Metro secrets - Kolkata
EAT
The place: Charcoal Grill
Where: Park Circus
Why it’s hot: This brand new 300-seater, 14,000-square foot, multi-speciality restaurant boasts of three different kitchens and three separate floors for North West Frontier, coastal and Chinese cuisine. There is a live seafood kitchen and an elaborate wine library.
Must try: Coorgi roast crab, Squid koliwada.
Cost: Rs 1,800
Open: 12 noon-11 p.m.
Contact: 91-9831188188
Business Class
The place: China Town
Where: Tangra, East Kolkata
Why it’s hot: Fancy authentic Chinese cuisine? Drive down to Tangra for a taste of real China. Crab claws and stuffed prawns served with vodka or whisky and stir fried mushroom are just some of the mouth-watering cuisine that will satiate your taste buds. Once home to nearly 50,000 ethnic Chinese, this is perhaps India’s only real ‘China Town’. The rich and famous of the city can often be seen here. The stretch has around 25 Chinese restaurants of different sizes. Beijing, Sing Ching and Kafulok are some of the better-known places. Some even offer complimentary ice creams.
Cost: Rs 900 to Rs 1,400
Open: 12 noon-11 p.m.
Contacts: Sing Ching: 91-9874304550;
Golden Joy: 033-23297488
Economy class
The place: Tiretti Bazar
Where: Near Poddar Court, Bentinck Street
Why you must visit it: If you land up here after 7.30 a.m., you may have to return hungry. Wake up early and reach here around 6 am. On offer are light soups—basic broths with a few greens as well as chicken foot stirred in. Also try fishballs in Sichuan chilly and soft Chinese bread with a variety of fillings.
Cost: Rs 200
Open: 5.30 a.m.-7 a.m.
STEP OUT
Short trip
The place: Mandarmani beach
Where: Near Digha
Why it’s a must visit: This is a newly discovered beach and one of the longest motorable stretches of beach in India. Mandarmani beach on the Bay of Bengal, 163 km off Kolkata, is a visual delight. Start off early morning from Kolkata and you will be driving along the hard beach of Mandarmani in three hours. However, if driving during the monsoons, find out high tide timings because the water may reach the motorable stretch during high tide. Spend hours staring at the blue water, walk along the sands, visit the fishing village nearby, go fishing and hunting red crabs. You can buy terracotta and bamboo artefacts and try your hand at moulding clay. Top-end resorts like Debraj Beach Resort and Sana Beach Resort serve exotic seafood.
Contact: The Sana Beach (91-9339146222)
CHECK OUT
The place: Job Charnock’s Mausoleum & St. John’s Church
Where: Near Dalhousie Square
Why you must see it: Recently, the offices of Sheriff of Kolkata, Archbishop of Kolkata and Kolkata Municipal Corporation have restored and renovated the St. John’s Church and Job Charnock’s Mausoleum. Your tour guide may not take you there but if you have interest in the history of the city, spare some time for these oldest surviving masonry structures in Kolkata. The mausoleum was erected sometime between 1695 and 1697 by Charnock’s eldest son-in-law Charles Eyre. The octagonal structure with serrated parapet crowned with a domed kiosk surmounted by an urn is distinctly Islamic. Clearly in the absence of British architects, Charles relied on local talent. Aurangzeb was then still alive and Bengal was under Mughal rule. Right in front of Charnock’s mausoleum on Church lane is the tomb of Begum Frances Johnson— the grand old lady of 18th century European Calcutta who outlived all her four husbands.
Entry time: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Entry fee: Rs 10
WALK
Where: Kolkata Business District
Why you should take this walk: Follow the footsteps of history and take this heritage walk. It highlights the evolution of Kolkata from where it all began— Dalhousie Square. Christened ‘Footsteps’, the Dalhousie Square tour takes people on a two-kilometre (two-hour) trip around some 15 buildings in the area, including the imposing Writers Building, the newly renovated Town Hall, the St. John’s Churchyard and the historic Metcalfe Hall.
After the walk: Head to Aaheli in Peerless Inn, for an authentic Bengali lunch.
SURF
The place: College Street
Where: Near Presidency College
Why you must visit it: College Street, popularly called ‘Boi Para’, is dotted with over 500 book kiosks. It is the largest secondhand book market in the world and boasts of a collection of almost any title ever sold. One can still buy rare books at throwaway prices. While walking along College Street, make it a point to drop into the Indian Coffee House, where the cream of Bengal’s intelligentsia once used to meet over a cup of ‘infusion’.
Open: 9:30 a.m. (Six days, Sunday closed)
My favourite bookstore
Amit Chaudhuri, Author: I liked Landmark till the ownership changed. Seagull is also an old favourite of mine, where I love browsing.
SHOP
The place: 85 Lansdowne
Where: Sarat Bose Road-Hazra Road Crossing
Why you must shop here: This boutique is a power-packed design destination. On offer at the 70-year-old mansion are some of the nation’s best-known labels along with some new ones. Each item is priced without an added mark-up margin.
‘85 Lansdowne’ also promises to promote new talent through exhibitions.
Open: 10 a.m to 7 p.m.
