In a nutshell: A mid-sized Hole in the wall eatery that serves super YUMM Anglo Bengali cuisine. Address & other details: Enter Sadananda Road from Rashbehari more side & walk towards Hazra. The shop is on the left side. Meal for 2: Rs. 150 onwards Cuisine type: Vegetarian & non vegetarian Background: Bengali cuisine of today has many British influences like batter fried fish, orly, … Continue reading Apanjan (Sadananda Road, near Rashbehari Crossing, Kolkata)
Spartan interiors, fast service, tasty long lost Bengali food & easy on the pocket.
the logo
Address & other details: Radhuni
Meal for 2: Rs. 100 onwards
kochu pata chingri
Cuisine type: Vegetarian & non vegetarian
Background:
Bengali food is usually associated with fish, meats & everything non vegetarian. However there r some extraordinary vegetarian food items made from leaves, stems, flowers, roots etc that cost minimal but taste YUMM e.g. Mocha (banana flower), thor (the pith of the banana stem), oal (root), bok Phool (flower), kumro Phool (pumpkin flower), kochu pata (leaf), kochu (root), lau shak (leaf) etc. These have unique tastes & flavours and most of these r different from the mainstream usually available Indian vegetarian food.
Short Description – In case u r in a hurry:
Unfortunately, availability of most of the items mentioned above have limited availability nowadays in bigger city markets of Kolkata. Some of these dishes r difficult to make & the rest r painstaking to make / need lot of patience. A visit to Radhuni can however bridge this gap – u can enjoy the excellent taste traditional Bengali vegetarian gems without having to sweat it out to make these. Some of the ‘vegetarian’ dishes contain shrimps etc.
Menu card with prices
Radhuni also has a long list of Bengali nonvegetarian dishes that r good but not outstanding. However, if u r visiting Kolkata / planning to eat out local cuisine, it cannot get better than this at that price.
The service is fast. The people here r nice – they r not typical trained Restaurant Server types. They r normal human beings who respond well to good behaviour from customers.
The interiors r Spartan – a lot like South Indian Udipi Restaurants.
Prices r unbelievably low (by Delhi / Mumbai standards).
A super duper single menu joint that is just a hole in the wall shop but serves some excellent kababs.
superb sutli kabab at Adam’s
Address & other details:Alight at Central metro station (towards Poddar Court end). U come across a statue of Maharana Pratap on ur left if u r facing Girish Park. Once in front of the statue, take the road to the right (if u r facing the statue). Take first right turn from there & go straight. The shop is on the left near Haji Allauddin Sweet shop.
Shop Board of Adam’s kabab
Meal for 2: Rs. 80 onwards
Cuisine Type: Nonvegetarian
Description:
Many years back, I was floored by the sutli kabab here.
For the uninitiated, Sutli kabab is made by wrapping a paste of meat & spices around a metal sheekh, tying it with a cotton thread & then doing it on a barbeque pit. Once the kabab is done, the thread is removed & the kabab is served.
Sutli kabab being prepared
The sutli kabab I had then was unbelievably soft, spicy, hot, awesomely tasty & was just out of the world. I thought it to be the best in its category then. Earlier this year I had a similar thing at Babu Bhai Kababwale, Chilti Qabar, purani Dilli. I was very impressed but I thought that Adam’s was better.
sutli kabab on Barbeque pit
Back then Adam’s Kabab name was not written anywhere. The elderly guy at the shop used to sit on the floor. This time we found a young guy with earphones manning the shop, sitting on a high cement slab with Adam’s kabab written. In case u r wondering about the name Adam, it refers to the first human being according to Islam who is also considered the first prophet.
An encounter with piping hot Rosogollas at a para (neighbourhood) shop floored me & all my co-snackers. I won’t even suggest that this is the best rosogolla in Kolkata but on its own, it is excellent to taste, especially when hot.
piping hot roshogollas
Meal for 2: Rs. 20 onwards
Cuisine Type: Vegetarian
The story:
Hot piping Rosogolla is a unique thing to have. It tastes like no other sweet – warm when served, smell & taste of fresh chhena (curdled milk) but different from just chhena. Bengalis also vouch for its medicinal properties – supposedly helps recover from bad stomach.
I got initiated to this many years back at a shop near my erstwhile office – He wud sell rosogollas during the day but the hot ones that he used to serve in the evening were way better.
the nondescript sweet shop where we had the roshogollas
As I moved to Delhi NCR few years back, I was surprised to find that people prefer cold refrigerated rasgullas. When cold, the rosogollas tend to become brittle & hence a bit chewy.
The current encounter with hot rosogollas happened by chance while I was visting a cousin’s place. I was so impressed by the hot rosogolla that I shamelessly asked for more to be told that they had got only a few. I went out to the shop immediately with everyone at his home & told the shop owner ‘ we r so impressed by ur rosogollas that we all came to eat more.
A long History of excellence, sadly struggling to keep up with its earlier Glory – A lunch here left us with a cold feeling & also food that was surely lower than expectations.
Shiraz as a name rings a bell with Most Calcuttans (since the Days when Kolkata was Calcutta). I have had many good experiences in the past here like many others. Over the years I have seen a decline & had stopped going here & insead to the newly opened Arsalan. Similar experiences cud b heard from others as well. This time around I made it a point to revisit Shiraz & check it out myself…………….
Burrah Kabab @ Shiraz
There are two restaurants at Park Street Mullickbazar area. One is a few shops away from the other. The newer one is closer to the crossing & the older one is a few shops away. The newer one is swankier as well. We decided to go to the Old one.
Menu Card @ Shiraz
The old restaurant has a non airconditioned ground floor & an airconditioned first floor. Furniture, look & ambience of the first floor is much upgraded as compared to the ground floor. The look at first floor was that of an old Eightees restaurant. Cubicles made with set of sofas facing each other. Lighting was dim.
colorful picture studded menu card
The staff of this place need a special mention. Some of them seem to walk out of a 70’s movie. They have been in the same job of waiting tables for decades, have got bored enough & that shows on their face every moment, appear at the tables like robots without any facial expression & at times frown if too many questions are asked. The uniform has quite a ‘Nawabi Khansama’ look. The relatively younger Manager who I guess was the only person in suit, was also quite serious faced. He was continuing to speak to me in English even though I was speaking in Bengali. It was then that I did what I do best – mentally poke. I striked a conversation on ‘what is popular her / what is legendary her, I have come from far to eat here/ what is ‘mash-hoor’ (famous) here etc & within 3 -4 sentences each, the customer – server barrier fell apart. We were talking to each other as two human beings & the interaction was excellent since then for the rest of our stay.
mutton chaap @ Shiraz
The food is surely very good in isolation but as compared to others, this one takes a beating – Straight away from Arsalan Park Circus & surely from Aafreen, Metiabruz. We were unlucky to get stale meat in one of the dishes, very happy to get a replacement after we reported the same & even more disappointed when the replacement turned out to b stale as well.
Raita @ Shiraz
However, inspite of that, people throng to this place in thousands, more due to emotional reasons than pure culinary ones.
This is a late add to YUMMRAJ’s series called TIMELESS KOLKATA EATOUTS – reviews of Heritage Kolkata restaurants. Each restaurant has been rated as ‘Old is Gold’ or ‘Old is no more Gold’ based on the experience.
Year/decade of opening- Around Independence.
YUMMRAJ Demystifies the Legend of Peter Cat & maintains OLD IS GOLD
In a nutshell:
A retro restaurant (not by design but coz they never changed with time) with a great ambience, old school staff, good food for the prices that they charge but nowhere as good compared to the ’real thing’- be it European or Persian.
Peter Cat has been around for decades & that speaks a lot – Restaurants open very often & close down almost as often. The ones who survive the test of time surely have something good / unique to offer.
The décor as I mentioned above is retro in today’s context – red sofas facing each other & nice lamp shades above each table. The lighting is dim overall but the lamps on each table illuminate the table good enough to see each other, have a good chat & enjoy some good food. There are two floors & the way to top floor is as grand as it can get.
The dining Hall at Peter Cat & the Waiting staff in the background
Waiting staff look Grand as well, with their sherwani suits, flamboyant headgear & pointed shoes. Most of them are however quite Old School – smooth talking, knowledgeable, not overtly attentive but attentive as well, not quite warm, talks with an air of authority interspersed with some rare smiles & I guess quite bored of doing the same job for donkey’s years…… & that shows on their face. U will enjoy the evening if u think this to b a part of the package – dining at a retro restaurant & being served by people who r enacting the past:)
The food is good in general & at the prices that the food is offered, I wud say some are excellent. However, if u compare the non- Indian dishes to the original dishes the way they r, then u might b quite disappointed.
My childhood favourite – Re-visited after many years & Loved the simple menu , some good & some great food at prices that surprise.
Bengal Hotel – Moton o fowl
Address & other details:Bengal Hotel
Meal for 2: Rs. 200 onwards
fish fry at Bengal Hotel
Cuisine Type: A bit of Vegetarian & predominantly Nonvegetarian
Short Description – In case u r in a hurry:
As kids we used to go to this super tiny restaurant to have fish cutlets. The ambience did not matter then coz we were not aware of ‘ambience’ in an eatery & now it does not matter to me as long as the food is superb. We used to drool over the food then & this time around I found it very good, if not as good as before.
mutton cutlet at Bengal Hotel
The owner sits right at the entrance – He handles cash & remote manages the place. There is one guy who I have seen as the manager for many years now – order taking from customers & coordinating. Food is served by ‘chhotus’.
Fish roll at Bengal Hotel Behala
The most interesting thing at this restaurant is the rate chart. The menu is printed on a board on the wall – permanent (I think it was same when I was a kid). The price of the dish is written with chalk everyday besides the description. All items r made in limited quantities & as soon as an item is sold out, the manager runs to the board & rubs off the price. Popularity still soars & by 6.30 pm onwards one by one the items start getting sold out. The shop opens at around 3.30 pm & shuts by approx. 8.00 pm.
The ‘interesting’ rate chart at Bengal Hotel, Behala
They also pack ‘fry & eat’ chops & cutlets. I have heard that NRIs carry these back home. I carry these back to Gurgaon at times.
‘fry & eat’ chops & cutlets in case u want to pack it for home
The food is Anglo Indian – Chops & cutlets that have become Bengali now & mutton & chicken curries that have a wide following in Britain these days. We tried the mutton cutlet, fish roll, fish fry & also mutton kosha. Liked the mutton cutlet, liked very much the fish roll & fish fry & super loved the mutton kosha.
Detailed Description – In case u have the time to njoy readin:
YUMMRAJ’s favourite South Indian Restaurant is Murugan Idly Chennai. So, any good South Indian restaurant gets compared to Murugan.
If ur usual lunch time is 1.00 in the afternoon, pls plan to reach 20 – 30 minutes before coz that is the waiting time. There is a fruit vendor in front of the restaurant who does good business while u wait, cut in front of u & served. The empty ground floor of the restaurant also serves as a waiting area. I wonder why that empty place is not used for seating people!!!!
the fabulous dosa
The food is very good – dosas, idly, vadas, uthapams etc & very good filter Coffee – I maintain Murugan is still better. But if we do not compare with Murugan, this place is super good. A must try.
Detailed Description – In case u have the time to enjoy reading:
In a nutshell: One of the finest Sandesh makers in Kolkata (Sandesh is a dry Bengali sweet made from cottage cheese) Google map: Nakur Cuisine type: Vegetarian Meal for 2: Rs. 40 onwards Description: Its stood the test of time, had its share of highs & lows & now it is a place visited by people from the neighborhood & connoisseurs (from all over) alike. … Continue reading Girish Chandra Dey & Nakur Chandra Nandy (56, Ramdulal Sarkar Street, near College Street Hedua park)
For someone who claims that his raison d’être is food, not having written even once about food seems like a bad idea. But, at the outset, let me admit something. Great lover of food though I am, my knowledge of cooking ends at preparation of instant noodles! Of course, any bachelor worth his salt will vouch for instant noodles being an absolute lifeline, especially, if you are staying far away from home, in a place where the food sucks….
momos
This brings me to two of my favorite cuisines, Tibetan and Chinese. Indians at large and Bengalis in specific have this uncanny ability to embrace things they like to such an extent that one is reminded of the saying, “more loyal than the king….”
So, cricket happens to be the unofficial national game of India, Bata happens to be un-official national footwear company of middleclass India, and Chinese food, believe it or not, happens to be the national food of India too!!!
And though the Tibetan nationalist movement has not made much headway into the vice-like grip of the Chinese over Lhasa, it’s a different story all-together as far as the battle gastronomique being fought between China & Tibet is concerned, which for the un-initiated, is being fought on the streets of Calcutta!
