India, July 30 -- Bengaluru runs on caffeine. Mornings begin with filter kaapi poured from steel tumblers. Afternoons are for single origin brews and slow conversations. But lately, between the tech parks of Bellandur and the leafy lanes of Indiranagar, a different cup has quietly crashed the party. It is green, frothy and here to stay: matcha. Also read | Matcha gets a desi makeover: Assam brews India's first homegrown batch

When I had my first proper bowl of matcha in the city at Sakura Matcha Bar in Victoria Layout back in 2025, it felt like an anomaly. Today, matcha bars are opening faster than bakeries. And almost all of them are run by women.

In a city loyal to filter kaapi, were they gambling on a powdered leaf? Or riding an inte...