The home of Satyajit Ray, Tagore and traffic. Kolkata never seems to get its shit together despite earnest efforts. Whilst being one of the most interesting cities to explore on the Indian subcontinent, it requires an immense amount of patience and forgiving. Every corner is a cacaphonic threat, horns piercing your very core, sirens and construction and screeching trams create the perfect environment for death if you suffer from any ear impairment.

Having said all of that, it is also the city of art. A city blessed with curious inhabitants, poets, writers, filmmakers. The streets exhude a certain enamouring air. You can get lost in thought at a traffic light, until the horn of a Tata bus hastens you back to your senses. Long weeks can be spent exploring the backalleys, markets and outer suburbs, and in all these destinations are the most excellent culinary treasures.

If we can recommend one thing on your trip to Kolkata, it would be to not confine yourself purely to the area around Park Street. Take a bus, taxi, metro and head out to some of the restaurants and bars/cafes mentioned below, and gain a true understanding of the mechanisms that slowly (and loudly) grind to keep this old machine moving, albeit at a snails pace.

Kudos to Puloma & Debjeet for some of the amazing tips in this Guide!

For a full link of all the places on google maps, click the icon below:

INDIAN COFFEE HOUSE

Noahs Ark could fit in here tidily with room to space, but this institution has to be seen to be believed. Climb the concrete steps, choose the main floor or the huge balcony, and flag down a waiter, order a coffee special and sit and soak in the incoherent chatter of mediating minds.

KUSUM ROLLS

No visit to Kolkata is complete without a chicken kathi roll at Kusums. Ask for your with NO KETCHUP and add egg. Devour it in a split second and go back and order another.

AZAD HIND DHABA

GLorious home-style chicken curries and chapatis are served here to a fiercely loyal clientele. One of our most ordered spots in Kolkata.

RUSSEL PUNJABI DHABA

At first you might convince yourself food poisoning is a free dessert, but rest assured the kitchen is clean and their Aloo Paratha is the best in town!

OUDH 1590

You come to Oudh for Biryani. The end

THE BLUE POPPY THAKALI

Momo's, Thukpa and all things Tibetan are served in this dynamite gem of a restaurant. Slip out of your shoes, plonk yourself down at a table and get ready to eat.

TAMARIND

South Indian food has never tasted better up North. Their lemon rice, their chicken curries, their prawn dishes are all to die for.

BHOJOHORI MANNA

Your spot for authentic West Bengali food, but for our tastes a tad on the sweet side. Worth eating at if you want to truly understand the local palate.

HAMRO MOMO

Get the fried Momo's here, steer clear of the Thukpa.

BALARAM MULLICK & RADHARAMAN MULLICK

Bengali sweet & savoury snack mecca. You can't really come to Kolkata and not hit this place.

ROASTERY

The perfect place to enjoy a drink and some conversation. The outdoor area is shady and pleasant, the coffee is acceptable.

TUNG FONG

Our downtown choice for "Chindian" food. BBQ round the corner is good too, but this one wins in terms of flavour.

ARSALAN

Sticking with the Park Street neighborhood, Arsalan is a staple in the Kolkata food scene for sumptuous biryani. Their chicken mixed grill plate is nothing to sneer at either.

OLYPUB

A titan in the Kolkata drinking scene, this old bar is more famous for its past than its present. However, it deserves a patronage for a quick lime soda or alcoholic beverage of your choosing.

BIG BOSS

By "Big", they mean GIGANTIC. A Chinese-Indian restaurant that serves up delectable dishes in Tangra area of Kolkata. You must, must, must try the Drums of Heaven.

EARTHCARE BOOKSTORE

A delightful, dark, dusty little bookstore to avert your attention from your smartphone and onto something tangible and real.

HUGO & FINN

Kolkata's most expensive, and decent, cup of coffee. Wes Anderson beware!

KUMARTULI

Head to this part of town if you want to explore lane after lane of religious effigies being built and painted. A fascinating way to spend an afternoon.

Food is forever evolving, and sometimes it devolves. Owners change, locations change, chefs change. We can only assure you that when we visited, we liked it.