Random Restaurant Rants from Kolkata

I have always been a huge fan of the Kolkata food lovers – any random family will have at least half a dozen food enthusiasts. Another aspect is their penchant to try out new cuisines – Kolkata perhaps has one of the best variety of food available in the country. So 2015 turned out to be a Happy New Year for me – as I could spend a significant part of the first month in Kolkata.

Koshe Kosha

One thing which you can’t help but notice in Kolkata is the opening up of eateries offering Bengali food. About two decades back, when I was working here, Aaheli, Suruchi and only few other restaurants offered Bengali food. But now, in my locality around Gariahat there were at least a dozen of them.

My first stop was a small place called Koshe Kosha opposite Aminia in Golpark. I had been hearing good reviews of this restaurant from various places, especially from a Delhi based blog. We had reached Kolkata the same day, and after barely dumping out luggage in our neighborhood flat we set out for the food journey.

Bhetki Chingrir Melbondhon at Koshe Kosha

As you enter the place, you find the dark interiors of the restaurant a bit surprising. The place is nicely decorated though, with artefacts from rural Bengal. We ordered quickly and the restaurant responded by a short turnaround time.

The Gondhoraj ghol here is a perfect start to any meal. The prized lemon provides a endearing aroma to the ghol. Bhetki Chingrir Melbondhon was a fish fry with a layer of prawn it. It was decent, though I would have liked the prawn content to be a bit more.

Mochar Ghonto at Sholoana Bangaliana

Luchi and Kasha Manghsho which is one of their signature combos was nothing great. I have had better Kosha Mangsho (Bengali sautéed mutton) even in the Hyderabad Bengali eateries. The gravy in Chital Macher Muitha could not delight us – mainly because the onion and garlic in the gravy was not sautéed well, and gave out a raw taste. Sorshe Ilish was nice, though I was not happy with the size of the Hilsa fish. Meal for three costed us around Rs 1400.

Chingri Macher Malaikari at Sholoana Bangaliana

Sholoana Bangaliana close to South City Mall had been a favorite during my earlier visits. One evening after a Bengali film at the mall, we landed up here. A small restaurant with only a few tables, service here is quite quick. We started with a Mochar Ghonto. The banana flower preparation was spicy. Flavors of desi ghee and garam masala stood out, making it go extremely well with rice.

Sorshe Ilish at Sholoana Bangaliana

The non-vegetarian dishes followed soon. The Mourala Macher Bati Chochhori, a traditional Bengali recipe to be prepared in a katori was par for the course. The Chingri Macher Malaikari stood out, both in terms of the quality of the prawn as well as the creamy coconut based gravy. The Sorshe Ilish here beat the previous place hands down, the Jumbo Hilsa piece (costing Rs 410) was so juicy and dripping with fish oil that I can possibly make a trip to Kolkata to just taste this. The satisfying meal here came to about Rs 1000.

Chili Garlic Chicken at Big Boss

Kolkata is also well known for it’s Chindian food – the Chinese population had settled in East Kolkata from about a century back. The Tangra area has more than 50 restaurants – and we received suggestions favoring many of them. We finally decided to visit Big Boss.

The place is one of the most spacious and cleanest of the Tangra joints. However we felt that the wait staff is not very keen to attend to you, and for anything you want you have to literally shout for them. We started with the Seafood Soup, which was a thick soup with prawns, crabs, egg drops and vegetables. The Chili Garlic Chicken as starter was very decent – the trademark Kolkata Chinese taste was very visible – a combo of soya sauce, green chilies and chopped garlic.

Mixed Szechuan Chowmein at Big Boss

For the main course we went for Mixed Szechuan Chowmein and Spicy Ginger Chicken. The noodles were spicy and tasted nice with assorted vegetables, red chilies and chicken except that it was a trifle too oily. The Spicy Ginger Chicken was a disaster -  the gravy did not have any taste at all. Overall, a disappointing outing cost us around Rs 900.

Lat Mai Kai at The Wall

The Wall, a boutique Oriental  restaurant in South Kolkata is again an old favorite. Close to Southern Avenue, this place has been converted from a residence. The menu here has lot of special dishes normally not available in standard “Chindian” eateries in Kolkata.

The Tom Yum Seafood soup here was tangy with a generous portion of prawn and other seafood. The day was very cold and the piping hot and spicy Thai soup really warmed us up for the meal ahead. The starter Lat Mai Kai was superb too. It  was essentially boneless chicken pieces along with veggies fried in a chili based oil.

Nasi Goreng at The Wall

The Indonesian Nasi Goreng was presented very well with an egg on top and looked very appetizing. It had stir fried rice, chicken and seafood in a spicy sauce, and combined well with Moan Char Chia Mui Nay, a Cambodian ginger based chicken dish. – though I found an overdose of black pepper powder in the latter. Apart from this aspect it was a satisfying meal, and cost us around Rs 1400 for three persons.

Cambodian Ginger Chicken at the Wall

Also read : More restaurant rants from Kolkata

Addresses:

Koshe Kosha
62, Ballygunge Gardens (opp Aminia)
Golpark
Kolkata 700019
Telephone 64606401

Sholoana Bangaliana
14C/114B Prince Anwar Shah Road
(Near South City Mall)
Kolkata
Telephone 9051301111

Big Boss
54C Maheswartala Road
Tangra
Kolkata
Telephone 23282405

The Wall
31 Dr Sarat Banerjee Road
(Near Sarat Bose Road)
Kolkata 700029
Telephone 24649041

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Rajasthani Food Festival at The Novotel, Hyderabad

I had developed quite a bit of liking to Rajasthani cuisine due to my multiple trips to the state, when my son was doing his studies at Pilani.  So I was happy to be invited for the first day of the Rajasthani Food Festival, being organized at The Square, Novotel from 20th February.

The restaurant has been suitably decorated for the festival. All the wait staff were dressed in the traditional Rajasthani attires. Rajasthani puppet dance has been organized in the al fresco area for the guests to get a slice of Rajasthani culture too.

Chittaur Seekh

Close to the puppet show a live counter has been laid out serving the traditional Rajasthani snacks. We tried the Pyaaz Kachori and the stuffed Rajasthani Bharwa Mirch. The fillings inside the large mirch were extremely tasty. Among the non-veg starters the pick was easily the Chittaur Seekh – a tender and succulent mutton kabab which melts in your mouth. Chilla is a besan based delicacy of Rajasthan – which looks like the South Indian dosa. Here the chef had prepared a dry fruit version of the chilla which tasted divine with the accompanying chutney.

Dal Baati Churma

After a shot at the snacks we got cracking at the main buffet. No Rajasthani food spread is complete without Dal Baati Churma. The baatis were immersed in ghee, and the spicy dal and delicate churma were the perfect foil for it.

Ker Sangri is another popular dish in Marwar due to the fact that these vegetables grow unattended in the desert areas. I had tried many versions of this during my multiple trips to Rajasthan, and today’s preparation matched the best that I had there. One of the more spicy dishes, it went very well with the Jowar Rotis.

Clockwise: Rajasthani Kadi, Ker Sangri, Daal Baati, Aloo Haldi Ki Sabji and Laal Maas

Aloo Haldi Ki Sabji was another typical Rajasthani dish. Raw turmeric is used in preparing this giving it a strong haldi flavor. There was the Rajasthani version of matar paneer (Paneer Matar Rassa) with a very tasty curry. Other dishes of note were the Jodhpuri Bhari Bhindi (stuffed bhindi), Gatte ki sabji and Rajasthani Kadi.

The non-vegetarian portion of the buffet had the signature dish Laal Maas. It is a spicy mutton dish prepared with a lot of red chilies in a base of onion and garlic. The mutton was soft and the gravy tasted nice though I would have loved it to be a bit spicier.

Mewari Machhi

As a Bengali I am often accused of being biased towards fish – but I loved the rich gravy of Macchi Mewari. It had a strong flavor of mustard and I was told that many Mewari dishes are cooked in mustard oil. Jangli Kukar was a chicken based gravy dish. The mutton based Rajputana Maas Pulao tasted nice, but the rice in the pulao was slightly more dry than I was comfortable with.

Gulaabi Kalakand

Rajbhog

No Rajasthani buffet is complete without its mouth watering desserts, and this was no exception. Gulabi Kalakand, the rose flavored chhena sweet was easily the best. The yellow Rajbhogs were solid and flavorful, and the Carrot Halwa was lip smacking too.

Malai Ghewar

The Malai Ghewar was another sweet which worked very well with us. The famed sweet is very popular during the festival of Teej, Unfortunately we reached too late to see the ghewar in full bloom, which is a delight to the eyes. We ended our food journey here with dollops of rabri on hot jalebis at the live counter.

The festival has been planned by Novotel with Chef Mujeebur Rahman, an expert in North Indian cuisine. It was great to meet the Chef after a year, I had gone for his niche Rampuri food festival last year. Executive Chef Muthukumar and Senior Sous Chef Saurav were at hand to patiently explain about the festival and the nuances of Rajasthani food.

The festival is on till March 1st. Novotel says: “Padharo Mhare Fest”.

Address:

The Square,
The Novotel, Hi Tech City
HICC Complex

Rs 1350+ Taxes

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Street food in and around Gol Park, Kolkata

Every winter I visit Kolkata for a kind of annual pilgrimage. Apart from enjoying the company of friends and relatives in the city I was born, it is also for sampling the rich range of restaurant and street food. Normally I stay in an apartment in Gol Park in South Kolkata.  The fortnight takes me to many small joints and street outlets in and around this place.

Koraishutir Kachuri at Gobinda

The area brims with activity since early morning. One of the places I visit for a quick breakfast is Gobinda’s stall. It is just at the start of Kakulia Road next to Mouchak. At around 8:30 in the morning you can find a motley crowd enjoying his Karaishutir Kochuri. Gobinda serves his kachuris with an option of Chholar Daal or Alur Dom along with a side of pickled chilis. Two kachuris with the sides cost a mere Rs 12.

Gobinda's Fish Fry

In the evening Gobinda dishes out some mean Chicken Cutlet, Fish Fry and Dimer Devil from the same place. Fish Fry here costs around Rs 35.

Radhaballavi at Ganguram

Another place to savour great breakfast is the famed Ganguram, just across the road. Their Radhaballavi (Rs 12 each) served with Alur Dam is simply mouth watering, though a trifle oily. You can also add a small portion of their Mishti Doi to end your breakfast.

Daler Bora

As the day progresses other street food joints in the area start operating in the area. Dal Bora is one of the cheapest and favorite snacks for a passer-by wishing to munch something on his way. One place where you get fresh and crunchy Dal Bora is just down Kakulia Road. About 8 small pieces are available at a paltry Rs 5. The place also makes good Lankar Bora and Alur Bora too.

The Bedwin Rolls

Gol Park also has Bedwin – known for their kathi rolls. The roll counter is just outside their restaurant. It is a treat watching how carefully they prepare their rolls. My particular favorite here is the Special Chicken Roll, where double the amount of chicken is put.

The Roll assembly line at Bedwin

Thankfully the place does not use any sauces and relies on lemon, green chilies and their own spices which are added to the chicken, onions and capsicum to prepare the filling. They have some variations like Tikiya Roll and Reshmi Kabab Roll but I prefer to stick to the traditional recipe.

For trying out the snack items like chops and cutlets, there is no better place in Gol Park than the branch of Mitra Café. Mitra Café, the iconic eatery from North Kolkata is known for its Brain Chop, Egg Devil and Kabiraji Cutlets. The small branch which is on the main road close to Kola Villa makes some delicious fare but most of it gets over by early evening.

Diamond Fish Kabiraji at Mitra Cafe

My favorite here is the Diamond Fish Kabiraji – a diamond shaped large fish fry covered with fluffy egg batter while frying.  Brain Chop, which is a legendary offering of Mitra Café is however rarely available here.

Alur Dam at Shaw Fuchkawala

The last favorite of mine is the friendly neighborhood fuchkawala. Shaw, who plies his fare on the main road just across Mitra Café, hails from Hajipur in Bihar. His slightly sweetish Alur Dom with green chili and coriander sprinkled on top is simply not to be missed. The fuchka here also has a different recipe, with potatoes, chick peas and coriander.

Phuchka

Apart from the above, there are many many other places we can talk about – the singaras opposite Aminia, fish roll in the small counter next to Ganguram, Das Cabin which is a few steps away at Gariahat and many more. We will talk about that on another day.

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Bohemian, Kolkata: Experimental Bengali cuisine

In the last few years whenever I visited Kolkata, my friends there had asked me to try out Bohemian. I was told that the cuisine offered here has some imaginative experimentation specifically with traditional Bengali cuisine, and no other restaurant has done similar work.  Though the concept looked extremely interesting, I could finally visit this restaurant only during my trip in January.

Like many of the newer eateries in Kolkata, Bohemian is a boutique restaurant tucked inside a residential lane, very close to the Sitala Mandir on Bondel Road. The restaurant has two separate entrances for the two floors. As we could not get a table on the ground floor we dashed upstairs to a more spacious setup. The place has a no frilled décor with posters of famous pop singers adorning some of the walls.  I could also notice a few framed photos from Ladakh as well as a collection of masks, and some other artifacts from rural Bengal.

Spicy Grilled Bhetki  with Radhuni Enriched Curry Sauce

As we looked through the menu, I understood what my friends had been talking about.  Bengali spices and ingredients like radhuni, pachphoron, kalojeera and kasundi have been used in many of the dishes, so have been traditionally Bengali greens and fruits like kolmi shaak, gandharaj lemon or Bengal berries (kul).  However uses of these ingredients have been done in an off beat manner and the food is experimental in content as well as presentation.

The combo section of the menu interested me the most and it was a challenge to choose among the interesting dishes. I felt like ordering a lot of items, but since there were only three of us, we had to settle for three main courses. The fish item we went for was Spicy Grilled Bhetki  with Radhuni Enriched Curry Sauce. This was served with steamed rice and saag. The radhuni (wild celery seeds) flavor was subtle in the curry, which was spicy but not rich. We also loved the shaak served with it – it was exactly as they are cooked at home.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken bundle with Aam Kasundi Reduction

The Bacon Wrapped Chicken bundle with Aam Kasundi Reduction was another experiment we tried out. Aam kasundi or mustard mango sauce is a Bengali delicacy which adds zing to many dishes. The dish was presented with rice and sautéed vegetables.  I liked the concept but was slightly disappointed with the preparation as the flavor of aam kasundi was very mild in the curry.

Royal Bengal Mutton with Bhuna Sauce

But the best of the combos we tried was the Royal Bengal Mutton with Bhuna Sauce.  The bhuna sauce was very tasty and the slices of boneless mutton worked well with it, along with a layer of mashed potatoes which was placed underneath. The dish was served with bread rolls and sautéed vegetables, the same way as many of the Anglo-Indian dishes are presented in Kolkata.

Gandharaj Souffle

For dessert it was the unanimous choice – we were told that the Gandharaj Souffle at Bohemian rocks. Lately we have seen this flavorful lemon, which is predominantly found in East India, being used in a lot of dishes – starting from Gandharaj Bhetki, mutton and even ghol. The soufflé at Bohemian has the fragrance of the Gandharaj emanating from the special lemon sauce.The styling of the dish with lemon sauce and slices of lemon made it look extremely appetizing and the taste did not disappoint too.

We wanted to try many more dishes – but were constrained by our appetite on the day, as we were coming out of food extravaganza called Bengali marriage for the previous three days. Some items which looked interesting to me were the Pachforon Flavored Chicken Escallops, Bhetki in Aam Aada Sauce,  Mutton with Green Mango and Cheese and Malpua Cheese Cake.

I was extremely impressed not just with the food, but also by the fresh approach to tweak the Bengali cuisine, and experiment with the ingredients. I would surely revisit during my next trip to Kolkata and try out some more from their offerings.

Bill for the above items came to around Rs 1900.

Address:
Bohemian
32/4 Old Ballygunge 1st Lane
(near Bondel Road Shitala Mandir, close to Ballygunge Phari)
Kolkata

Telephone: 033-64601001

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Jellra: Taste of Korea in Hyderabad

The food scene in Hyderabad has been fairly conservative compared to other Indian metros. Apart from the hugely popular Indian and Chinese food, one can only find a handful of restaurants serving continental or Pan-Asian food. So, it was a pleasant surprise to know from fellow enthusiasts that a place at Madhapur also serves Korean food on request. So, a group of friends landed up at Jellra on an appointed Sunday to try out their fare.

The Korean guest house is in an apartment complex. The dining space is maintained extremely well and decorated with a few artefacts from Korea. A book shelf with a collection of English books for all ages adorned one wall.

Chicken Jorim

The concept offered at Jellra is that of a Korean set meal. The staff lays down an entire meal on the table and the diners gorge on them. The menu changes from day to day and the food is mainly non vegetarian – including pork or beef. So if you are averse to these items you need to inform them in advance. A Korean lunch or dinner has few main dishes which are enjoyed with sticky rice and soup.

Galbi (Fried Pork)

The soup of the day was Doenjang Jjigae – a fermented soyabean paste based soup prepared in cabbage. Jjigae in Korean literally means stew, but this was more of a soup. The soup was wholesome but had a strange smell – I think from the fermented soya paste.

Galbi or stir fried pork ribs was easily the dish of the day. The marinated pork was soft and tender and the brown sauce in it complemented the taste. The porkaholics in the group went for this dish lock stock and barrel and huge portions were finished off in no time. The sticky rice provided the perfect foil for this.

Seaweed Muchim

Personally my next favorite in the menu was Seaweed Muchim, a salad based on dark seaweeds and veggies. Again it had a very distinct flavor. A special mention has to be made of the dark sauce served with the food – some of us were trying out just the sauce with sticky rice. I however was told earlier that Koreans have a very hot red chili based sauce, but that was missing on that day.

Kimchi

The most well known Korean dish to anyone is Kimchi.  Here it was large strips of fermented cabbage in a spicy red sauce. It was quite different from the Kimchi we see normally in restaurants both in the style of cutting and preparing the cabbage as well as spice level.

Fish Jorim

Jorim is simmered curry for the Koreans, and they served us both the chicken and fish versions. The chicken version had a thin brown gravy and I was elated to see potato pieces in it. The fish was not too popular with most of us. The curry was blend, and the fish with lots of bones a little difficult to negotiate.

Sangcho Jeon (Lettuce pancake)

The other couple of dishes in the set lunch were Sangcho Jeon (a pancake with lettuce leaves in it) and Sausage and Broccoli Boccum (a stir fried dish). The first was nothing extraordinary and the sauce used in the second did not tickle my taste buds.

Sausage and Broccoli Boccum

I also tried the Korean tea as well as a snack called egg roll. The meal ended with a platter of fruits

Fruit Platter

Overall, I liked the food especially the few dishes I mentioned. This may not be a right destination for the less adventurous, but non-vegetarian food enthusiasts in particular will surely appreciate the difference in taste. Service was very attentive, and they answered our queries on food pretty patiently.

NOTE: The management of Jellra has contacted us on 18th February 2015 stating that they have stopped serving food to outsiders. They will continue to run the guest house, but offer food only for the inmates. We find the development disappointing, but thought it is relevant to share it here.

Also Read: The Taste of Korea Festival at Syn

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