The state’s biggest food festival has come to Salt Lake this year. Ahare Bangla 2019 will be held at Central Park fairgrounds till November 24, noon to 9pm.
The inauguration happened on Tuesday in the presence of ministers Purnendu Basu, Jyotipriyo Mullick and Swapan Debnath, under whose animal resources development department the fair is taking place.
“This is the fifth installment of the fair. After two years at Milan Mela, opposite Science City, and two years at the New Town fairgrounds, we have brought it to Salt Lake. We want to take the fair around the city for the sake of residents everywhere and Karunamoyee is also blessed with great connectivity,” said Debnath.
Desserts from the Russian-speciality stall Milee Droog Cafe and Bistro. (Brinda Sarkar)
A view of the fair on Tuesday. (Mayukh Sengupta)
The fair has 152 stalls and mayor Krishna Chakraborty said they have selected brands that sell good quality food at reasonable rates. Minister Basu said cooking was an art and invited everyone to come enjoy the festival but Mullick said he would have to make do by watching the delicious fare around him. “My blood sugar count in 300 so I can’t taste this food,” he laughed.
Debnath, who himself has a blood sugar count of 356, shied away from eating too. “Today at this fair we shall launch pantuas by Mother Dairy,” he said, inviting Mullick to unravel a handi of the sweetmeat and feed the dignitaries on stage. “They shall be available at all Mother Dairy outlets shortly. We are working on rasogollas too.”
The fair has delicacies from various cuisines. Chinese from Mainland China, Japanese from Aajisai, central Asian from Go Lebanese and Russian from Milee Droog. “Like every year, our Russian pancake bliney is expected to be a best seller,” said owner Satyaki Manna. “It comes with fillings like shrimp, mushroom and ham and cheese. Portions at the fair are slightly smaller than at our outlet so prices are less too.”
Bakery treats from The Lalit Great Eastern The Telegraph picture
Pisces is offering a wide range of seafood, The Chutney Co. specialises in south Indian and different takes on biriyani are available at Khawab, Shiraz and many other stalls.
The Haringhata meat stalls are selling cooked as well as frozen turkey, duck, rabbit and quail and government outlets selling combos at reasonable rates.
There are juice stalls like The Yellow Straw and snack stalls like Mitra Cafe, where the Rs 150 a piece Diamond Fish Kabiraji and Rs 180 a piece Prawn Cutlet are flying off shelves.
“We are selling a Japanese street food item called Kushi Katsu. It is a deep fried chicken or fish fillet in skewers, served with a sauce made of the Japanese drinks sake and mirin,” said the man behind The Cafe Store counter. “In the weekend, we shall serve this dish in octopus.”
For pastries, donuts and flavoured breads, head to The Lalit Great Eastern stall and for traditional sweets there are Mouchak, Felu Modak and many more.