As a foodie, I keep writing about food less talked about, and it would be absolutely unfair to not talk about the bite-sized ecstasy of kathi rolls as it stands tall, ranking sixth among the best wraps in the world. That should make every Calcuttan proud! My sheer happiness and pride pull me once again to the classic hits from then and now.
Nizams, Esplanade: Where Calcutta Rolled Out This Culinary Brilliance
23 & 24 Hogg Street, New Market Area
What now India calls the famous kathi roll, started right here in a colonial building of Hogg Market of Calcutta — the Nizams. During the British reign, Nizams was basking in the glory of serving the best mutton kebabs, but the grease and oil was something that the British officers frowned upon. It was during the governance of Lord Mountbatten when the British officials would line up at the shop for a quick bite. This is when Sk. Hasan Reza, the then-owner of Nizams, came up with the ingenious idea of wrapping the kebabs with a flatbread paratha as a remedy for the British officials wary of oily hands, thereby inventing the first ever kathi kebab roll.
The roll wasn’t just food — it was convenience folded in nostalgia. And Reza’s finesse in the making of tender delicious kebabs acquired from his forefathers in Lucknow soon started winning hearts. The metal skewers were replaced with bamboo sticks, giving it the name ‘kathi’, and thus it started ruling the city ever since.
My encounter with this place would take place during Christmas shopping at Hogg Market, when the day would come to an end with a beef roll stuffed in my hand. Then the roll counter used to be right on the street with the tender paratha that gave way to smokey kebab, caramelised onions, and that dash of lime hitting the soul before it reached the tongue. For a fleeting second, I wasn’t just eating — I was travelling through time.
Today, even as new roll shops mushroom across the city, Nizams stands tall with their iconic invention. Some call it a snack. I call it history you can hold in your hand.
Badshah
Lindsay Street, New Market Area
Ever since it’s inception in 1968, Badshah has been reigning New Market alongside Nizam’s. It was owned by the Duttaguptas, and, as luck would have it, a childhood friend of mine named Somdeb turned out to be from the same Duttagupta family carrying forward their art of making kathi rolls. In fact, my first encounter with Badshah took place through him when his sisters invited me during Bhai Phonta. My Bhai Phonta every year meant finishing off the ceremony in haste only to rush to their signature tender mutton skewered in double sticks and sprinkled with their special Badshah masala as a treat. Not a year went by when I skipped their Mutton Badshahi Roll on that day.
Till today, this legendary counter draws crowds that cross over the pavement, especially in the weeks leading up to Durga Puja, when the air smells of autumn, chhatim (satan wood) and kebabs for sure!
The Mutton Badshahi Roll still remains my undisputed classic — succulent mutton boti kebabs tucked into a golden paratha, glazed with spice. The Egg Badshahi Roll is also something to drool over, but their boti kebabs are something you surely will keep coming back for time and again.
Hot Kati Roll
1/1 Park Street, Esplanade AreA
It was during my sophomore years when we would often visit a restaurant named Peiping just a few steps away from Hot Kati Roll, which would come to our rescue when we would run out of budget. Since 1987, Hot Kati Roll has been serving rolls on Park Street. Started by the Ahmed family, now run by Md Aslam, Nisar Ahmed, and their sons, Hot Kati Roll has grown into a name synonymous with Calcutta’s roll culture. From office workers to college goers, everyone has their Hot Kati cherished and snug somewhere between hunger and nostalgia.
Even today, their Egg Chicken Roll remains my undisputed favourite — soft paratha layered with egg, wrapped around juicy, smoky chicken, onions, and that signature squeeze of lime that wakes up every sense. But it’s their new Chicken Tikka Kathi Roll that’s turning heads — tender tikka chunks charred to perfection. The brand soon plans to open a new outlet near RDB Cinemas in Sector V, Salt Lake.
Kusum Rolls
21 Park Street, Esplanade Area
Amidst the posh street with bright signages, the best way to spot this haven is to never look for its name but the queue that lines up every day tirelessly.
The menu still hangs on the wall, with over 30 varieties of rolls at affordable prices. The Double Egg Double Mutton Roll is still the bestseller, greasy and glorious in all the right ways. But my personal favourite remains Egg Liver Roll — a rare gem that almost no other shop in Calcutta dares to serve.
I’ve spent countless college evening escaping my friends and their earnest requests, excusing myself on account of house emergencies only to avoid sharing my roll. Even today, when I walk past Park Street’s shiny restaurants, it’s that stall and its foil-wrapped magic that pulls me back. Kusum’s doesn’t need to shout to be known — it’s a habit, a memory, a taste that just stays as the favourite for every Calcuttan.
Campari
155B Rash Behari Avenue, Gariahat Area
If you want to understand Calcutta’s eternal romance with street food, you must stop by Campari at Gariahat. For over decades, this small counter has been the beating heart of South Calcutta’s snacking culture and my go-to place during my childhood years while growing up in Ballygunge.
Their Special Tandoori Fish Roll is the undisputed star — chunks of soft bhetki, grilled till smoky and tender, wrapped in a flaky paratha is something hard to resist. Till date it is run by a brother-sister duo with a mic sending orders to the kitchen.
I still remember one July evening, standing by their counter, holding a warm roll when the rain hit the pavement. As the rain-soaked earthy smell met the charred sizzling aromas of their mutton kebabs, Gariahat’s cacophony turned sublime. That’s what Campari feels to me even today — unpretentious, unforgettable, and essential to Calcutta’s soul coming to life.
Haji Saheb
476 Diamond Harbour Road, Behala Bazar Area
Founded in 1995, this renowned eatery in the then slowly bustling streets of Behala has long been a favourite for its rolls and biryanis. Even till date, the stall carries the same smoky aroma that once filled the lane — an aroma that has become a part of Calcutta’s collective memory. The Double Chicken Roll still draws long queues till the shutter goes down.
I still remember my uncle bringing home their rolls — wrapped in old paper, blotted and slightly greasy. My brother and I would tear them open before the plate even hit the table, fighting over bites. That one roll would bring a halt to our never-ending mischief in the Chaudhury household with silence interrupted by nothing but our satiating chews.
Years later, Haji Saheb still stands the same. The world around it may have changed, but Haji has always been a constant.
New Arafat Restaurant
75B Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road, Wellesley Area
This 28-year-old establishment in Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road came to my notice once I became a musician. Back then, I would often be invited by my Anglo-Indian friends from St. Xavier’s College to play. We would hang out near the Gol Talab (fishing pond) in Wellesley and once dusk would set in, I would halt by New Arafat for their quintessential beef rolls oozing with robust flavours in the mouth, only to walk back home with a happy heart and tummy.
Tucked away near Janbazar, New Arafat Restaurant has been a quiet favourite since the early ’90s. A no-frills place with flickering tubelights and comfort, it’s where students and office goers find their way after sunset.
Run by the same family for decades, Arafat is best known for its Beef Roll — smoky, spicy, and wrapped tight — and its rich Beef Dal Gosht, which I believe can never have a substitute!
Anamika Roll Centre
Triangular Park, New Alipore Area
Established in 1979 by Tarak Chandra and Nitai Das, Anamika Roll Centre has stood quietly in Alipore — unchanged, unfazed, and ever aromatic. Now run by Somnath Chandra, the stall remains a neighbourhood favourite.
The menu has boasted of more Bengali rolls stuffed with a melange of potatoes, julienned cucumber and onion with drizzles of sauces. But what made it stand out and be frequented by legends like Sourav Ganguly and Leander Paes, is their varieties like Aalu Roll, Onion Roll, Paneer Roll, Aalu Egg Roll, and Chicken Aalu Roll — each one simple, hearty, and deeply satisfying. Although not kathi rolls, Anamika deserves a mention, standing tall with its simplistic reflection of Bengali emotions and for sure the urge to create the best out of anything. There’s not much childhood memory attached to Anamika, but there’s not a single day when I pass by Anamika and see the spot desolate.
As much as my city’s legacy lives through the cracked walls seeping with our traditions, our literature, the history and our masterminds, so does the very cauldron of flavours while reverberating the very heart of this legacy. Exceptional and inimitable in its truest sense, we Bengalis are foodies for reasons fair enough, finding joy in every culinary invention that wind up by the lanes.
Debaditya Chaudhury is a Calcutta-based food entrepreneur and musician. He is the founder of the Chowman group and co-founder of period-dining concepts Oudh 1590, Chapter 2 and Chaudhury and Company with over 52 restaurants across India. The Xaverian is also the keyboardist of the popular Bangla band Lakkhichhara.