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Along with riding in yellow taxis characteristic of the city, a tourist-y visit to Victoria Memorial to admire its colonial facade, consuming copious amounts of mishti doi, pandal hopping provided its the right time of the year, and photographing the Howrah bridge right before sunset to contribute to your aesthetically pleasing Instagram feed, there is one other thing that you need to do to fully experience the sensory overload that is Kolkata — treat yourself to the overwhelming variety of street food the city of joy has to offer. And everyone living in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore can do just that without even leaving their cities. Monkey Bar is collaborating with Iti Misra, a well-renowned food connoisseur from Kolkata, to bring to your tables the street food of Kolkata.
“It’s not Bengali food, it’s street food of Kolkata,” states Misra, hoping to do away with the common misconception that people have when they hear the words ‘food’ and ‘Kolkata’ together. Misra and Monkey Bar’s head chef, Dheeraj Varma, have achieved through their carefully curated menu something that scientists all over the world have been working towards tirelessly — teleportation. In a matter of seconds, you will find yourself standing in the bustling streets of Kolkata while devouring pakodi chaat standing next to Victoria Vada Chaat’s inconspicuous stall or in an instant be packed like sardines in Mitra Cafe while polishing off the common man’s version of a popular colonial finger food — fish roll. “If I were to describe the street food of Kolkata in one word, it would be cosmopolitan. A trip to all the diverse street food vendors in Kolkata is as good as going on a Bharat darshan. We have everything from Marwari kochuris to Tibetan momos,” says Misra.
Misra’s eyes light up when she talks about food, and the same enthusiasm is reflected in Chef Varma’s demeanour when he begins to describe how his Kolkata adventure unfolded as he visited close to 30 street vendors while narrowing down on the dishes that would finally be included in the menu. “I am the theory and he’s the practical,” says Misra when asked about how they went about curating the menu. “Aunty (Misra) thanks to her expertise made an extensive list of possible dishes, I then visited Kolkata, went to each and every place on the list and tasted, as you can imagine, an unrealistic amount of food. We had a few disagreements about what to include, both of us had our favourites you see, we finally narrowed down on three main courses, seven side plates and three cocktails,” says Varma. “We wanted there to be some kind of synergy, we wanted to keep the flavour intact, but at the same time have elements of surprise. Our main concern was to make sure the food goes with what Monkey Bar stands for. Would someone be able to eat these dishes easily while sipping on a pint of beer, convenience and ease were major factors while structuring the menu,” adds Misra.
As Misra and Varma talk us through the process of curation, the food arrives and saying that it did not disappoint would be an understatement. First up was the Beadon Street Fish Roll, at first glance it looked like a slightly bigger version of a fish stick, and the fact that it is inspired by the fish rolls the Britishers would snack on, you bite into it completely unaware of the surprise you are in for. Inspired by the fish roll served at Mitra Cafe, which is located on Beadon Street in Kolkata, the thing that stands out the most about this dish is how beautifully the kasundi mustard compliments the smoked Kolkata bhekti and curried shrimp that constitute the fish roll. “Kasundi and fish is a marriage made in heaven. Also, since the locals did not have access to tartar sauce, they made their own rendition with mayonnaise and local mustard, which not just replaces the tartar sauce beautifully but gives it the quintessential Kolkata kick,” says Misra. The Beadon Street Fish Roll also happens to be Misra’s favourite dish on the menu.
When asked about his favourites, Varma answers promptly “Chicken Rezala”. The Chitpur Road Chicken Rezala is a mildly flavoured white chicken curry that is served with a triangular paratha or as it is referred to in Kolkata — teen kona porota. The rezala perfectly fits the definition of comfort food. It’s full of flavour, but not overpowering, it fills you up and reminds you of home, and it leaves you feeling warm, fuzzy and ready for a nap. “It is imperative that the chicken is cooked on the bone, since there aren’t too many spices involved, the broth needs to be packed with flavour, which won’t happen if the chicken is deboned before cooking,” says chef Varma.
The menu has been designed so as to accommodate everybody. It has vegetarian options such as Quintessential College Street Hing-er Kochuri, Vardaan Market Moong Daal Pakodi Chaat and Vivekanand Park Ghooghni. The menu also includes non-vegetarian options for all as they have dishes that include seafood, chicken preparations, pork momos and options for eggetarians as well. But what sets Monkey Bar’s Kolkata inspired menu apart is the way they’ve married classic with the modern through the innovative concoctions that are their cocktails. The Piara Peara is inspired by slices of guava sold on the streets Kolkata, sprinkled with salt and red chilli powder. One whiff of the tequila-based cocktail and you can already taste the juicy guava, the glass’ rim is dusted with salt and red chilli powder and is a perfect rendition of the refreshing snack. The Puchka Pani Capriojka is, as the name suggests, inspired by tangy jaljeera that is synonymous to Indian street food. This drink can be lethal as you hurriedly gulp it down because even though it tastes absolutely delicious, the vodka will eventually creep up on you soon after. “Every time someone eats puchkas they say ‘Thora aur paani dena’, and that’s what Puchka Pani Capriojka will hopefully make you do — keep wanting for more.”
Monkey bar, along with Misra, has transformed Kolkata’s chaat into the perfect bar food. So if you want to experience the quintessential modern day Durga Puja, head to Monkey Bar as soon as possible.
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