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Chef Shamsul Wahid talks about the new menu of this Park Street restaurant
Park Street Social has an all-new revamped menu, which is undoubtedly an exquisite blend of traditional flavours and modern innovation that captures the spirit of the City of Joy. Chef Shamsul Wahid, group executive chef and the man behind the brilliant flavours at Social and Smoke House Deli, was in the city recently, and he took some time out to discuss what the new menu comprises.
Excerpts:
Tell us about the new menu at Social.
We have made changes in terms of the format, as to what the components of a particular dish should be like, especially for the platters, and introduced new items on the menu that are more centred around Kolkata’s palate.
In the new menu, a lot of new vegetarian items have been added, including cult favourites, Paneer butter masala. We have introduced Khao suey, momos with more meat, and the city’s favourite Chelo kebab. We have tried to incorporate the Park Street vibe into our menu.
Talking about Chelo kebab, did you want to replicate the one available at Peter Cat or serve it as something more innovative?
We have tried to keep it closest to the iconic Peter Cat recipe, and I think we’ve done a decent job with it. I won’t brag that it’s better than theirs. One thing I have learned about Kolkata is that you can’t mess around with something that they like. So, we haven’t done that. For something that is purely a Kolkata favourite, we have just matched the technique and kept the dish authentic to the cult recipe.
What’s your take on fusion food?
Fusion food is like a double-edged sword — it is like a step ahead of basic cooking. Fusion is making two extremes meet but in a balanced way, and to create that balance, the basics need to be top-notch. Once you have that right, only then can you take it a step ahead.
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According to you, what is the most underrated Indian and global cuisine?
The most underrated global cuisine would probably be Caribbean cooking. It’s got a lot of mileage, but nobody explores it. African cuisine is probably not too much out of Africa, you know, it’s just there. And when it comes to India, I think it’s the Northeastern cuisines.