Kolkata: Eat Your Way Around India's Famous Bengali Capital

I arrived at my Kolkata hotel, the five star ITC Sonar (30 minute drive from the centre of town), a little worse for wear after a few too many gins on the flight over.

Fortunately for my addled brain, the hotel is a striking contrast to how you'd imagine a big Indian city to be – it's all quiet lily pads, orange trees and marble floors, and my own personal butler, Lisa, who was always on hand with a gin when needed (though first, coconut water).

The Space:

The capital of West Bengal, bordering with Bangladesh in the North of India, Kolkata (as Calcutta) was one of the British Empire’s most important cities – and it remains a bustling metropolis today with faded period architecture, bags of history and giant trees lining the roads.

The Vibe:

It’s busy: Like all of India’s cities, Kolkata is a bustling hive of activity. The only thing moving slowly is our taxi, stuck in a jam on our way to see the Kumortuli statues, in mid-creation ready for the upcoming Puja festival (a must see!).

Between the piled-high roads are higgledy piggeldy buildings that give way to tiny winding alleys, leading towards the slums, juxtaposed with period facades still standing strong, all decorated with a mixture of banana leaf canopies and tarpaulin.

At every junction a little stall is set up, with delicious smells mingling with the scent of tropical heat and diesel.

It’s safe: My taxi driver explains in roundabout English that we don’t have to worry about walking the streets of Kolkata. It may be India’s second largest city, and it may have a complicated history but it’s safe. I later taste this when we park the taxi on the street so I can check out the market, with Mac laptop-containing backpack in full view on the back seat. (Yes, I’m an idiot but it was fine.)

The Brag:

Eating all the food in Kolkata and it tastes nothing like anything on Brick Lane #india #goodthing

The Instagram Shot:

#GIANTNAAN!

The Hits:

The Food: I am stuffed to the brim for my entire visit and it’s wonderful.

Kolkata’s food scene is a vibrant sensory overload, and the country’s most cosmopolitan mix of different parts of its culture, from Anglo-Indian dishes inspired by the Empire, to Chinese and even Jewish bakeries, as well as its more localised Bengali cuisine.

Anyone who’s eaten in India will tell you the food is ‘nothing like’ the Indian takeaways you get in the UK. But fear not – there’s stillplenty to recognise. Though I agree in all cases it’s been improved upon a hundred fold.

When you arrive, you should put down any fears you have of Indian street food and get stuck in. The water quality has improved dramatically in the last decade and if you head to stalls that are busy and have a regular turnover, the food is fresh and tasty. Obviously washing everything down with Indian beer and gin and tonics is to be recommended.

Favourite dishes to try include Phuchka, a mashed potato-based ball sold from street stalls in little leaf baskets and dipped in a tangy tamarind sauce; and kati rolls from Kusum Rolls stall. They’re naan-esque but thinner so they roll better into wraps and are packed with meat and onions – and of course stuffed with flavor.

My mouth is watering from the memory.

For sit down meals, the hotel really shone and it’s recognised as a foodie destination for locals and international visitors alike.

Breakfast at ITC Sonar is a lush affair and you can go continental or Indian. Really, you should go Indian at least once.

When mine arrives it’s a spicy dahl-like curry to get the day off to a bang, paired with light, airy puris, glistening with delicious oil.

At this point I should remind you, you’re not in India every day so do not even think about trying to take it easy on the food and watch your waistline. So not worth it.

My favourite dining experience of the stay was at the Peshwari restaurant at the hotel.

We perhaps went overboard with the ordering, choosing at least one of almost everything on the menu, from fragrant lamb leg to curried fish, succulent paneer and fresh veggie dishes.

And all this came with the biggest naan I am ever likely to see, that sat proudly on a pedestal in the centre, allowing each of us to rip bits off as we needed it to soak up our lovely sauces and satays.

Another absolute highlight was the kulfi – ice cream but so much creamier, it blew my mind. The best was at the hotel’s Dum Pukht restaurant – don’t eat so much of the main course that you can't fit it in!

The Markets: You can’t miss Indian markets so steel yourself for a crush and a sensation of tastes, smells, cheap plastic goods, jangling metal jewellery and more scarves and vibrant materials than a party at Roman Road.

Definitely buy some cheap scarves, some pungent spices and if you like, some cheap jewellery. Good jewellery is tucked away around the back but if you’re foreign and on holiday you’ll be excessively welcomed to buy, so keep your wits about you.

There’s no need to worry about them though. As a 5”2” little white woman alone I never felt threatened or out of my depth so there’s no need to worry about even the busy pre-Puja markets.

The Spa: After a day in the crush there is genuinely nothing like coming back to an hour and a half spa experience. The staff talk about the massages as journeys and many last over an hour and will have you struggling to stay awake (though if you do nod off, you’ll wake up with silken skin).

I tried the Pomegranate Experience on my first night and it was lulling, relaxing and left me feeling rejuvenated and beautified. Not bad for post 20 hour travel time (I was delayed) and a hangover.

If you have time before dinner, slip out to the huge outdoor pool for a few laps under the moonlight – it’s bliss.

The Misses:

The juxtaposition of staying at a luxe hotel in a vibrant, developing city can be tricky. Staying outside the centre affords you a relaxing break (especially after a long flight), but also means the hotel staff don’t always understand the curious British traveller’s desire to get out there and get a taste of the real Kolkata.

Our insistence at trying the street food garnered us worried looks and concern for our stomachs. (Though of course it could also have simply been the knowledge that some of the finest chefs and menus in the whole of India, not just Kolkata, are found right there in the hotel – so why would we want to go to the street sellers?).

This concern stretches to other areas so if you want to go and have a wander, stand your ground and don’t let the any well-meaning locals talk you into being escorted. There’s really no need.

Though, having said that, I did have to take numerous selfies with the locals as I walked round the Victoria Memorial, so be prepared to be something of a celebrity for the day.

The other major drawback to the city – though something you’ll learn if you travel more in India generally – is the traffic. There’s no escaping it, and mostly it’s better to walk if you’re not going particularly far.

The Deets:
Flights to Kolkata with Air India start from £450
Room rates at ITC Sonar, Kolkata, start from INR 10500++ (£105 +taxes) for an Executive Club room, B&B

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