MasterChef Australia and eventually training at Lavonne Academy of Baking Science and Pastry Arts in Bengaluru.

The lockdown gave them their first real chance to dream together. They wondered if life could exist beyond burnout and long commutes. The answer was sitting right in front of them.

Their grandfather built the two-story home in Jaipur's Peelwa Garden in 1960. The 1,200 square yard property featured 10 rooms made with Kota stone and a roof built from stone slabs. After standing strong for 60 years, it was ready for a new chapter.

In September 2021, both sisters quit their jobs. By November, construction began on what would become O'Baque Jaipur.

The renovation took nine months, but the sisters refused to erase history in the name of progress. They converted the old driveway, servant quarters, and storage rooms into a working bakery. An unused office became a studio for future culinary classes.

The low ceiling beams stayed exactly where they were. The original Kota stones remained on the floors. Even the kitchen, with its decades of family meals baked into the walls, was left untouched.

Why This Inspires

Most café owners start with blank slates and brand new equipment. The Rathore sisters chose a harder path that honored where they came from while building something new.

They serve continental dishes that challenge Jaipur's traditional palate, plated on vintage crockery handed down through generations. Guests eat croissants and pastries in rooms where the sisters' grandfather once read his morning paper.

The café opened on August 14, 2022. What started as ideas on a phone and recipes scribbled from TV shows became a place where heritage tastes like butter and nostalgia pairs perfectly with coffee.

Sometimes the best way forward is to bring the past along for the ride.