Certain thing which represents Bengal is replete with high spirits.
With the advent of August, carrying autumn with her, Bengalees gear up for Eid, Kite Flying Festival followed by Durga Puja celebrated as a week-long carnival in Bengal (aka Bengalees all over the world).
All these celebrations are countered with MISHTI (the bengalee term for Sweets and applicable for anything that seems sweet!), the most essential part of a resplendent Bengali lifestyle!
Though it is not Bengalees, but anyone from any corner of the world, who has ever been in touch with the sumptuous sweet dishes of Bengal has become its undisputed evangelist!
Scroll down to get information about a few of them.
Rasgula, but the original pronunciation being Roshogollah, is the survivor from a few people (may be) of the world who said "not good!" For others, it has spread its aura to become an alchemist for its fans. This sweet has its roots in Orissa, but the confectioner (or Moyra in Bengali) was Nobin Chandra Das (read Naveen). His successors are now one of the most famous Calcutta based confectioners with shops all over the world, popularly known as KC DASS.
Shondesh, as it is known, is a dessert prepared by the home-made cheese of two variety, soft baked (or Norompak, as norom = soft) and hot/hard baked (or Kowrapak, Kowra = rigid)! There's even others; Tal-shasher sondesh (or sweet dish made of the yolk of coconut palm), Nolengurer Shondesh (Nolen = etymologically Naren, depreciated in Dhaka's diction, it is the sweetdish made of molasses with no use of sugar)!
FIRNI or PAYESH (in Bengalee), being the birds of same feather started its journey much before the renaissance of Bengal had started. The Islamic traditions of food and sweetdishes have found a perfect blend with eastern trends of solicitation during the time of Bengal's architect Nawabs like Shiraj-ud-dulla (read Sheraz-ud-daulah). The characteristic difference between the two is that Firni is served as a cold-dessert whereas Payesh is served lukewarm.
ZARDA or SITABHOG in Bengalee, is also a Persian-Bengal fusion aptly made centuries ago for a soulful taste. By now, Zarda and Sitabhog hardly have any difference except the names and their native styles of cooking.
LEDIKENI, named after Lady Canning, the beautiful wife of the British Governor General Lord Canning, is said to have sold her million dollar worth necklace for this special sweetmeat that later found its name after her. Being an abridged edition of GULABJAMUN in north India, this sweet unlike the latter, is solely made from home-made cheese (or chhana) and is said to have taken great care so that the milk does not ferment more than two times ata specific temperature. For such reason, the Burdwan (or Bardhaman) district of Bengal specilizes in the recipe of this sweetmeat. Its alter ego is, in fact, far more reputed; it is called LYANG-CHA. Interestingly, in Bengalee, Lyang stands for kick and Chaa is tea! Shaktigarh, famous for Lyangcha in Burdwan district makes each piece of more than 500 gms. each with a length of 7 to 8 inches.
CHANDRAPULI PAYESH is a crossbreed of PAYESH and MALAI. It is served to the JAMAI (or daughter's husband) by every in-law during his annual visit to the bride's house every year after marriage. The occasion is called JAMAI SOSTHI (or the Ode to the son-in-law to all worldly grace) where the SASURI (or the Mom-in-law) must cook new recipes every time. It is believed that Chandrapuli can stir up sweet romances between the couple!
MIHIDANA or the clone of Boondi of North India is not exactly the photocopy! When Boondi is a mix of Gram-flour (or Besan in Hindi), Mihidana is made of homemade cheese mixed with milk powder. It probably owes its name to the famous mathematician BARAHA MIHIR of Orissa who liked this dessert!
MALAI CHOMCHOM is a hybrid of CHOMCHOM in Bengali (Chomchom, a Vietnamese word for Rambutan, also Chom Chom Advertising = an advertising strategy with a strict budget betting on a single individual as a master card, not an organization, not any group) meaning Boat. The finest varieties are available in leading restaurant chains all over the world.
RASMALAI or ROSHOMALAI in Bengalee, is now one of the exotic sweet dishes and is preferred due to a rich taste and its innate capacity to melt inside the mouth. Once again, this dish is served by all leading restaurant chains serving Bengali Food.
So, next time you visit Kolkata, don't miss to tickle on your toes and go for a footloose in the city searching for some pure tastes of ecstasy. Also, for Bengali cuisine, both veg. and non veg., do not miss the following if you are visiting Kolkata:
Sen Mohashoy for varieties (Sealdah, mohashoy = Mr.)
KC DASS for Roshogollah (Esplanade)
Bhim Nag for Shondesh (Bowbazar)
Girish and Nakur for Kawrapaker Shondesh (Near Bethune College, College Street)
Arsalan and Shiraj for Firni (Park Circus Junction, don't worry, they have separate provisions for Veggies)
Haldiram's - a 20 minutes drive from Airport
All these sweet shops are located in North Calcutta only with a mutual distance of 4-5 kms. from each other, but take care due to head-wrenching traffic!
Also, try to take dinner in any of the following (once again, don't worry; Calcutta is quite conscious about veg. and non-veg. hospitalities):
Chinese Restaurants in China Pot'ti (or Chinese Slums) lies at a 5 kms. drive from Park Circus/Science City Auditorium. Although available in GK II, Rajouri and Saket in Delhi, I prefer going to Mainland China in Kolkata for a heavenly dinner! Try out private dining in Silver Arcade on Halden Avenue.
Halden Avenue, although, reminds me of my first job nearby and of course, Oh! Calcutta. The ambience and the hospitality are great and yes, it is also in Nehru Place now (International Trade Tower, Delhi).
Another great place would be MARCO POLO on Lansdowne Road. The concept was to bring a blend of Italian spices into Indian dishes. The 'Spicy Lamb Roast' is awesome! Also, "Chocolate Sandwich Vignette"!
Bengalee people believe in a whole-hearted lunch than a dinner. Most of the exquisite bengalee dishes are served during lunch only. 6, Ballygunj Place on Ballygunj Place can be hit for a mindblowing lunch with Posto Narkel Bowra (Roasted dumplings of coconut and poppy seeds), Moog Mohon (lentils with distinct flavor of mango, ginger, coconut), Chhanar Malai Curry (cottage cheese dumplings cooked inside a tender coconut), Begun Bashonti (Succulent brinjals cooked in a mustard flavored curd gravy), Pur Bhara Doi Potol (Coconut, poppy seed and mustard stuff waxed into the finger-gourd or parwal), Mochar Ghonto (banana florettes with coconut and potato with cumin) for veggies and Golda chingrir Chiney Kabab (Stuffed jumbo prawn flavored with hot spices), Daab Chingri (prawns roasted in a tender coconut, will surely melt in your mouth!), Kakra Shorshey (Deboned crabs in a traditional mustard gravy), Bhapa Ilish (East Bengal/Bangladesh's pride, hilsa in a mustard gravy packed inside banana leaf foliage), Chital Machher Muitthya (Clown KnifeFish cooked in spicy gravy), Tel Koi (Bengal's favorite dish across every household, Climbing Gouramie cooked in mustard and cumin), Murgir Tramfrado (Chicken cooked in spicy coconut gravy and flavored with lemon leaves), Kosturi Mangsho (Mutton curry flavored with lemon leaves and coconut milk) for people who wants to take a nibble of much-heard Bengali fish!
Another one (quite low-cost and better if you take a home-delivery to your place) would be BHOJOHORI MANNA (after a famous Manna De song on the bawarchi) on Hindustan Road. Special dishes here includes Mochar Paturi (Banana florettes baked hot inside pooy and coconut milk waxed banana leaf foliage) for veggies, Sylheti Mangshor Chaap (Mutton Curry with lemon, cumin, poppy, famous in Sylhet district of Bangladesh), Ilish machher matha diye pui shak (The head of Hilsa Fish crisped with Malabar climbing spinach) for others. Chutney (a sweet finale before desserts, too significant in Bengali cuisine) made of Tomatoes, Almond, Berries and Date Palm is quite famous here.
Don't you have a Bengalee friend who would invite you in his house for a meal? If you think you will miss the typical Bengalee hospitality of serving the food and drawing satisfaction on viewing that food is being thoroughly enjoyed by the foodies, strike the right chord @ TERO PARBON (Tero = 13, Parbon = Festival, it is said that Bengalee festivals exceeds the count of months in a year!) near Hindustan Park. Coming up as one of the most sophisticated places of Bengali food, don't forget to book the table at least a day before you go there, especially during Durga Puja! Special dishes served are Alu Peyajkolir Torkari (Potato and scallions smashed into a curry with cinammon and garlic), sonamooger dal o jhinge posto (one of the favorites of bengalees, golden lentils soup with smashed coconut along with curry of potato, Ridge Gourd and smashed poppy) for veggies and for others, mourola machher jhal (Spiced whitebait), Topsey machh bhaja (Mango Fish baked in butter), Malai mangsho (mutton/chicken made with stuffed curd or malai), Mangsher Golghor (once a famous place for cooked mutton in Shyambazar area of North Kolkata, Golghor still tides into memory for many Bengalees) etc.
If you are not a foodie who likes to taste different dishes of a native place, the best place to sit with a company into some good restaurants like BARBEQUE NATION on EP-DP Block, Salt Lake or PETER CAT (food is just too delightful and toothsome, you miss Chicken Chelo Kabab there and you miss a grand living) in Park Street. These are best places where one can find cosmopolitan foods being served.
I won't force anybody but AMBER (one of the best places of cosmopolitan foods post-British era and before Oberoi Group opened GRAND, Calcutta) on Waterloo Street and LAZEEZ on Elgin Road are my personal favorites. But they are not as grand as the former and prices are horribly high!
Calcuttans (not Bengalees this time) loves a word: BIRYANI! Nobody can count how many CALCUTTANS have given up lives when Biryani were denied to them, and how many poems of bereavement and love-lost I have written during this 3 years-long stay in Ghaziabad and Delhi! Only because all of us miss the great taste and flavor and admiration and tears and smile BIRYANI brings us!
Certainly, if you are also another Biryani moron like us, the Mecca of your desires lies right at Park Circus. ARSALAN, ZEESHAN,SHEERAJ, TURAN, SHAHEEN, NAUSHAD and AMINIA are Greek-gods for us! Visit these places for a finger-melting taste available at an economic expense!
Finally, beverages!
One place would be quite cool and much distanced from all the dins and bustles of the city. The ambience is simply great and you could, once again, find every taste fitting you! That's SOURAV'S THE FOOD PAVILLION, run by the Former Captain of Indian Cricket Team, Sourav Ganguly. Try French Pape Red Wine (got a huge name in original) which would cost you around 6K but surely, it's worth the price! Aperitif, Rye and Bourbon are also available!
