PUCHKA :

The Puchka was being prepared and a container made of stitched dry leaves was handed to me. The puri was filled with the sumptuous filling which consisted of boiled potatoes along with red masala, black ground pepper, chaat masala, some beans, a bit of coriander and fresh mint leaves and ofcourse a dash of green chillies along with some chatkila water. All mashed to perfection by the vendor with this bare palms, the mixture oozing out from between his fingers every time he pressed into the potato and all the ingredients. Then with the other free hand, he would punch a hole in the puri with his thumb, fill it with the potato filling and dip it in the chatkila water, then lift the overflowing Puchka and shove it in your leaf plate. Then between the forefinger and the thumb I negotiatied with the puchka till it reached its destination. BLISS!! After a days work (would not call it hard work, would never call it hard work), after the tiring shared rick journey from office to my place, the Puchka thela would be my regular hunt.   

Kolkata!! Oh how I miss it. Specially the food there. I never thought I would ever feel this nostalgic about Aamar Kolkata! Its strange how little things can suddenly put your thinking in a completely different tangent. It was just turning my head to the left and the sight of a normal Pani Puri thela. That was it. The entire bus journey, I was in Kolkata.

As far as food is concerned, well Kolkata is a non vegetarians delight. Veggies don’t crib, as there are some options for you’ll too. Am I missing something?? Well I sure am. It’d be a non-bailable offence if I don’t mention about Bengali sweets in this paragraph! They are the JAAN of the bhadralok.

ROLLS :

There is one item there which is as popular as the Vada Pav here in Mumbai. Its  cousin is called “Frankie” in Mumbai. I am talking about Rolls. You get them in a variety. Starting with my favourite, the “double egg chicken roll” to the ghaas phoos laden vegetarian roll. This had literally been my lunch for about a week. Rolls come in all sizes and types and they are easily available in most parts of Kolkata. A hot favourite joint has to be the Hot Kati Roll, bang opposite the Park Street Metro. BEST PLACE FOR ROLLS!!

A word of caution though, rolls are literally floating in oil whilst being cooked. So if you are a health freak this ones definitely not for you.

SWEETS :

Bengali Sweets are like manna from heaven. Mishti Doi, Malai cham cham, Sondesh, Rasmalai and the evergreen Rosogulla. I have a sweet tooth and Bengali Sweets were an everyday affair. Must have tried almost every sweet on display. Malai Cham Cham is always going to remain a hot favourite. Followed by Rasmalai and Kesar Rosogulla.

Recommended joints, well cant point out any one, as each Sweet shop is worth the sweet you have. But ill always remember the charming old world ambience of K.C.Das, opposite Esplanade metro, and ofcourse the Radha Ballabi, which is a stuffed puri and a kinda sweet cholar dal combination, I used to have there. Just used to love those stuffed puris. And having a hot Radha Ballabi, in the chillingly cold January evening was an experience in itself.  

Haldirams, opposite Rabindra Sadan metro, is another cool place to hangout and treat yourself to delicacies ranging from sweets to chaats to what nots!! If you feel like spending some more bucks then head to Flurrys at Park Street. The first thing that captivates you here is the ambience, and ofcourse the mouth watering delicacies on display. The aroma will make you wanna spend on pastries, breads etc. And if you are an early riser, then the breakfast at Flurrys should top your priority list. Kookie Jar is another hot favourite for dark chocolate cakes.

And last but not the least, would make a definite mention of a sweet shop on Russell St. named Gangaur (yeah I am advertising the place). This place used to be my breakfast joint as my office was just a 2 mins walk from the place. A hardcore Bengali sweet lover would never recommend such a place as it not “traditional” in the true sense of the word, but the sweets and delicacies will force you to go that extra mile. I still remember the first time me and my roomies had “accidentally” entered this shop assuming Russell Street to be Park Street, we had spent close to 45 minutes, tasting one sweet after another, till we were left with just enough cash to take us back to Salt Lake City.  

CHAI n SHINGADA :

 “Ooo Dada duto cha aar duto shingada”. This had become an everyday mantra for me and my colleague as we headed to the tea joint just outside our office. The speciality of the tea is the container in which it is served. Move over cups, Kulhads (earthen cups) still rule!! The hot steaming chai mixed with the earthen cup, would have its own unique essence. To an outsider it may seem weird drinking tea from an earthen cup, but trust me, the taste will be something different. I was addicted to that tea being served in the Kulhad.

Unlike Mumbai here Kulhads are used as containers for almost every food item imaginable. No wonder it has such a flourishing pottery industry in Kumartuli.

And ofcourse the companion to Duto cha would most probably be Duto Shingada ie. Two cups of chai with two samosas. Goes without saying that the rounds were repeated twice by my colleage and thrice by me. This tea break would actually rejuvenate us.

Recommended joints, any street or any damn tea stall you see. Insist upon a clay cup. Plastic kulhads are a definite no-no. And well one place I would recommend for tea would be Tea Junction at City Centre, SaltLake. At 10 bucks you get a chai worth every paisa you pay. It’s a cool joint with straw chairs and an always crowded atmosphere. The cartoon painted on its walls, vintage Kolkata, with a river of people bubbling out aamar bangla bhasha.

FISH :

Mention Bengali Cuisine and its almost synonomous with fish. Here I got to taste a different variety of fish. Being used to sea water fishes like Pomfret and Makarel in Mumbai, it was quite an adventure negotiating the lake water fishes like Ilish mach (Hilsa fish), Pabda and the very bony Rui Kalia. My roomies and me used to haunt a place in Salt Lake City, where in we used to get some really lip smacking fish delicacies. The Machher Jhol (curry) accompanying Pabda mach and Dehradun Rice made a terrific combination. Rui Kalia was a favourite as it took little time to cook, only hitch was that it was very bony. But then for a true Bengali worth his fish, Ilish Mach is the big boss!! Available everywhere and quite delicious too.

STREET FOOD :

Street Food!! Now coming from Mumbai I was very well acquainted with street food. Having literally grown up on vada pavs, bhaji pavs, grilled sandwich, bhelpuri, cutting chai, etc here, I was well prepared to take on the Kolkata street food. But when I first saw the street food culture here, I was shocked!! I cringed a hell lot when I first witnessed the bhadralok eating their way to glory amidst such congested footpaths. The cooking conditions that made even the worst vada pav carts in Mumbai look decent enough. I was glad that I would never have to eat this food as initially my office was in Salt Lake City, a pretty sophisticated area, food wise.

But after a couple of months my office had shifted in the city. Most of my colleagues were from Kolkata itself. Lunchtime for them meant going to the nearest street food vendor. I was cringing at the thought, but then the adventurous side of me took over and I decided to try my hand at the Kolkata street food.

I started off with Puri and cholar dal and slowly but surely graduated to the more filling chicken kassas, chicken biryani, mutton masala, the works. There was no cringing anymore. No wonder, street food in Kolkata was the unanimous choice of the masses. It indeed tasted real!! I know most of the health freaks reading this may be cringing at the thought, but as a street food fanatic I really appreciated the Kolkata street fare on offer. Moreover its easy on the pocket and filling at the same time.

Alas, I had to end my Kolkata mind trip there, as my stop was approaching. The bus came to a halt. The ting ting by the conductor announced the arrival of my stop. As soon as I got down, I headed to the nearest Pani Puri cart. Nah, Pani Puri could never be Puchka. I paid the vendor and went my way, whistling my favourite song, with a steely determination to take another mind trip there soon.

Take Care

Ciao