This luxe Salt Lake diner serves a blend of authentic Bengali cuisine with colonial dishes

As you step into Devi Chowdhurani restaurant, take a mindful look around as you could catch the story of the famous lady dacoit who was the country's first female freedom fighter, after whom the diner has been named. The 70-seater restaurant with an old, zamindari house setting, features a blend of rustic and contemporary elements, with exposed brick walls, wooden furniture, and colourful accents. The use of warm lighting, traditional lanterns and an imposing painting of Devi Chowdhurani goes a long way to recreate the era. When asked why Triparna Mukherjee, the owner of the eatery, named it after a historical character, she says, “Born in a family of freedom fighters, and growing up amidst self-made women like grandmothers and mom, I had a deep respect for the legendary Devi Chowdhurani. This place is kind of a tribute to my elders.”

The place not only serves an elaborate Bengali menu, including thalis, but also long-lost colonial flavours, like Mutton pantheras, with which we started off our gastronomic trail. A popular snack during the colonial era, said to have been served by Raja Naba Krishna Deb to the Britishers, pantheras is a humble crêpe with a spicy mutton stuffing, only to be bread-crumbed and fried. Though we haven’t tried pantheras before, it tasted like an elevated version of a mutton cutlet, with a juicy and flavourful stuffing.

For our mains, we settled with white rice and Shalpata pora ilish. This was not just unique but also flavourful. Marinated slices of hilsa wrapped and grilled with aromatic green leaves created a unique smokey flavour with a hint of sweetness derived from the onion marination. The dish went extremely well with plain basmati rice. We also tried their Baanshe pora mutton, cooked in slow flame and distinctly different from the tribal baanshpora mutton. This version had spicy boneless pieces of mutton, wrapped in leaves and cooked inside hollow bamboo for long hours. The rich gravy, very similar to an authentic Bengali mutton kosha, had tender, fall-off-the-bones meat, which we relished with a drizzle of fresh lemon juice.

The elaborate Devi Chowdhurani thali is worth a try on any special occasion. Consisting of a welcome drink, and a plethora of traditional Bengali items including posto narkel bora, fish fry, chicken kosha, basanti pulao, kalo bhuna mutton, and daab chingri, among other delicacies, this thali has more dishes than any other diners could offer for your special days.

Meal for two: Rs 1500++

Timings: 11 am to 12 am

Where: At DN Block, Sector 5, Salt Lake.