The Pride Hotel

When: Saptami lunch to Dashami dinner

12.30pm to 3pm; dinner till 1am

Other than lunch, New Town’s newest hospitality address will serve two dinner buffets. One will be on till 11pm, another till 1am. “The post-11pm menu will be less elaborate but wholesome nonetheless,” promises general manager Kenneth Scott. It will also cost less, Rs 799, compared to Rs 1,099 for the bigger spread.

The hotel, which turned a year old in August, is targeting the crowd coming back from a pandal-hopping spree from north Calcutta or from VIP Road.

A different selection will be on offer on each day. On Navami, for instance, the non-vegetarian selection will have Kochi Pathar Jhol, Murgi Palak Paturi, Ghote Bhapa Chingri and Borishaler Ilish. The paturi preparation has got a new interpretation by replacing fish with chicken. “We have shredded the most tender parts of chicken, marinated them with ginger-garlic-mustard paste and steamed it folded in banana leaf. This way those who do not like fish need not be deprived of the preparation,” said executive chef Kumarjyoti Chakraborty.

Different types of pulao would be served on each day. Rajnandini Pulao of Saptami tastes sweet and has vegetables, the Bengali Pulao of Navami is salty and Ratna Pulao of Dashami is sweet and has dry fruits. On Ashtami, the more familiar variety — Basanti Pulao — will be served.

The best part of the offering has to be the dessert. Seven types of sweets will be served daily. Besides the usual fare, they include the exotic Indrani, Chandrakala, Malai Balushahi, Kheerer Kochuri, Doodh Puli, Mishti Singara and Chhanar Jilipi. “All our sweets will be made in-house,” the general manager said.

The bar will serve unlimited drinks and snacks for any two hours between 11am and 11pm for Rs 799. For some, that is news to raise the spirit!

Sudeshna Banerjee
Picture by Mayukh Sengupta

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The Sonnet

When: Till Dashami dinner.

Noon to 4pm, 7pm to midnight. A la carte orders would be taken in between.

The DD Block hotel has taken a leaf out of the recipe books of grandmothers from both sides of the Indo-Bangladesh border and laid out an authentic spread of traditional Bengali spread.

Take the range of starters. Kotbel makha, batabi lebu makha, aamra bata, kasundi diye peyara makha...When was the last time you tasted any of these, or even heard of them? One tastes like alu kabli, the rest are non-pareil.

Those who love fritters would be in for a feast. Other than the familiar Alur Chop, Kumro Phul Bora and Dimer Devil, there are also the less familiar Chorbi Bora, Pat Patar Bora, Machher Bora and Posto Diye Pui Shaker Bora. Five varieties would be on offer daily.

A live counter would cook two different kinds of paturi every day. “People seldom get to see the process,” said food and beverage manager Soumen Halder. Other than the usual fish, expect prawn and even vegetables to be cooked this way, making for dishes like Potoler Paturi, Sheem Palong Paturi and Aam Kasundir Paturi.

The buffet menu also incorporates Continental items, like Grilled Fish and Pan-seared Chicken with Mushroom, as well as Chinese dishes like Vegetable Manchurian and Chilli Paneer for variety.

The spread of 36 dishes, including the welcome sherbet, costs Rs 944.

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Picture by Saradindu Chaudhury

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Bon apetit

When: Till Navami from 11am to 8.30pm

What happens when you take a traditional Bengali dish and give it a Continental twist? You get Apple Cinnamon Patishapta. And what happens when you take a continental dish and give it a Bengali twist? You get Mihidana Cheese Cake.

Mihidana Cheese Cake

This is how the Puja specials will taste at Bon Apetit, the AD Block hot spot best known for its continental snacks. While the combinations of food may seem unlikely, chef and proprietor Rahul Arora says he has taken a scientific approach to coming up with them. “As a chef one has to understand what to subtract from a recipe if one has added a new ingredient such that the essence of the dish remains unchanged,” he says.

Both the eggless desserts have turned out appetising. The winter-special patishapta is a treat to bite into on a rainy October evening, especially as it unfurls to taste like a soft apple pie. And one can distinctly taste the mihidana in the melt-in-your-mouth cheesecake. “The base of the cake is made of ginger biscuits, something that’s a must in every Bengali household. We thought it would add to the deja vu factor,” smiles Arora. A plate of two patishaptas costs Rs 65 and the cheesecake Rs 70.

If you’re looking to eat something more filling before heading to the pandals, try Panch Phoron Paneer Wrap or Panch Phoron Chicken Wrap. Both are served with tangy kasundi mayonnaise and achari coleslaw. The dough used in the wrap is the same as that used in kathi rolls but instead of making it like laccha parathas they’ve made it soft. “We chose panch phoron to flavour the filling as it is an indispensable ingredient used to cook puja bhog,” says the man who himself is fasting for Navratri.

The paneer wrap costs Rs 85 and the chicken one Rs 115.

Brinda Sarkar

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De Sovrani

When: Till Dashami lunch

Noon to 3.30pm (lunch), 7pm to 11.30pm (dinner)

The DD Block hotel is serving a traditional Bengali spread for the buffet, priced at Rs 835. There will be four non-vegetarian courses including a dish each of prawn, mutton, chicken and fish, four vegetarian dishes and 12 varieties of dessert, informs general manager Arnab Kumar Sen. With forefathers hailing from Dhaka, Sen has sourced a number of recipes from his family elders. “You can expect Laupatay Bhapa Chingri, Mourola Machher Bati Chochchori and Narkel Diye Murgi to be cooked just the way my grandmother made it,” he promises.

Every day, in the non-vegetarian selection, the main ingredient will be constant but the individual dish will change. “Expect prawn in various avatars like Narkel Sorshe Chingri, Chingrir Bati Chochchori and Chingri Machher Muri Ghonto,” says executive chef Barid Baran Sau.

The hotel will also keep a multi-cuisine a la carte menu for those not wanting the Bengali buffet.

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Picture by Sudeshna Banerjee

(Prices of all dishes are inclusive of taxes)

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Charnock’s

When: Till Dashami dinner. Noon to 4pm, 7.30pm to 12.30am

Picture by Sudeshna Banerjee

The restaurant opposite Salt Lake stadium is best known for the spectacular view it offers from the ninth floor. And that is the reason why it is not offering a buffet.

“We saw last year that people prefer to wait for a seat in our a la carte section rather than take a seat in our lower level banquet where we had served a buffet meal,” says assistant restaurant manager Subhajit Kundu.

And new on the menu is a selection of fusion food. Kacha Lonkar Mangsho is being served with Cous Cous Biryani (for Rs 556), Bhapa Ilish with Mushroom Kulcha (for Rs 686). “We had offered Ilish Biryani with Wasabi Raita in our menu a month ago. It was such a hit that we decided to expand our fusion section,” Kundu said.

There are standalone items too that the chef expects to be winners. On top of his list is Murg Perluft (Rs 556). “It is boneless chicken wrapped in cheese mashed with egg,” says chef Mohd. Ashiq. It is baked in the tandoor but somehow the cheese does not melt and forms a crisp golden coat.

Starring the dessert section, there is Mango Kulfi (Rs 179) but with a twist. The Alfonso pulp has been scooped out and mixed with condensed milk and khoya kheer before refrigerating. The innovation tells on the taste.

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