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IT TOOK NEARLY FOUR DECADES of living in India, for me, to visit one of India’s great cities – Kolkata. And everyone and their uncle, knowing my love for a good meal, besides being completely surprised, lovingly handed me long lists of their favourite food spots across this bustling, beautiful city. We were there only for five days and four nights but tried to make each one of our meals count. Here’s a run-down of the bangers for a newbie to Kolkata.
We kicked off our trip with Chinese food for dinner at Golden Joy in Tangra, one of the two ‘Chinatowns’ of the city. Immediately, it feels like the blueprint for all our collective childhood notions of a Chinese restaurant was born here. There’s red everywhere, giant mirrors, touches of gold and large family-style seating. We got the crispy golden fried prawns – juicy, yummy, delicious; roast duck – caramelly, earthy, peppery; and a stir-fry of slivers of juicy roast pork with julienned green onion and sweet bits of fried onions. Another order of the prawns washed down with more beer.
You might want to check out breakfast at the hole-in-the-wall establishments at Tiretta Bazaar, the city’s second ‘Chinatown’. Start your day with Singara Chow – thick, fresh noodles swimming in a brothy pool with pork-stuffed wontons shaped like singara (samosa). There’s also a Kali temple in the area, where the deity is offered noodles as an act of devotion.
For Bengali food, the reccos that ran common through all of the lists were Suruchi, Aaheli, 6 Ballygunge and Kasturi. We wanted to do some fabric shopping too, so we stopped over for lunch at Kasturi, the one closest to us. It serves Bangladeshi food, which while similar has its own punch. We got ourselves a Kosha Mangsho and a Shorshe Ilish thali along with a Fish Fry with Kasundi, Kochupata Diye Chingri Bhapa or steamed prawns in colocasia leaves, and a Begun Bhaja. Each dish was fantastic and flavoursome. It’s the simplicity and attention to the details; like the Begun Bhaja was two giant halves of brinjal, lightly salted, drizzled with mustard oil and charred to perfection over charcoal. I’m still thinking about it.
Drag a Bengali friend to explore pice hotels, a Bengali take on mess kitchens serving up home-style food. There’s Tarun Niketan and Hotel Sidheshwari Ashram. Here, you get dishes that are usually eaten at only family homes that creatively and consciously use ingredients; doing farm-to-table and nose-to-tail before it was hip. While there are menus, it’s so seasonal in focus, you might miss out on the little treats if you don’t understand Bengali. Or like us, you can point and then put up with not knowing the names of the delicious items you are devouring and can’t repeat the order.
For Kolkata-style biryani – with potatoes – a by-product of Wajid Ali Shah, the exiled last Nawab of Awadh, there’s Arsalan Restaurant & Caterer, Aminia and Aalia. But, there’s a similar Kolkata via Awadh-style biryani without potatoes available at Royal Indian Hotel because these proprietors are the direct descendants of the Nawab and on their tables, potatoes weren’t added to make it seem more generous.
For old-world charm besides just standing in the streets, pop into Hotel Broadway, Trincas and Mocambo. There’s live music and talismans from a dreamier past – pina coladas, devilled eggs and chicken ala kiev.
And there are still more places to eat! I’ve not even split the details on the sweet shops and street food. I’ll be back!
A-Z Directory
6 Ballygunge Place: 6, Dr Amiya Bose Sarani Rd, near Patha Bhavan School, Ballygunge Place, Ballygunge, call 9903975614.
Aaheli: First Floor, Peerless Hotel, 12, Jawaharlal Nehru Road, New Market Area, Dharmatala, Taltala, Kolkata, call 9831780405.
Aalia: Nayapatti Main Road, Nayapatty, AN Block, Sector V, Bidhannagar, Kolkata, call 9088052769.
Aminia: 6A, SN Banerjee Road, New Market Area, Dharmatala, Taltala, Kolkata, call 033 22651318.
Arsalan Restaurant & Caterer: 191, 7 Point, Marina Garden Court, Park Circus, Ballygunge, Kolkata, call 9007007942.
Broadway Hotel: 27A, Ganesh Chandra Avenue, Bowbazar, Kolkata, call 033 22363930.
Golden Joy: 50, Matheswartala Road, Topsia, Kolkata, call 9051870888.
Hotel Sidheshwari Ashram: 19, Rani Rashmoni Road, Esplanade, Dakshineswar, call 9831684351.
Kasturi: 11 A, Hindustan Road, Doverlane, Hindustan Rd, B, Gariahat, Kolkata, call 8334922227.
Mocambo: Ground Floor, 25B, Mirza Ghalib St, Taltala, Kolkata, call 033 40655380.
Suruchi: 89, Elliot Road, Taltala, Kolkata, call 033 22290011.
Tarun Niketan: Metro Rail Station Gate, Ward 88 88/1B, Rash Behari Avenue, Street Number 4, near Kalighat, Kolkata, call 9836358614.
Tiretta Bazaar: Central Kolkata
Trincas: 17, Park Street, near Oxford Book Store, Taltala, Kolkata, call 8240259201.
