Picture this: Potlar kochuri in Bagbazar, a meaty breakfast of dal gosht and nihari from Zakaria’s Street’s Islamia Hotel and giant-sized Ram Bonde from New Naba Krishna Guin on Nirmal Chandra Street. Ready for a bite? Kolkata Classics is all set to launch food walks that will help you rediscover century-old eateries.
What is Kolkata Classics? Flashback to September 2023 when blogger friends Anindya Sundar Basu of @pikturenama, and Dolon Dutta Chowdhury of @poutpretty, embarked on a mission to capture the essence of old Kolkata. What started as a photo spree turned into something bigger – sharing the stories behind these places with others. “We felt the urgency to preserve these memories because this generation may not witness them in the future. Creating a repository for these memories became equally important to us,” says Dolon.
And now, Kolkata Classics is taking it one step further by inviting those with a shared passion for food and the city’s heritage, to join their food walks. The first one, the ‘Heritage Breakfast and Nolen Gur Trail’, hits the streets on January 28, and that’s just the appetiser. In the pipeline are Cabin Walks, Breakfast Walks, Kochuri-Tea-Mishti walks and more.
What led to the walks? “When we started doing Kolkata Classics, people started requesting us to let them tag along on our food adventures. So we thought, why not start a walk?” says Dolon.
These walks are not only about food, but also about combining history and heritage. “We’re not just pointing at places and saying, ‘eat this’. It’s about the history, the owners, karigars… places that don’t have poster boys,” says Anindya. “In a way, what we want to do with Kolkata Classics is we want people to go back and make these forgotten places popular. They have some really fascinating stories. We hope to make eating an experience, not just a pitstop at a fancy cafe,” adds Dolon.
The winter-special walks will continue until March or until the weather plays nice. Cabin walks will be a year-round affair, and some walks will be “seasonal variations” – just like spicing up your favourite dish!
Bites from the course
Dolon, Anindya, chef Rinku and Madhushree. Rinku has a Kolkata-inspired street food venture called Raastawala in London
Where did Kolkata Classics take British-born Bengali chef Rinku Dutt when she was in town last week? To Adarsha Hindu Hotel for a “pice hotel experience”! “The roots of pice hotels run deep in Kolkata’s history. Originally boarding houses, they emerged during British rule when Kolkata was a bustling commercial hub. Workers from neighbouring states, separated from their families, sought affordable dining options here as British-run restaurants were beyond their means. Skilled cooks from places like Orissa and Midnapore migrated to Kolkata, offering home-style cooked meals. Although the boarding houses vanished over time, the legacy of pice hotels endured,” explains Anindya.
Ghugni is sprinkled with diced cucumber, onion and green chillies (and right) ‘cha aar adda’
If you’re on the north Kolkata Breakfast Food Walk, you can’t miss Bholanath Cabin in Bagbazar. Kolkata’s booming breakfast culture goes back way before fancy cafes. People have been flocking here for a good 40-50 years, not only to have a cup of tea, but also for adda. And it’s not just tea; they’ve got ghugni, bread toast, and the classic deem pao ruti on the menu too.
At Potlar Dokan
The Kolkata Classics duo with a plate of the famous Potlar kochuri in Bagbazar, from the more than a century-old Potlar Dokan. “Quite possibly the best in north Kolkata,” feels Dolon.
At New Naba Krishna Guin
With a plate of Ram Bonde from New Naba Krishna Guin, the more-than-180-year-old-shop on Nirmal Chandra Street in Bowbazar. Learn more from the Kolkata Classics post on Instagram here.
At Mahal Pice Hotel
Meet Mahal in College Street, not your typical old-school pice hotel, but it’s got another story to tell. It all began in the kitchen of the Presidency Boarding House, the same spot that set the scene for Byomkesh Bakshy’s adventures. “Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay, the author, was once a boarder at Presidency as a student. When he started writing the novels, he envisioned the very house where Byomkesh lived. In the Sushant Singh Rajput movie, the first shot, where Byomkesh enters the house, was inspired by its original state. When the house closed down, they transformed it into the Mahal Pice Hotel we know today,” shares Dolon.
More than 100 years old, Kalika Mistanna Bhandar is most famous for singhara and mishti. (Right) Putiram, located in the bylanes behind Presidency College, from where Anushka Sharma tried the kochuri and chholar dal when shooting in Kolkata for Chakda ’Xpress in 2022.
If you’d like to register for Kolkata Classics Food Walks, DM the founders on Instagram here or call +919830280735
