Edible Food Find: Madhrasi Chai
Photos by Michael Piazza
Nancy Daniel grew up in Chennai, South India, where drinking chai is a way of life. As a child, she would arrive home from school and drink the chai that her mother made with her family, while they would talk about their days. When she matured, having chai during office hours, as a break from work at 2pm, was routine. If she ever felt lonely, she would call up a friend to have a chai, and sharing the beverage together would automatically brighten her outlook.
“Be [they happy or sad], chai has always been part of [my] memories,” she says. “A chai is different based on who makes it, but it always has that tea, the bold spices, and the flavors come together. It instantly reminds me of home.”
Daniel decided to launch her own company, Madhrasi Chai, when she found that nothing in New England compared to the chai that she had enjoyed in India. She quit her job as the manager of one of Flour Bakery’s Cambridge stores and started to perfect her own recipes, experimenting with balanced ratios in the tea to get it just right.
Two years ago, she grew her brand out of Commonwealth Kitchen, a food business incubator based in Dorchester. She started through Commonwealth’s Ready To Launch program, which helped her obtain the permits she needed, gave her facility space and more. In the beginning, she ran the operation by herself, brewing her own chai in Commonwealth’s shared industrial kitchen, selling at farmers markets and packaging her products on site. Today, she supplies her drink to 60 cafés in the region, including Sofra Bakery and Café in Cambridge and Allston and Lakon Paris Patisserie. Her goal is to expand to more cafés in New England next year, while supplying chai to supermarkets and specialty stores.
Madhrasi Chai is best known for its Masala Chai Concentrate, which just requires the addition of milk to be prepared. It’s made with black tea from Assam, India; fresh ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves. Luxurious and rich, it can be savored hot or cold. Daniel also created a Rose Chai Concentrate, which is lighter, floral and romantic. Blending in rose petals and rose water, the drink is fragrant, mild and perfect for summer. The Saffron Chai Concentrate is a different experience, infused with saffron for premium quality. The Golden Latte Mix is a newer offering, integrating turmeric and other warming spices, lightly sweetened with jaggery, an Indian sugar made from cane juice. The varieties that Daniel has envisioned all guarantee freshness and nuance.
Being a woman-owned business comes with challenges but also great strengths, says Daniel. In particular, she has learned from a community of other Boston-based female entrepreneurs, among them Ana Sortun of Oleana and Sofra, and Irene Li of Mei Mei. As a mom of two children, Daniel finds herself juggling “a million things,” and finds support through other female leaders in the food industry, as well as through organizations like Women of Color Entrepreneurs and the Asian Business Empowerment Council These connections can feel empowering, she says.
“At the end of the day, I am a chef at heart. I love making recipes, and I love feeding people,” she says, recalling the reaction of some Indian international students from Harvard when sampling her chai. After taking a sip, they began to cry. That response encapsulates what Madhrasi Chai means to Daniel—remembrance, culture and familiar flavors of her birthplace.
“That is what I am best at doing, and that’s what I love to do. The ‘why’ behind Madhrasi is bringing joy through simple things. And for now, that is the perfect cup of chai.”
This story appeared in the Winter 2026 issue.
