Club Foodie, Best Chinese Take-away in Tollygunge, Kolkata

That's an end to the year long wait to savor real tasty Chinese Cuisines. Yes, it's at your door step now in Tollygunge.

Club Foodie surely is the destination for people in Tollygunge seeking exclusive Chinese dishes. If you stay around the Tollywood, you are the one who can give it a try. It's next to Ajadgarh Post Office, on N. S. C. Bose Road.

It's probably the only take-away where you can find high quality Chowmein, Fried Rice, Chinese Side Dishes, Manchurians, Garlic Chicken and many more, which taste like any famous Multi-cuisine Restaurant. Not only the taste and quality but the method is also very neat and clean. You can see your food being prepared in front of you by the cook.

Now comes the price part. It's absolutely cheap. The Chilie Chicken (8 pcs of boneless chicken) costs only Rs.80/- and Chowmein starting from Rs.45/- which is really very cheap compared to any restaurant. Just a sitting arrangement could add another star but you can at least have high quality food at your home. They have started free home delivery on weekends as well for order over Rs.100/-

Have the best Chinese meal at Tollygunge for best price, while watching your favorite TV Show at home. :)

BADSHAH @ BARRACKPORE

It was mid of April. The sun was burning everything it could and draining out the last drop of juice from our body. But his effort was not sufficient enough to stop us and we decided to test our survival skill in the tough situation. We started from Kolkata to Hooghly on our Motorcycle and pathetically at noon.

Food is second most important element for survival and we realized it pretty soon on the highway along with the most important one, I.e. Drinks. We found a halt near Barrackpore and parked the motorbike there. Badsah Bar & Restaurant was the savior and we just plunged into it.

What a peace we found there. The cool and ethnic ambiance was just waiting for us and it had two chairs at the right corner. We ordered Strong Beers with Chicken Kebab, the two most important survival elements. The Kebabs were superb.  6 Pcs of meat only for rs.80/- but sufficient enough to make you order for more. Though they mostly serve Chinese Cuisine but the Mughlai kebabs were ecstatic.

Now it was China’s (I mean the Chinese Cuisine) turn.We ordered Mixed Hakka Noodle. It was nice too. I really have not tasted such nice chinese anywhere outside Kolkata. This was exceptional. Price-worthy and good in quantity. The Noodle was for Rs.175/- only.

There was surprises waiting for us in the bill too. We discovered a 10% discount on beverage and that was special during the summer between 11AM to 7 PM. WoW! Cheers!

Catch the road someday (but don't make it in the summer) and enjoy the food at Badsah but not to survive. ;)

Brain Chop, Mitra Cafe, Shovabazar

No you do not need to be a Cannibal. A goat will sacrifice it's head to give you that cheesy taste. Yes, I am talking about Goat Brain, surrounded by some tasty filling and served in a crunchy upper crust available at Mitra Cafe, Shovabazar. One of the most awaited place for me.

It was my best friend Gopal's marriage. As he is from Shovabazar, I got the golden chance. On the next day of his marriage, the newly married couple returned to their home and I spend some more time with them during many other rituals. I had the lunch and decided to leave for my home. I had a view of Mitra Cafe while returning to Shovabazar and that very moment I decided to give it a short visit. When I reached Mitra Cafe it was 4.00 pm and I found it close. I asked the Panwala beside it and he told me that the cafe opens at 4.30 pm. I felt like a fool, I could have left the marriage house half an hour later!!

But I had to wait and I waited. Spend that 30 mins roaming here and there and then returned back right on 4.25 pm. There was a surprise waiting for again, the crowed. A decent crowed of 15-20 people was already waiting there for the cafe to open and finally the moment came. Let me tell you, it is a very small place with 4 narrow tables. An open counter which takes the order and serves the food as well.

There are lot of snacks available like Kabiraji varieties (chicken or fish fried, coated with crumbled egg), cutlet varieties including vary famous mutton breast cutlet (my next target) but I was determined to have Brain Chop. I heard about the Brain Chop a long time before but could not reach the right place at right time. I was actually feeling very full that day after having a huge traditional bengali lunch and so I decided to take it to home and enjoy with my family.

As I said before, the brain tastes like cheese, no foul smell or taste. Absolutely soft, juicy and tasty. The filling was superb and the amazing thing was the size of the chop. One such Chop weighs around 100 to 150gms approx. Unfortunately my wife could not enjoy it just because it had brain inside it but I just loved it. I am ready to have it any day and recommend it highly. Only fresh onion salad is enough with the dish and bingo! As of now the price is Rs.30/- a piece and I believe the dish worth much more than that!

Disaster at Dhakai Biriyani House, Sector V, Saltlake

When this new food centre opened in Saltlake, Sector 5 (near WEBEL bus stand) this month, a lot of locals must have expected to get quality biriyani and specially mutton delicacies, because the name “Dhakai Biriyani House” is legendary in Kolkata for its quality from numerous outlets across the city.

Soon after it was opened, I visited to taste the Biriyani and Mutton Kasha on a special occasion. And must say it was the worst meal I had experienced. 

The food was of poor quality in all aspect. When I started on the Biryani it wasn’t even enough hot and I couldn’t feel any kind of flavour at all. There was hardly any spice in it (may be they tried to make it healthy ;) ). Same with the Mutton Kasha obviously. However the quantity was the only parameter which satisfies.

Apart from the taste and quality, I was disappointed with their service too. The Service Crews were absolutely lazy to attend the customer. They even forgot to offer a glass of water and the complimentary salad.
 

The price was comparatively cheap. Mutton Biryani was priced Rs.120/-, Chicken Biryani at Rs.110/-, Mutton Chap was Rs.60/- and Chicken Chap Rs.50/- only and there was no extra variety  :( 

They have never focused on environment in any outlet and it was same here so the overall experience was damn bad. I can rate it only 3 out of 10 and they get 2 points for the price. So it is absolutely not recommended to have Biryani from Dhakai Biryani House.

The Oval, DLF IT Park I, Newtown, Rajarhat

After a long wait I made it to The Oval finally. Thanks to Shyamal Da for such a wonderful Lunch on his birthday. 25th June was his very special Birthday and he offered us the great lunch. Though we had a little confusion over too many options but Oval was the final one and probably the best one on this occasion.

We reached there around 2:30 pm and found it a lonely place. Except the service crews, we could not find anyone else. That was a thing to worry about!! Not only that but we also expected a buffet which we discovered as a Friday Special. But we made our mind and we could not decide anything else and took the table without any hesitation.

One of us suggested to go for Indian Cuisine but two of disagreed (we were 7 that day). So we ordered Chinese for them (it turned out to be a great decision as I got the chance to judge the Chinese Cuisine too) and Indian for 5 of us.

On the Chinese we ordered Mixed Hakka Chowmein and Devil's Chicken on the side. For us we ordered Lahsuni (garlic) Dal Tarka, Dal Oval (a special Yellow Dal), Mutton Do-Pyaza and Butter Naan.

Let's talk about Chinese first. The Chowmein was nice, good in taste, nice texture and looked healthy as well. Devil's Chicken was the Bombshell. tasty and Juicy Chicken balls in a tangy red sauce nicely flavoured with Garlic. I would surely try that dish someday with my family.

Among the Indian Dishes I liked the Lahsuni Dal Tarka the most and disliked the Mutton Do-Pyaza. The Dal Tarka was rich with Desi Ghee. It was normal Black Dal (Kali Dal) with lots of Lahsun or Garlic. It was tasty with the Butter Naan. The Dal Oval was pretty ordinary but can't complain but being the only Non-Veg dish the Mutton Do-Pyaza really disappointed me. It was dull with both flavour and Taste. The meat part were rear though it was the costliest dish on our table.

Now lets talk about cost. I must say it's a bit costly but worthy for sure. for e.g. the Dal's were for Rs.135/- each, Chowmein was for Rs.200/-, Devil's chicken was priced Rs.260/- a plate, Moutton Do-Pyaza costs Rs.325/- a Plate, and the Naans were for Rs.55/- each. Quantity was ok I'd say.

Overall experience was nice and I enjoyed being there. The ambiance was nice.  7 on 10 so far. Will visit once again for sure.

A Chinese Experience at Chinhua, Chandni Chowk

So some how after my spate of 45 hours works week, I managed to go for a dinner. There was a nip in the air…and the mind was ready to embrace the season..While finding  for something different,  we got “Chinhua”.  An original Chinese restaurant with a two storied domicile in Chandni Chowk. Chinhua is the restaurant with a good rating on various parameters comprising décor, cleanliness, service, taste and value of money. And I must say that I was impressed with the awesome food quality.

We ordered for mixed chow-min (Hakka) and Pork fry (A special item of Chinhua).The price is quite reasonable. The full plate (a larger quantity of chow-min) of chow-min was for Rs 170 and the plate of pork fry (6 pieces) was about Rs. 80. These all items were cooked in sesame oil and a lovely smell and touch was there from the dishes.

Interior was all over decorated with Chinese themes. And I astonished that all the staffs were speaking in Chinese. An old lady was supervising every thing. And they are quite friendly. I was amazed with their co operation and behavior.

My greedy stomach felt really happy with the golden grace of Chinhua.

 The Mixed Chowmein

Great Rasomalai @ VIP (or V. I. P.) Sweets, Baguihati, Joramandir

While going towards Airport through VIP Road, there is a crossing after Baguihati Bust Stop called Jora Mandir Bus Stop. Right at the crossing you will see a huge outlet, VIP Sweets and Confectioneries.

They have a lot of varieties in different desserts, mostly Bengali desserts like Rasogolla, Kara Paker Sandesh, Cham Cham, various other Sandesh in different flavours, shapes and colors. I found interest in two particular Items, i.e. Gulab Jamun and Rasomalai.

They have two variety of Rosomalai, small chhena (cottage cheese) balls in plain white malai flavoued with cardamom and the other one is large balls in yummy Kesar (Saffron) flavoured and colored thick malai. For obvious reason I like the second one the most. Whenever I visit them, I have at least two of them. Very very soft, soaked in the delicious creamy malai. In fact my mouth is watering while writing this piece. If possible, give it a try someday.

Will upload images soon. Enjoy :)

Picture Courtesy Bharatiya Khana Khazana

Sip of Soda @Loknath Soda Shop, Baguihati

I was a kid when I loved Soda drinks. It could be any soda drink. No matter what flavour it is, no matter how cold it is. But after a certain time I only prefer such drink on two occasions. When I feel really thirsty and do not find some good drinking water and on the table with alcohol (that too is very rare nowadays).

Back in 2008-09 I enjoyed soda drinks again but not those bottled and labeled with a huge brand name that every celebrity pretend to drink on TV Ad. It was nice fruit flavours with soda available at YES SIR, Hindmotor.

What I had this evening is a superior version of that. It is in Baguihati, attached to Baguhati Super Market. Loknath Soda Shop, Cold soda drinks with a huge variety of flavours. You won't belive that they have flavours like Grape, Kiwi, Blue Berry and even RUM, Fruit Whiskey and Fruit Beer. 120 ml of drink costs only Rs.6/- and the 300 ml is just for Rs.10/-. That's amazing. May be the price is promotional but this is first time I saw such a wide variety of soda drinks available in my neighborhood. I believe these are available at the heart of the city like Esplanade or the fancy malls at a much costlier price but what I had here for 10 bucks would be my first preference anytime. Believe me people are crazy for a sip (I could not even had a good snap).

The summer is here, what are you waiting for??

                                                               Crowd seeking their turn!

                                                          
                                                             The Long List of Flavours!!

Penguin, DLF IT Park, Newtown

Penguin is the place to gain some peace on weekend for almost every people working at DLF IT PARK I, Rajarhat, Newtown (obviously for those who enjoy alcohol).

It is not just a Liquor Bar but a nice restaurant too. Unfortunately I have visited Penguin only once till now and here I am going to describe the experience of that single evening.

It was a weekend and we were pretty tired. In a single word, we wanted to visit Penguin! ;)

It was around 9.30 pm when we entered and we ordered Tandoori Chicken in a flash with Bacardi White Rum. It was the most juicy Tandoori I have ever had. Nice, Tender, Juicy and really very tasty. We took no time to finish it order one more!

Then I felt like having a different taste other than Chicken and fish goes well with white rum. I saw a dish on the menu called Devil's Fish. Crisp fried Bekti fillets with saute vegetables in a mild sauce. It was damn tasty too. As it was Devil's Fish, it was pretty hot. I usually avoid food, hot in taste but the devil's fish was exceptional. Especially when you have a bite of fish along with a yellow pepper, it's too juicy and crispy together with a blast of good taste. All these starters were within Rs.300/- and the quantity was satisfactory.

On the main course we had Chicken Tikka Butter Masala and Plain Naan. The Naan was hard but again the Chicken dish was tasty.

The place is well maintained but a little cozy but the service is exceptional. I enjoyed the hospitality! Overall a 8/10. Pay a visit with friends and family and enjoy the Devil's Fish!

Golden Joy in China Town, Tangra

After 31st Dec, 2012 this was our first party at Golden Joy, China Town. There was couple of reason behind it like promotion, bonus etc which we want to keep secret.

We were an hour behind the scheduled time on 22nd March, Friday and everybody was furious to reach the pre-decided destination. When reached Golden Joy all of us were super hungry and the attendant did had to wait any long. We ordered the starters in flash!

I preferred Whiskey that day and others ordered Rum and Vodka. We were discussing a dish that is available there for quite a long time and we ordered that first, a plate of Golden Prawns. Along with that we ordered Dry Chile Chicken, Threaded Chicken and Golden Fish.

Being honest I must say, the Golden items (both prawn & Fish ) were pretty ordinary in taste but not the cost. Both the things were fried with a golden coating. They used an ordinary batter made which is very similar to Fish Butter Fry or Fish Orli. The texture were good and it was obviously a nice choice to have with liquor. They served a hot green chile sauce which I felt a must apply on the golden fries.

Dry Chile Chicken is a very popular item nowadays and it was as good as available in any good Chinese Restaurant in Kolkata. Threaded Chicken was an absolute surprise. Very simply made but pretty tasty. soft tender chicken coated with crispy noodles. I really could not follow all the price after having a few pegs but what I remember is that, the golden items were pretty costly like around Rs.400/- a plate and others were around Rs.250/-.

Then we had Noodles and I had a Pork one. The noodle was tasty as usual. And that's all we really had no space left for anything else. I enjoyed the ambiance. It is a small place but well decorated.

I must mention one thing for those who do not know the fact that you can have whole bottle of liquor which may slash the cost a lot. So you can enjoy your drink there at much cheaper cost.

I would say there are lot many options in China Town and Golden Joy is one of the good choice.

Golden Prawns	Dry Chile Chicken
Threaded Chicken	Golden Fish

VESSELKA (THE WORLD CUISINE COMES HERE)

"Flavour it takes,flavour it makes, flavour it breaks a foodie's pilgrimage"
First of all, hats off to Kollolda for creating such a great community for us, the boisterous, ardent foodies of bengal..your regular updates on diversified n unique food joints of Kolkata r really like a guide. Whatever it is, we just can't compromise with our food.
Being a member, feeling great to share sum thoughts and opinions. Just came across a new food joint here at Kasba, near my place.. It's called "Vesselka". they claim where the world cuisine comes home..
i was strolling with one of my friend at my para. Suddenly, he suggested me to have a a sandwich at a new food joint, he cudn't remember the name.. however, he clearly remembered the location.. I don't know, maybe my stomach was rambling out of hunger... i asked him whether we cud go now? it was already 9.00 pm.. he gave me an awful reaction... however, nagging wid my parents i manged the car keys and we both sailed to our destination.. it's a small joint. located on Bose Pukur road,, just beside the place where the Bose Pukur puja is celebrated. u'll find it on ur righ side if u are coming from gariahat. as we reached there.. we some sum really busy men.. working their brains out to serve a small crowd of customers.. The joint has a big hoarding in blue.. written "Vesselka". as we stopped our car,.. a small boy came out running to our car and provided us their menu card.. They really offers an unique cocktail; of almost every known cuisines to us. be it Indian, Chinese, Oriental, Italian, Continental and a hell lot of other things. We just ordered at chicken Mayo Sandwich.. it looked very average.. with some french fries over it.. we the mouth watering taste felt like paradise across our tongues.. they offers a very reasonable price and a lots and lots of variety to make u go crazy.. (They even serves Octopus and Squid). the only thing that might look strange that it's not a proper restaurant.. But trust me, if ur inquisitive enough for ur food. u surely have to be here. Try it..

It's Only Alibaba!! Saltlake, Sector-V

I do love Biryani a lot, though I am little biased towards Continental and Mediterranean but obviously the flavour of Biryani really matters and I keep searching for it. I have tried Biryani in Lukhnow, Delhi and obviously at many places in Kolkata. Unfortunately I haven't yet visited Hyderabad to taste it's world famous patent Hyderabadi Biryani, though my wife tasted once and one of my close friend Ani is staying in Hyderabad. :(

Among many I liked the Mutton Biryani from Only Alibaba, Saltlake, Sector-V the most in recent time. You can say that the outlet I am talking about is just a franchise and it's the same taste and flavour of Biryani in all Alibaba outlets. Let me tell you a fact that the huge sale in Sector-V outlet has made a big difference, you'll always find fresh dish as per your choice. And obviously I love it more because the staff there welcome you with warmth in their heart.

Few days back I had Sepcial Mutton Biryani. It was a mistake! I had no idea about the quantity and it was plenty. Huge chunk of mutton highly enriched with taste, a large piece of potato soft like butter with lots of flavor and taste made the whole thing absolutely majestic. I ordered Tar Biryani, it's the biryani from the bottom of the pot with lots of oil. I feel there is no point thinking of health while having a special biryani from alibaba. The Tar is always tasty. You just don't need anything on the side, just the biryani was enough alone. The mutton was soft and tender and highly flavoured. In fact while writing this blog, my mouth watered a lot, thinking of it.

The price of the special one was Rs.190/- and do not miss the Firni. It's Rs.30/- only and delicious as well. After the meaty taste, your tongue deserves something sweet like the firni...

photo courtesy www.emaaya.com

Banzara, Jadavpur

This is a place where I used to visit quite often during my college days and I loved it. It is a multi-cuisine restaurant on Ebrahimpur Road, Jadavpur; 3 mins walking distance from Jadavpur 8B Bus stand.

It is a small place but the food, is no-doubt good. It is Air Conditioned and the ambiance is so so.

I have tried a lot of soups there and found them all very tasty, whether is Chicken Clear Soup or it is Sweet Corn Chicken Soup or even if it is simple Tomato soup.

As far as Mughlai Cuisine is concern, I'll not prefer Banzara probably. I have tried it once and the Biriyani was good but still I'll go with Chinese.

All the Noodles and Fried Rice items are very tasty and full of flavors. Common Chicken dishes like Chilli Chicken, Garlic Chicken are good and I tried Sanghai Chicken and found it nice too though it was little hot (:P do not know how does Sanghai Chicken tastes actually).

Pocket pinch is comparatively less and good for college goers to take his/her date to a AC restaurant with little pocket money (at least it was so for me ;) ). If you are hungry around Jadavpur and won't mind a Rs.200/- it's your day in Banzara with a complete meal. Enjoy!

Amar, Desserts of Immortality

I started my professional career with Hindustan Motors Ltd, Uttarpara, Hooghly. Truly speaking, the experience were like nightmares. I know what it takes to work with a sick company with a super low salary, in a historical environment where you feel like being in early 20th century.

Among all these bitter experiences, I have got two sweet things. The sweeter one was Amar Mistanna Bhandar (can not recall the exact name, as I have always addressed it as Amar). I thank HM with all my heart that I could get in touch with Amar just because of them.

Amar means immortality. If you are a true sweet lover, you'll find  an immortal joy in Amar for sure. There are two outlet I believe, one near United Spirit on GT Road, Uttarpara and the other is in Hindmotor market close to the Railway Station. None of their delicacy disappointed me ever and I can still feel few of them in my mouth after 3 long years of leaving HM. I'll specially mention the Kalakand. The best Kalakand I have ever tasted. They claim it 100% milk concentration and I accept it without any doubt. Whenever I visited nearby after leaving HM, I have bought lots of Kalakand from Amar.

I must mention another Item, which I rarely tasted because of it's high price but the art behind it was terrific. They call it Shor Bati. A small bowl made up of Milk Skin and filled with soft juicy cream. At time me and my wife used to visit Amar everyday after shopping from the local market.

Prices at Amar are comparatively lower than that of in any Sweet Shop in Kolkata but they provide us a lot of tasty options than any other Sweet Shop in Kolkata. They have Kalakand, Shor Bati, Gulab Jamun, Special Bundi fried in Ghee and mixed with Khoya and Kaju and many more common Bengali sweets but with a rare tasty flick.

If you stay somewhere near Uttarpara, you must be aware of Amar but if you don't but got some chance to visit Uttarpara or hindmotor, visit the shop once and taste something delicious. You'll feel unlucky to return back! I challenge!!

I still haven't said about the sweetest thing. It's friendship. I found a lot of friends in HM, who helped me a lot in all possible ways and I am grateful to them. It was them who made it possible for me to fight there for 3 and a half years and find the best out of me. As they are too many in number, I'll not be able to mention any particular name. I dedicate this particular blog to all my ex-colleague of HM!! :)

Best Fish Finger

For me the one word is Suruchi. It's on Decker's Lane. If you are walking through Decker's Lane and started from Governor's House, you'll find it on the left hand side. It's a small inn. I found the best Fish Finger here. When I first tasted it, it was Rs.96/- a plate (consisting 12 pcs). On my last visit past year it was Rs.156/- same plate. It's worthy!! You can also try the Chicken Pakoda, that too the best I ever had. Sorry don't remember the price!

...go Go Lebanese! Sarat Bose Road

Thanks Suchit! Thanks a lot my friend for suggesting me to visit Go Lebanese.

I would have missed one of the most important part of my quest for new flavors and taste without visiting Go Lebanese. I have been looking for an exquisite foreign cuisine for so long (within budget of course, as I cannot afford a 5 star multi-cuisine) and it's all because of you Suchit that I had such a delicious experience.

I don't know why Mediterranean dishes has always attracted me over TV Channels, magazines etc and so when I first heard about Go Lebanese, I was very much excited. I was excited to taste an oversea food that too within a convenient distance.

So far I have visited Go Lebanese twice and tasted (tested?) 2 of their famous dishes. Both are really nice, Shawarma Roll and Hummus Nasib. Shawarma Roll is chunks of marinated and grilled chicken with fresh vegetables and lots of Tahini (sesame paste) rolled in Peta Bread. Hummus Nasib was same chicken chunks tossed with vegetables and black olives, served with sliced Peta Bread and Hummus (a thick sauce made with chickpeas, olive oil). Shawarma Roll was Rs.85/- and Hummus Nasib was Rs.100/- only. Both were pretty heavy and very very delicious. Few other famous dishes are Irani Fish Tikka, Baba Ganouje, Oil Free Full Roasted Chicken, Falafel etc which are well known Lebanese dishes.

If you can think beyond Machh-Bhaat (fish curry & rice) and imagine flavors other than our very spicy dishes with lots of oil and want to experience Mediterranean delicacy, it's a place you should visit. As it's a take-away outlet, it does not pinch your pocket hard as well. I give a 10 out of 10 to Go Lebanese.

Enjoying Humus Naseeb at Go Lebanese with Gopal