Rose Milk

Rose Milk in Orpington

Rose Milk is a Chennai drink, and unusually for something this traditional it has a date. It is not ancient. It belongs to the twentieth century, and the story of how it got there is worth knowing.

When the Madras Milk Suppliers Union formed in 1927, and again when Aavin's central dairy opened in 1963, the city found itself with more milk than it could sell. Much of that surplus was turned into rose milk and sold across the city.

The most famous seller is still trading. Kalathi's in Mylapore, beside the Kapaleeswarar Temple, opened in 1927 as a newspaper mart and began selling rose milk in 1952 at twenty-five paise a glass. Three generations of the same family have run it since.

At Crispy Dosa Orpington it is made simply, because it should be. Chilled milk is blended with fragrant rose syrup until it turns that unmistakable pale pink, then served cold.

The scent to aim for is the panneer rose, the rose-water rose of South India, grown for perfume rather than for looks. Balance is the entire job. Too much syrup and it turns cloying. Too little and the rose vanishes behind the milk.

Done properly it should smell of roses before you taste them, and the flavour should stay delicate rather than turning perfumed. Most people who try it for the first time are surprised how mild it is.

It is not a rose lassi, because there is no yoghurt in it, and it is not a milkshake, because there is no ice cream and it is not churned. It is milk and syrup, cold, and nothing else.

It is also not a falooda. We serve both, and the difference is simple. Rose milk is the drink. Falooda is the layered dessert built on top of it, with vermicelli, basil seeds and ice cream added.

It is worth ordering early rather than late. Rose milk is at its best properly cold, and it works as a welcome drink while you are still deciding what to eat.

Everything on our menu at Crispy Dosa Orpington is 100% pure vegetarian and cooked to order by chefs from Chennai, and this is one of the few drinks on the list that comes from the same city as the food.

Available to dine in at 273 High Street, Orpington, BR6 0NW, as a takeaway, or added to your online order.

Try the Madras Classic in Orpington

Order Rose Milk in Orpington at Crispy Dosa Orpington for a taste of Chennai street corners. It contains no caffeine, which makes it a good evening drink and an easy one for children, who mostly order it for the colour. Everything on our menu is 100% pure vegetarian. Call 01689 492201 to book a table, or add it to your online order.

What Goes Into Our Rose Milk

• chilled fresh milk
• fragrant rose syrup
• ice