Shubho Nabobarsho!

Bengalis love for food is legendary, amongst the many other passions that they indulge. In fact, the food from this land of Maach, Posto and Shorhse has garnered quite a lot of admirers that are growing by the day.

Leveraging on this popularity are several restaurants of Hyderabad that have launched Bengali Food Promotion on the occasion of the New Year. So, it’s time to gear up and satiate your love for fish, the amazing fries and some wonderful desserts that are so very signature of Amar Sonar Bangla.

At Park Hyderabad, Executive Chef Mandaar Sukhtankar roped in Swarnali Lahiri and her sister – who until now only cooked delicious meals at their home to cook special dishes with a majority of them from East Bengal, for the food festival, ‘Borsho Baran’. One can get to taste the likes of popular street food that includes Dimer Devil, fish fry, Echorer chop and the Bengal version of a samosa – Singhada and chutneys.

The chef’s love for the food met Swarnali home style recipes from both East and West Bengal, making for a hearty meal. On the menu are the traditionally Bengali vegetarian dishes like Posto bora (made out of carefully picked potol); Shukto, the assorted veggie preparation with a dash of panch phoron masala; the chennar tarkari that is packed with a punch of kasundi; Alur dom (potatoes in spicy gravy) and the moong dal.

And then on the menu are the not to be missed Begun Bhaja (Swarnali’s method that she learnt from her mother is not so oily – after marination she pan-fried the brinjal roundels giving them crispiness and tenderness in right proportions. The other bhajas that you can expect to eat include Karela bhaka and Aloo jhuri bhaja (the crisp fried potato shred).

There is ofcourse the Kosha Mangsho, Doi Macch and Prawn Malai curry that one can have with the aromatic Gobindo bhog rice or lucchi. You can follow up the main course with desserts like the Patishapata, Malai rosogolla and the Sandesh. Don’t forget to taste the Bengali Biryani, recommends Swarnali.

Bengali dishes will be served as a part of the vegetarian and non-vegetarian thali during lunch and dinner till April 16. The popular restaurant United Kitchens of India that put forth one of the best Bengali Food Festivals last year repeated the feat this year too. Specially curated Bengali menu will be available during both lunch and dinner till April 21 at Rs 799 (AI).

The all-day dining space ‘Chill’ at Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel will present Bengali dishes on their dinner buffet for 10 days. The festival is rightly named ‘Too Maach Bengali’ since it features some of the much loved fish – like the Bhetki and Katla in the jhol, paturi and fry versions, in addition to the biryani and other popular dishes.

It is interesting to note that – while restaurants are conceptualising special menus to mark the Bengali New Year – it is not just the Bengalis, but a lot of food loving Hyderabadis who are making the most of this overload of Bangla delicacies.