KARMA KETTLE HAS good news for tea connoisseurs. The tea room at Ballygunge has branched out to a new address at Alipore, bringing exotic blends of tea to the table with an emphasis on a healthy menu. The 550 sq ft tearoom wears a European look with ornate chairs and wall décor and houses a store as well, for quick pickups.
As soon as we settled into the month-old café, we were treated to Tahiti, a caffeinefree drink in a tall glass that had the sweet notes of strawberry and hibiscus. With healthy-eating being the mantra, we were served some nutritious bowls of salads. A nutty treat, the Ancient Grains Salad, on a bed of quinoa and barley grains topped with assorted nuts and seeds like pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, slivers of almond when tossed in a secret sweet and tangy dressing, makes for a power-packed start. The Beetroot and Feta Cheese Salad was a surprise with the natural sweetness of the beetroot punched with the sour feta cheese. The dressing of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic honey mustard vinaigrette enhanced the taste further. From their all-day breakf ast menu, we relished Homemade Pesto Sourdough. The toppings of grilled chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and cheese made it a delectable bite.
They have pizzas as well on their menu and the thin crust pizza with mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes did not lose its zest even when it got cold. The superstars of the menu soon made an entry in cold and hot avatars. Among the hot beverages, while the Green Tea with Lychee and Rose exudes fruity notes, Bird Song, a white tea blend with lavender and cockscomb has therapeutic properties, as well as a soothing fragrance. We also loved the cold Blue Lagoon, a caffeine-free potion with lemongrass, butterfly pea flower and kaffir lime. From the Kolkata Collection, we sipped on Paan Chai. The smell of the gulkhand in the milkbased tea was comforting and nostalgic. The other flavours in the section include Lebu cha (lemon tea), Nolengur and kharjur cha (jaggery and dates tea) and Gondhiraj cha (kaffir lime tea). Karma Kettle’s pairing of food and tea brought to the table -— Macha and Orange Panna cotta. The bitterness of the Japanese green tea with gooey orange flavoured panna cotta is ideal for those who don’t want their dessert to be chocolaty or overtly sweet. Interesting surprises are there on the anvil and talking about it Dhiraj Arora, co-founder of the 20-seater café says, “I believe, Kolkata can make space for six more Karma Kettle outlets in the future. We are also planning to introduce new flavours like whiskey and rum in tea and also tea-infused popsicles.” Price for two `600 plus taxes