Kolkata : Street Food Extravaganza

Warning : This thread is not for the chicken-hearted (read calorie conscious) people.

J.P.Brothers

A small, very small, really small joint lurked into a non-descript corner of a road at Hazra in south Kolkata. One has to head towards Alipore from Hazra, take the first right turn and on the left corner lies the key to heavenly bliss. The place is filled with the aroma of typical fried food every evening. Of all the items they sell, fish fry is the best. The fillet is very thick, there is no adulteration of chilly paste found commonly in other places. Quality of fish is unquestionably good. Although it’s fried in oil, it doesn’t leave any feeling one gets after consuming rich food. After taking one, yeh dil maange more – the heart – err, the stomach – craves for more. It’s mouth-watering – no, delicious – no, scrumptious – no, heavenly ….. in fact, words fail to describe it. I sincerely pity those who have read it so far, but not yet savoured it.

At Rs.40 a piece, it’s the best in Kolkata. And given the fact that this item is not common in other areas of the world – it’s undoubtedly the world’s best. For me, it was a tough test of abstinence when I, already hungry after a whole day at work, had to carry it for more than half an hour before reaching home, without being able to touch it.

Address : 128, Hazra Road, Kolkata 700026. Ph. – 09748444605.

Golbari

It’s perhaps synonymous with Kolkata. At the heart of Shyambazar five point crossing, its kosha mungsho – an item of mutton – is famed to be the best in Kolkata. They say – the world is divided into two groups – one who have tasted it, and the other who haven’t. So we decided one evening to migrate from the latter to the former. There are two options to savour it – there is a cramped space inside where some wall mounted tables and closely placed chairs are kept, for eating it right there – an ambience very typical of north Kolkata. And of course, one can take the food away.

We wanted to read the Bible in the church itself – so made ourselves comfortable there. Mutton Kosha was served, along with two customary parathas. Now, I must admit that the food was very inviting, although it was fully dripped with a heavily oiled and spicy curry. Undoubtedly it was tasty, so it should be consumed at least once in a lifetime. Pocket pinch : Rs.90/- per plate.

Hi friend,

Also mention about the Street Food Plaza beside Writers' Building and High Court area...

mousourik
forget about tasting or not have not even heard of it.
i drool therefore i am(sorry descartes)
rgds

Dhrubatara,

i wanted to post only first hand reports here. So mentioned the two out of so many. Many more to come....

Sure...we would love to hear more.....

Local trains plying from Sealdah and Howrah stations are frequented by various hawkers – so much that at times it seems they outnumber passengers! Their wares vary from household items to innovative fruit juicers to rat killers to pain removers to digestion boosters to phottas jol (aerated bottled water that makes a sound “phottas” while being opened up and hence the name) to various food items that feed hungry daily passengers while going back home. The options for the food are limited – generally various kinds of chips, salted peanuts etc. are sold.

Recently on the Independence day, we had to travel to Basirhat on Sealdah – Hasnabad section. What’s strikingly different is the food offered by the hawkers. We’d like to share information on some of them, as they provided to us a new dimension of independence – freedom for the taste buds from the daily monotony.

Kucho (small) Gaja

Regularly sold on this route, it’s like a crunchy, short, thick stick dipped in sugar syrup and dried. Now, this time it was dipped in the juice of ripe palm fruit that gave it a distinct flavour. Although palm fruit juice is seasonal, it elevated this common item to another level. At Rs.15 for 250 gm, this will surely give many highly advertised chocolate brands a run for their money.

Makha Sandesh

This is, again, a common item found on this route. The Sandesh has a soft consistency, and is sold by weight, not pieces. The sugar content is low, it’s somewhat granular, but great to taste. Being sold at Rs.20 for 250gm, the vendor made a quick business of a couple of hundred rupees in a very short time. Once you finish your portion, the mouth will crave for more.

Peanuts

Although on other trains these are either fried, or salted and then packed in small plastic wrappers, only on this route are sold the roasted peanuts with their shells. At Rs.10 for 100 gm, they are sold in small paper bags and the salt is served separately in a small piece of paper. It’s a great item to savour, as the train moves through green rural Bengal.

Tips

We found all these on the 14:52 Hasnabad local from Sealdah, and on the Sealdah bound train leaving Basirhat at 19:15. They should be available on other trains on this route also, but who knows….

Hi mousourik!

I am a great lover of Makha Sondesh since my childhood. My family migrated to India from the-then East Pakistan in 1948-49 and our first stop over in this part of India was Bongaon (we had some relatives living here and they provided temporary shelter to our family). Bongaon was (and still is) famous for Makha Sondesh amd we used to call it Kacha Golla (not necessarily round in shape). My love story with Makha Sondesh or Kacha Golla started from those childhood days and is still continuing....

But one thing that struck me from your above account is its price! Rs.20/- per 250 Grms. means Rs.80/ per KG for good quality of Makha Sondesh seems something unbelievable! I think I have to take a trip by one of these trains during next winter... makha sondesh in nolen gur... oh! it's so tempting, really!!

Asishda, things sold in the train have to be cheap - otherwise why daily passengers would buy them ? So sandesh of better quality must be available in the Basirhat town.

But my suggestion is : do travel now as you'll love the taste of the gajas.

...... I can't wait - let me get one right now !

I hope someone will write about this!

With a hat tip for Paulputt (mid-section on Kolkatta)..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WzMp...-button&wide=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGDst...eature=related

And so much more..

Kucho Gaja

Best kucho gaja I had during one of my trips to Chakdaha, my home town. It used to be available from a particular hawker in the train.

This is another I enjoy....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFFfP3ggUfM

The photographed ones were bought from a hawker on Krishnanagar - Sealdah local train at Krishnanagar, and they were dipped in the molasses prepared from date palm juice.

Would someone please describe what are "Kucho Gaja". They look like a deep fried snack made from some flour to me.