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Go Bengali for Poila Boisakh
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Start the new year with a traditional Poila Boisakh meal.
Go Bengali for Poila Boisakh
Payel Majumdar
Poila Boisakh or Bengali New Year is at hand, the one of many excuses that our brethren from the East offer us to feast ourselves silly. Come 15th April, here’s a day’s window into mid-week feasting, and if you’re not clued into all the maach-mishti customs, here’s a great place to get started. While traditionally, Poila Boisakh (which means the first day of the first month of the Hindu Calendar Baisakh) is traditionally celebrated sitting at home with an eleven course meal, (not counting the mid-day conversation accompaniments before the main one and four course dessert after) some good adda and music with the good ol’ recently refurbished gramophone player if you have swag, or a trained musician/musicians in the house if you have some more swag. But what if you’re one of those struggling doyens in a lonely city far away from the paternal/maternal hand that fed you? Whether you be in Kolkata, Delhi or Mumbai, here’s some fun eating out options to usher in the new year with a full belly and with your mind at peace.
Delhi
Market No1, and 2, CR Park
CR Park in Delhi is to Kolkata, what China Town in Kolkata is to China. An oasis to the fish-fry and phuchka starved Bengali and the Bongliophile alike. The area which was formerly a refugee camp is now one of the cushy residential areas of Delhi with two markets to boot serving some delicious Bengali food of a diverse nature. If you want to feel festive, stroll down the road of Market no 1 to savour the imli infused phuchka, fish fry and fish fingers served with kasundi or go down for a proper sit-down meal to Kolkata Biryani House for authentic Kolkata style Mutton Chaap and Biryani. (Yes, they haven’t forgotten to add aloo to their biryani, you finicky Calcutta biryani lover.)
Shop no. 49, Ground Floor, Market 1, Chittaranjan Park, Shop no. 49, Ground Floor, Market 1, Chittaranjan Park, 011 – 33036151, Meal for two: Rs 300
Oh! Calcutta is often a gateway drug into Bengali food for the uninitiated. Present in all three of these cities, food here is presented in a comtemporary, chic avatar, keeping in mind food items and ingredients in vogue, yet at the same time keeping the core element of a traditional dish alive. Head to this place if you would be served melt-in-your-mouth bhapa narkol chingri (Steamed coconut shrimp) or Bekti Fried Fish served Calcutta style. The old faux-Victorian lampshades and the sketched plate covers, the slice of Gandhoraj lemon on the side, details such as these is the reason it is the place to celebrating being Bengali in the city. Much like Buzzfeed, it often hits the nail on its head.
Ground Floor, E Block, International Trade Towers, Nehru Place, New Delhi, 011 30402415, Meal for two: Rs 1700 ++
Kolkata
If you be the very lucky person to be in Kolkata on Poila Boisakh, fear only for the aftermaths of gluttony. It is culinary paradise for a day. Apart from these special menus around the city that you can avail of, you may also indulge in a main course meal at the following places:
Kewpies has been around for ages now, and people wistfully recall family gatherings and years of pujo get-togethers within the premises of this former mansion-turned-restaurant. The nostalgia evoking Oh-So-Very-Kolkata interiors, with its red oxide flooring, stucco walls full of art and variegated menu that has all the Bengali delicacies that you can think of, served in clay pots to complete the traditional aura.
2 Elgin Lane (Behind Netaji Bhavan), 033 24861600/24869929, Meal for Two:
Padmaparer Rannaghar, Gariahat
A lotus in the muck, Padmaparer Rannaghar is hidden away in the flea market stalls of Gariahat, which has kept the regular crowd away and the prices reasonably priced. But if you want the true blue flavours of opaar Bangla, east of the river Padma in Bangladesh, this is one of the places in contention with the best in the city. The menu is a lesson in Bengali marketing wit apart from the cuisine. For instance, there is the “Sushobhan Hinger Chholar Dal” (Decorated Chholar daal) or “Rasikjoner Kasha Murgi” (Chicken for those who know how to enjoy Life).
Ground Floor, 26/4, Gariahat Road, 9331419590, Meal for two: 400-600
6, Ballygunge Place likes to keep its menu simple and without any bhaajaal, a word used to describe any nonsense that is used to fill in the lack of ‘good stuff’, when taken in context of the Bengalis, meaning mostly the tasty items, never mind the price. And for that matter, Ballygunge place is reasonably priced, with a plate of Kosha Mangsho and Luchi, the staple Bengali festive food, being a mere Rs.155. Go here if this Poila Boisakh for you is about to be a binge fest.
1st Floor, Behala AC Market, 21(4), Souren Roy Road, Behala, Kolkata, 033 65003003, +91 8334828886, Meal for one: Rs 350-450 ++
A Bengali always has space in his stomach for sweets, a wise proverb hath said, so after meals at the above havens, might we suggest, head to any outlets of Sen Mahasoy for Mishti Doi, Baancharam for their signature sondesh Abaar Khaabo or Balaram Mallick for their range of famous sondesh, Rasogolla at Kirtidas or a glass of cooling sherbet at Paramount opposite Presidency College. And if you’re making a day of it, there is Mrityunjoy’s Phulkopir Shingara (Samosa stuffed with cauliflower stuffing) which the Calcuttans refer to as their ‘hot favourite!’ If this is not a good start to the year, what is?
Mumbai
For those Bengalis, who at the beginning of this article were, “Poila huh? Poila what? I come home at midnight thankyouverymuch…”, Bong Bong is your late-night fast food stop-gap with a midnight menu. So you may feast away yet if you missed a midday meal fasting your way through work . Kosha Mangsho, Egg Mutton Roll, Fish Fry, they have the works, and a delightfully bohemian blue interiors to boot for a mid day family meal if you manage the time.
Bengali fast food is in a league of its own, with all the mutton chop and fish cutlets and fingers. Hangla’s knows this best and the menu over there is full of all the things that are must-haves of the fried variety. A takeaway joint, but none the less important for that. Let the mutton rolls swoon you off your feet.
A 201 & B 101, Supermart 1, DLF Phase 4, 0124-33036141, Meal for two: Rs. 600
Biryani at Lazeez
The famed Kolkata brand of Mughlai Biryani is now available in Mumbai as well, and no better occasion to celebrate with biryani than this! Also Shahi Tukda is the thing to die for if you do not mind the lard pyaar.
1 Sapphire Building, SV Road, 1st Road Corner, Khar West, Mumbai, Meal for two: Rs. 700
Boda is intimately in touch with everyday Bengali fare, from your Muri Ghonto (Fish head curry) to Mochar Ghonto (Banana Flower Mish Mash). You get the regular menu and some more, with the one day advance option. (Whereby you call them up a day in advance and they provide you with your heart’s desire.) Moreover, if all you want to do is curl up on the couch after a long hard day to celebrate New Year’s Boda is there for you.
Foman Nagar, Khar West, Mumbai, +91 8422902902, +91 8108555968, Meal for two: Rs. 600
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