CafÉ Menu

The menu consists of simple recipes from the streets of India. But most definitely with a twisting the way they're presented or in the medley of ingredients that have gone into each item.

While masala chai is served in cut glass on glass holding hangers, signature gondhoraj lemon is served in old fashioned milkos bottles. Among simple hot and cold beverages are coffee, south Indian filter coffee, lassi, shakes, masala soda, masala cold drinks and special mocktail concoction with local ingredients and ice golas.

The finger food menu consists of local street foods like chanachur, jhal muri, kali barir aloor dum, ghugni, dim pauruti, Entally sausages and egg roll. Mumbai's mouthwatering street food comes alive in vada pao, kanda pao, Mumbai toasties, kolapuri missal, Parsee akuri, chocolate boat and tiramisu shots.

Their vadas preserve the South Indian palate. Anglo-Indian or the phiringee (firangi) influence is amply found in the chili cheese toast, homemade wafers, macaroni with American corn and scrambled eggs. The Chinese Wai Wai noodles and Dacres Lane chilli chicken add the contemporary flavour.

The munchies will be served in enamel - coated wares, which are specially designed by artist Kunal Manna from the Chanditala region of the Hooghly district in West Bengal. The CRC (cold-rolled coil sheets) are coated with enamel, dyed with colour and embossed with food emoticons and expressions to value add to the mood of the food served in the cafe.

THE DINING MENU

The dining menu is interesting in two ways. One, it uses old rustic ingredients (that are fresh) to pepper the nostalgic element. Two, it revives and in a sense evolves food that has long been forgotten (found previously in old clubs and north Kolkata restaurants).

So recipes were collected from the chefs of Taltala and Bow Barracks (to name a few), friends and their grandmothers, and from traditional old families that were differentiated by their cuisines. Essentially, the menu has its roots in traditional Indian and old continental influences with a stress on freshness and authenticity that will lead to a differentiated dining experience. Retro food, in a nutshell, with no frills in presentation. Some great examples are the prawn cocktail, coronation salad, spaghetti and vegetable au gratin, macaroni hot pie, asparagus crepe, fish meuniere and stroganoff.